NEW DELHI: Government offices in India lowered the national flag on Friday for a week of mourning for former prime minister Manmohan Singh, whose economic reforms helped transform the country into one of the world’s fastest-growing economies.

The first Sikh to lead the nation, Singh served a rare two terms as prime minister from 2004 to 2014. He died on Thursday at the age of 92.

The government declared a period of mourning until Jan. 1.

“During this period the national flag will be flown at half-mast throughout India where it is regularly flown and there will be no official entertainment during the period of state mourning,” the Ministry of Home Affairs said.

“It has also been decided that the state funeral will be accorded to late Dr. Manmohan Singh.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to Singh, saying the former leader would be remembered as a “kind-hearted individual, a scholarly economist,” and a leader dedicated to reforms.

“He steered the country out of a financial crisis and paved the way for a new economic direction,” Modi said in a video message.

“His contributions as the prime minister toward the country’s development and progress will always be cherished.”

Singh was born in Gah, now in Pakistan, but his family migrated to India during the partition of the subcontinent in 1947.

He completed his economics degree at the University of Cambridge and earned a doctorate at Oxford with a thesis on the role of exports in India’s economy.

After teaching economics at the University of Punjab, he went to work for the UN Conference on Trade and Development, and later served as economic adviser to the Indian government until he was appointed to head India’s central bank in 1982, and served finance minister from 1991 to 1996.

In the early 1990s, India faced a deep economic crisis, and Singh played a pivotal role in transitioning the country from a closed economy to a more open, liberalized system. This shift set India on a path of sustained growth for decades.

It was also during his term that India signed a landmark civil nuclear deal with the US, despite not being a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The deal granted India access to advanced American nuclear technology.

“Manmohan Singh will be remembered for initiating economic reforms and aligning the country with the West. The foreign policy crafted during that phase has been pursued vigorously by Narendra Modi,” Sanjay Kapoor, analyst and political editor, told Arab News.

“Among his major achievements are the raising millions of those living below the poverty line and strengthening democratic institutions.”

Singh was asked to take on the prime minister’s job by Sonia Gandhi, who had led the center-left Congress party to a surprise victory in 2004.

“Manmohan Singh Ji led India with immense wisdom and integrity. His humility and deep understanding of economics inspired the nation,” Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said.

“I have lost a mentor and guide. Millions of us who admired him will remember him with the utmost pride.”

BAMAKO/LAS PALMAS, Spain: At least 69 people died after a boat headed from West Africa to the Canary Islands capsized off Morocco on Dec. 19, Malian authorities said, as data showed deaths of migrants attempting to reach Spain surged to an all-time high in 2024.
The makeshift boat was carrying around 80 people when it capsized. Only 11 survived, the Ministry of Malians Abroad said in a statement on Thursday, after collecting information to reconstruct the incident.
A crisis unit has been set up to monitor the situation, it added.
The Atlantic migration route from the coast of West Africa to Spain’s Canary Islands, typically used by African migrants trying to reach mainland Spain, has seen a surge this year, with 41,425 arrivals in January-November already exceeding last year’s record 39,910.
Years of conflict in the Sahel region that includes Mali, unemployment and the impact of climate change on farming communities are among the reasons why people attempt the crossing.
One person died among 300 people who arrived on six boats on Friday on the island of El Hierro in the Canaries, according to the Red Cross.
The Atlantic route, which includes departure points in Senegal and Gambia, Mauritania and Morocco, is the world’s deadliest, according to migrant aid group Walking Borders.
In its annual report released this week, the group said 9,757 migrants died at sea in 2024 trying to reach the Spanish archipelago from Africa’s Atlantic coast. A record 10,457 people — or nearly 30 people a day — died attempting to reach Spain this year from all routes, according to the report.
The route departing from Mauritania, which has been particularly well used this year by migrants leaving the Sahel region, was the deadliest, accounting for 6,829 deaths.
Walking Borders blamed a lack of action or arbitrary rescues and the criminalization of migrants for the surge in deaths at sea, accusing governments of “the prioritization of immigration control over the right to life.”