Present Governor of Pondicherry
The current Lieutenant Governor of the Union Territory of Pondicherry is Dr. Iqbal Singh.
Tenure of existing governorship of Dr. I. Singh
Dr. Singh was nominated as the present Governor of Pondicherry on 27th July, 2009. Singh has been successfully holding this position till date for the past 2 years and 1 month.
Political group of Dr. Iqbal Singh
He is affiliated to the Indian National Congress (I. N. C.).
Birth date of Dr. I. Singh
Dr. Singh was born on 4th June, 1945 at Okara Mandi of the state of Punjab in India.
Academic qualification of Singh
Besides getting honored by the D.Litt. Degree (Doctor of Letters) of the Andhra University on 5th December, 2009, he graduated from the Punjab University in 1969 in the field of Arts.
Early life of Dr. Iqbal Singh
Born to Late Mr. Lal Singh and Late Mrs. Santokh Kaur, Dr. I. Singh belongs to a known family of freedom fighters. In spite of being present in the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre of Amritsar in Punjab, Late Mr. Lal Singh somehow managed to survive from the British bullets. Dr. Singh's maternal uncle Mr. Baba Balwant Singh was even a freedom fighter, who was imprisoned innumerable time for going against the British rule. That includes imprisonment with Shaheed Bhagat Singh as well.
How did Pondicherry's existing Governor start his political career?
Being from the family of Indian freedom strugglers, Dr. Singh inherited the patriotism from his early age. His endeavor to work for national integration and keen interest towards politics made him become a part of politics since his college days. In the year 1978, Singh attended the International Youth Festival to represent the National Youth Congress of India. While serving as Punjab's General Secretary, he played a significant role by including Punjab's youth in Congress Party.
Apart from this, Iqbal Singh held numerous responsible positions in the National Congress Party of India. Dr. I. Singh served the All India Congress Committee as the Committee's Secretary for 12 long years.
Besides being the Congress Working Committee's permanent member, I. Singh was elected as a M. P. (Member of Parliament) in the Rajya Sabha Election of 1992. During that five years' tenure, Dr. Iqbal Singh worked as a member of many important committees like Raj Bhasha, scout, steel and tourism.
Remarkable achievements of Dr. Iqbal Singh
As a student, Dr. Iqbal Singh was known for promoting Punjabi as well as Hindi literature. Besides that, he has got record presence in the Parliament sessions. Without even being absent for one day, he raised voice for the wellbeing of children and deprived crowd of the country.
Being the Chairperson of the Committee formed by the Shipping Ministry, Dr. I. Singh received two Korean cargo ships "Hull 869" and "MT Guru Gobind Singh".
As the Transport Committee's Chairperson and Secretary, he spread Gandhian Philosophy of Peace and Non-Violence during the Centenary Celebration of Satyagraha.
In association with the contemporary Chief Minister of Punjab, Mr. Sardar Beant Singh, Dr. Singh tackled the danger caused by separatism and terrorism, which gripped Punjab for around 12 years.
Dr. Iqbal Singh, being a man of ideology, organized campaigns for blood donation and anti-drug awareness to support human values. Besides delivering speeches on social issues in radio and visual media, Dr. Singh even took responsibility to arrange wedding for families challenged with poverty. Singh took the lead role in helping the people affected by the flood in Bihar. He mobilized good amount of aid so that the flood affected people can get relief on time.
Dr. Iqbal Singh even advocated the spreading of awareness about "Global Warming" and the climate change caused by that. Iqbal Singh conducted regular programs related to environment so as to make people understand the significance of lowering down the release of green house gas.
Singh, being interested in sports from his school days, took initiative to promote sports. Besides promoting "Rural Sports" in the Panchayat level, Dr. Iqbal Singh founded "All India Surjit Hockey Tournament". He even holds the position of Chairperson in "Punjab Sports Welfare Society".
Dr. Iqbal Singh's love for music made him work towards promotion of music. Besides being the Chief Patron of "Harballabh Sangeeth Maha Sabha", a one hundred and twenty five years' old organization dealing with promotion of classical music, Dr. Singh is a trustee of "K.L. Sehgal Memorial".
Has Dr. I. Singh got any notable achievement in the field of literature?
Dr. I. Singh's passion for education and literature made him get associated with a number of educational institutions as well as organizations dealing with literature. He was interested in promoting Punjabi and Hindi literature from the college days. Later he became the trustee of organizations like "B.D. Arya Educational Institution" and "Bhai Vir Singh Sadhan", which works towards promoting Punjabi literature.
Dr. Iqbal Singh addressed the learned people of United Nations during the World Hindi Conference as well as proposed and introduced Hindi application forms in Indian Embassies of Canada, Germany, France, Russia, United Kingdom (U. K.) and United States of America (U. S. A.). Being a member of Raj Bhasha, he delivered many lectures for promoting Hindi language in numerous national and international conferences like those which are organized by the International Punjabi Society held in Canada, United Kingdom and United States of America.
Apart from publishing many articles in leading magazines and daily newspapers on social development, Dr. Singh published a Hindi book named "Bhartiya Sanskriti Aur Kurukshetra'. Released by the former Indian President, Mr. Shankar Dayal Sharma, that book won awards and appreciation. He even penned down numerous articles and a book on Guru Gobind Singh, the 10th Guru.
Whom is Singh married to?
He married Mrs. Gurinder Bir Kaur. The couple has got two sons.
How to contact the current Pondicherry Governor?
The contact details of Dr. Iqbal Singh are as follows:
- Tel. (Off.): + 91 - 413 - 2334051
Tel. (Res.): + 91 - 413 - 2334050
Fax: + 91 - 413 - 2334025
E-mail: lg.pon@nic.in
