Bharat Ratna For PV Narasimha Rao: All About the Former PM Who Launched Big Reforms

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday announced the highest civilian award of the nation, Bharat Ratna, for former Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao.

Along with former PM Rao, the award has also been announced for former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh and agricultural scientist Dr MS Swaminathan.

Taking to his official account on X, PM Modi wrote, “Delighted to share that our former Prime Minister, Shri PV Narasimha Rao Garu, will be honoured with the Bharat Ratna.”

He further wrote that as a distinguished scholar and statesman, Narasimha Rao Garu served India extensively in various capacities.

He said, “He is equally remembered for the work he did as Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, Union Minister, and as a Member of Parliament and Legislative Assembly for many years. His visionary leadership was instrumental in making India economically advanced, laying a solid foundation for the country’s prosperity and growth.”

“Narasimha Rao Garu’s tenure as Prime Minister was marked by significant measures that opened India to global markets, fostering a new era of economic development. Furthermore, his contributions to India’s foreign policy, language and education sectors underscore his multifaceted legacy as a leader who not only steered India through critical transformations but also enriched its cultural and intellectual heritage,” PM Modi added.

The former prime minister died of a heart attack on December 23, 2004.

Here is All You Need to Know About PV Narasimha Rao

• PV Narasimha Rao or Pamulaparti Venkata Narasimha Rao served as the prime minister of India between 1991 and 1996.
• He is best known for introducing sweeping economic reforms that liberalised the Indian economy.
• Born on June 28, 1921 near Karimnagar, in erstwhile Andhra Pradesh, Rao went to Pune’s Fergusson College. He then attended the Universities of Bombay and Nagpur, from where he received a degree in law. He is also known as a distinguished scholar who was fluent in many languages.
• Rao joined the Congress Party as an activist to fight for independence from Britain. He was also a member of the Andhra Pradesh state legislative assembly. Before becoming India’s prime minister, Rao represented Andhra Pradesh in the Lok Sabha. He was also the foreign minister.
• After Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated in 1991, the Congress (I) Party picked Rao as its chief and he then assumed charge as the prime minister. Rao started on his mission to reshape India’s economy by transforming it into a free-market.