Bhagwan Singh
Encyclopedia
Captain Bhagwan Singh was an India
n diplomat
, army officer, and administrator, who served as High Commissioner
of India to Fiji
, and subsequent to his retirement was prominent in Jat causes.
clan Agra
district of Uttar Pradesh
in India. His father, Bere Singh was in the Fiji colonial service.
After passing out from High School he joined Agra College. While at college Bhagwan Singh joined the mass movements and the Arya Samaj
, and wrote for Hindi newspapers. He came in contact with Vijay Singh Pathik
- known as the organiser of the Bijaulia Kisan Satyagraha fame in Mewar
and started working for his weekly ‘Sangharsh’, launched in collaboration with Acharya Narendra Dev.
Bhagwan Singh completed his MA degree in History from Agra College, Agra in 1940. Later during the Second World War, at the behest of Sir Chhotu Ram
, he accepted a commission in the army
.
, in 1945.
As a civil servant he served as:
’s the then Foreign Trade Ministry
, was posted to Suva
in Fiji as High Commissioner. Captain Bhagwan Singh was also accredited to the other South Pacific island countries. The Indian Foreign Service
saw in the posting as an intrusion into their well fortified preserve at the high levels of High Commissioner and Additional Secretary.
His appointment was significant in Oceania as his grandfather and grandmother were amongst the first group of Indian indentured labourers
to arrive in Fiji, which still has a large ethnically Indian minority. His father, Bere Singh, was born there and after receiving his education in India went back to serve in Fiji for 25 years. He was a symbol of pride not only to the Indians of Fiji whose forefathers had come as indentured labourers, but also to the people of different Pacific nations who were themselves emerging as free citizens of independent nations.
For five crucial years, 1971 – 1976, Captain Bhagwan Singh carried the name of India to almost every village of Fiji, and adjoining islands of South Pacific. In one of the last areas to emerge from western colonial rule, Captain Bhagwan Singh’s unorthodox blend of quiet diplomacy and high visibility in public relations, and his own flair to win friends and influence people, made him win the hearts of Pacific Islanders for his country.
The Prime Minister of India
, Mrs. Indira Gandhi
, appreciated his role in cementing the relationship between the two major ethnic groups of Fiji. As a bonus, she granted him unprecedented awards of two extensions in the service of Fiji, which was unpalatable to his colleagues in the Indian Foreign Service. This enabled him to act as the Dean of the growing diplomatic corps in Fiji.
Institute, Delhi, as well as the President of All India Jat Mahasabha where.
, Amar Shahid Chaudhari Shahmal, Raja Mahendra Pratap etc. The important books written by him are:
, has continued the family tradition of maintaining links with Fiji, when he was appointed the Indian High Commissioner to Fiji in 2005.
He has three daughters Abha Singh (married to K P Singh of Ford Motor Company in USA), Vibha Singh (married to Maharaja Digvijay Sinh of Wankaner) and Shubha Singh (married to Yatindra Kumar of Air India).
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n diplomat
Diplomat
A diplomat is a person appointed by a state to conduct diplomacy with another state or international organization. The main functions of diplomats revolve around the representation and protection of the interests and nationals of the sending state, as well as the promotion of information and...
, army officer, and administrator, who served as High Commissioner
High Commissioner
High Commissioner is the title of various high-ranking, special executive positions held by a commission of appointment.The English term is also used to render various equivalent titles in other languages.-Bilateral diplomacy:...
of India to Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
, and subsequent to his retirement was prominent in Jat causes.
Childhood
Captain Bhagwan Singh was born on 1 April 1916 in a Jat family of the ChaharChahar (clan)
Chahar also known by variations like Chahad, Char and Chaharag, is a gotra or clan of Jats in India. People belonging to this clan are found in the states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh...
clan Agra
Agra
Agra a.k.a. Akbarabad is a city on the banks of the river Yamuna in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, India, west of state capital, Lucknow and south from national capital New Delhi. With a population of 1,686,976 , it is one of the most populous cities in Uttar Pradesh and the 19th most...
district of Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
in India. His father, Bere Singh was in the Fiji colonial service.
Education
He was admitted to missionary-run Victoria High School in Agra, where his lack of proficiency with English, the medium of instruction, caused him to absent himself and led to his first involvement with student politics outside the school. He subsequently matriculated at the Government High School in Agra in 1934.After passing out from High School he joined Agra College. While at college Bhagwan Singh joined the mass movements and the Arya Samaj
Arya Samaj
Arya Samaj is a Hindu reform movement founded by Swami Dayananda on 10 April 1875. He was a sannyasi who believed in the infallible authority of the Vedas. Dayananda emphasized the ideals of brahmacharya...
, and wrote for Hindi newspapers. He came in contact with Vijay Singh Pathik
Vijay Singh Pathik
Vijay Singh Pathik alias Bhop Singh Gurjar , popularly known as Rashtriya Pathik, was born in a Gurjar family in Gulawathi, District Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh, India. His father's name was Hamir Singh Gurjar and mother's name Kamal Kunwari...
- known as the organiser of the Bijaulia Kisan Satyagraha fame in Mewar
Mewar
Mewar is a region of south-central Rajasthan state in western India. It includes the present-day districts of Pratapgarh, Bhilwara, Chittorgarh, Rajsamand, Udaipur, Dungarpur, Banswara and some of the part of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. The region was for centuries a Rajput kingdom that later...
and started working for his weekly ‘Sangharsh’, launched in collaboration with Acharya Narendra Dev.
Bhagwan Singh completed his MA degree in History from Agra College, Agra in 1940. Later during the Second World War, at the behest of Sir Chhotu Ram
Chhotu Ram
Rao Bahadur Sir Chhotu Ram was one of the most prominent pre-partition politicians in Punjab and an ideologue of the Jat peasantry and a champion of its interests. Sir Chottu Ram was the first Stephanian to be knighted in 1937...
, he accepted a commission in the army
Army of India
The Army of India consisted of both the Indian Army and the British Army in India between 1903 and 1947.Lord Kitchener was appointed Commander-in-Chief, India between 1902 and 1909...
.
Indian Administrative Service
Subsequent to his selection in the war-reserved vacancies in the Indian Civil Service he was posted as Assistant Magistrate, AllahabadAllahabad
Allahabad , or Settled by God in Persian, is a major city of India and is one of the main holy cities of Hinduism. It was renamed by the Mughals from the ancient name of Prayaga , and is by some accounts the second-oldest city in India. It is located in the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh,...
, in 1945.
As a civil servant he served as:
- 1948: CollectorDistrict collectorThe District Collector is the district head of administration of the bureaucracy in a state of India. Though he/she is appointed and is under general supervision of the state government, he/she has to be a member of the elite IAS recruited by the Central Government...
Bulandshahr - 1950: Deputy Commissioner Rae Bareli
- 1953: Chairman Central Tractor Organization, DelhiDelhiDelhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
- 1957: Joint Secretary, Rehabilitation Ministry, Branch Secretariat, Calcutta
- 1959: Managing Director, Jammu and KashmirJammu and KashmirJammu and Kashmir is the northernmost state of India. It is situated mostly in the Himalayan mountains. Jammu and Kashmir shares a border with the states of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab to the south and internationally with the People's Republic of China to the north and east and the...
Minerals Ltd. - 1964: Commissioner of the New Delhi Municipal Corporation
- 1965: Chairman Indian TeaTeaTea is an aromatic beverage prepared by adding cured leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant to hot water. The term also refers to the plant itself. After water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world...
BoardBoard of directorsA board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...
Calcutta - 1971 - 1976: High Commissioner of India to Fiji, TongaTongaTonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...
, NauruNauruNauru , officially the Republic of Nauru and formerly known as Pleasant Island, is an island country in Micronesia in the South Pacific. Its nearest neighbour is Banaba Island in Kiribati, to the east. Nauru is the world's smallest republic, covering just...
and other South PacificOceaniaOceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Conceptions of what constitutes Oceania range from the coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific to the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago...
countries.
High Commissioner of India to Fiji
In 1971, Captain Bhagwan Singh was Additional Secretary in Government of IndiaGovernment of India
The Government of India, officially known as the Union Government, and also known as the Central Government, was established by the Constitution of India, and is the governing authority of the union of 28 states and seven union territories, collectively called the Republic of India...
’s the then Foreign Trade Ministry
Ministry (government department)
A ministry is a specialised organisation responsible for a sector of government public administration, sometimes led by a minister or a senior public servant, that can have responsibility for one or more departments, agencies, bureaus, commissions or other smaller executive, advisory, managerial or...
, was posted to Suva
Suva
Suva features a tropical rainforest climate under the Koppen climate classification. The city sees a copious amount of precipitation during the course of the year. Suva averages 3,000 mm of precipitation annually with its driest month, July averaging 125 mm of rain per year. In fact,...
in Fiji as High Commissioner. Captain Bhagwan Singh was also accredited to the other South Pacific island countries. The Indian Foreign Service
Indian Foreign Service
The Indian Foreign Service is the foreign service of India. It is the body of career diplomats of India.The Indian Foreign Service is part of the Central Civil Services of the Government of India...
saw in the posting as an intrusion into their well fortified preserve at the high levels of High Commissioner and Additional Secretary.
His appointment was significant in Oceania as his grandfather and grandmother were amongst the first group of Indian indentured labourers
Indentured servant
Indentured servitude refers to the historical practice of contracting to work for a fixed period of time, typically three to seven years, in exchange for transportation, food, clothing, lodging and other necessities during the term of indenture. Usually the father made the arrangements and signed...
to arrive in Fiji, which still has a large ethnically Indian minority. His father, Bere Singh, was born there and after receiving his education in India went back to serve in Fiji for 25 years. He was a symbol of pride not only to the Indians of Fiji whose forefathers had come as indentured labourers, but also to the people of different Pacific nations who were themselves emerging as free citizens of independent nations.
For five crucial years, 1971 – 1976, Captain Bhagwan Singh carried the name of India to almost every village of Fiji, and adjoining islands of South Pacific. In one of the last areas to emerge from western colonial rule, Captain Bhagwan Singh’s unorthodox blend of quiet diplomacy and high visibility in public relations, and his own flair to win friends and influence people, made him win the hearts of Pacific Islanders for his country.
The Prime Minister of India
Prime Minister of India
The Prime Minister of India , as addressed to in the Constitution of India — Prime Minister for the Union, is the chief of government, head of the Council of Ministers and the leader of the majority party in parliament...
, Mrs. Indira Gandhi
Indira Gandhi
Indira Priyadarshini Gandhara was an Indian politician who served as the third Prime Minister of India for three consecutive terms and a fourth term . She was assassinated by Sikh extremists...
, appreciated his role in cementing the relationship between the two major ethnic groups of Fiji. As a bonus, she granted him unprecedented awards of two extensions in the service of Fiji, which was unpalatable to his colleagues in the Indian Foreign Service. This enabled him to act as the Dean of the growing diplomatic corps in Fiji.
Social Services
Captain Bhagwan Singh retired from Indian Administrative Service in 1976 and settled in Delhi. He remained active and served as an executive director for Shri Ram Fibres, and at Maharaja Suraj MalMaharaja Suraj Mal
Maharaja Suraj Mal was ruler of Bharatpur in Rajasthan in India. He has been described by a contemporary historian as "the Plato of the Jat people" and by a modern writer as the "Jat Ulysses", because of his political sagacity, steady intellect and clear vision.-Early life:Surajmal was born on...
Institute, Delhi, as well as the President of All India Jat Mahasabha where.
As author
As part of his duties for the Jat Mahasabha he wrote historical articles on Veervar GokulaGokula
Gokula or Gokul Singh was a Jat chieftain of Sinsini village in Bharatpur district in Rajasthan, India. Later, he became a chieftain of Tilpat in Haryana. His father's name was Madu. Madu had four sons namely, Sindhuraj, Ola, Jhaman and Saman. The second son Ola later became famous as Gokula...
, Amar Shahid Chaudhari Shahmal, Raja Mahendra Pratap etc. The important books written by him are:
- Ratangarbha, Bharat Bhumi
- Indian Tea
- My Father's Land Fiji
- Ujale apani yadon ke
- Safal Prashasak Govind Ballabh PantGovind Ballabh PantBharat Ratna Pandit Govind Ballabh Pant was a statesman of India, an Indian independence activist, and one of the foremost political leaders from Uttarakhand and of the movement to establish Hindi as the official language of India.-Early life:Govind Ballabh Pant was born on September 10, 1887 in...
Family
Bhagwan Singh's son, Ajay SinghAjay Singh
Ajay Singh is the present High Commissioner of India to Fiji, having been appointed to this position on 16 December 2004, succeeding Professor I.S. Chauhan.- Family's link to Fiji :...
, has continued the family tradition of maintaining links with Fiji, when he was appointed the Indian High Commissioner to Fiji in 2005.
He has three daughters Abha Singh (married to K P Singh of Ford Motor Company in USA), Vibha Singh (married to Maharaja Digvijay Sinh of Wankaner) and Shubha Singh (married to Yatindra Kumar of Air India).