State Funeral on Friday for Singapore’s Indian Origin Former President S R Nathan

State Funeral on Friday for Singapore’s Indian Origin Former President S R Nathan
  • S R Nathan is reported to have been suffered a stroke a few weeks back, coupled with a recent one which placed him in critical condition
  • He was the sixth and the longest-serving President of Singapore, held in office from 1999 – 2011
  • Order of Temasek, one of the Singapore's most prestigious awards, was awarded to him in 2013

Singapore, August 24, 2016: 92-year-old Indian-origin former Singapore President, Mr. S R Nathan passed away on Monday. He had suffered a stroke a few weeks back, coupled with a recent one which had placed him in critical condition. He was under medical treatment for a while and died peacefully on August 22 at 9:48 pm at Singapore General Hospital.

He was the sixth as well as the longest-serving President of Singapore and served two terms from 1999 to 2011.

As a mark of respect, he will be given a state funeral on Friday and the State flag on all government buildings will be flown at half-mast till August 26, said the Prime Minister's Office in Singapore on August 23, said PTI reports.

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It is a big loss for the Singaporeans as well as the Indians. On Friday at 4:00 PM, the state funeral service will take place at the University Cultural Centre of the National University of Singapore, which will be attended by Nathan's family, friends as well as former colleagues.

Dr. Tony Tan. Image source: Wikimedia Commons

On Facebook, present President of Singapore, Dr. Tony Tan mentioned, "Mr. Nathan had an outstanding career in public service. He rose from humble beginnings to become the sixth and longest-serving President of Singapore. Mr. Nathan also played an active role in uplifting the Indian community when he was Chairman of the Hindu Endowment Board and founding member of SINDA. Our thoughts and prayers are with Mrs. Nathan and Mr. Nathan's family during this time of mourning."

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also expressed his grief on his sudden demise. He said "Saddened by the demise of former Singapore President SR Nathan. Singapore has lost a distinguished leader who was widely admired."

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Nathan's body will lie in state at the Parliament House from around 10:00 AM on Thursday till Friday for the public to pay their last respects, said PTI reports.

S R Nathan, who lived with his wife Urmila Nandi, daughter Juthika, son Osith, three grandchildren and sister Sundari, was born on July 3, 1924, in Malaysia and later moved to Singapore. He started his career in the Singapore Civil Service, as a medical social worker. Later, he served as Singapore's High Commissioner, Ambassador to the US and pro-chancellor of the National University of Singapore. He was also awarded one of the Singapore's most prestigious awards, Order of Temasek in 2013.

– prepared by Riashe Chakraborty from NewsGram. Twitter: @itzriashe

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