Manmohan Singh’s Bond With Odisha; Love For Fish Curry, Odia Tradition & Language

Bhubaneswar: Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s family share a deep bond of over 30 years with Odisha through marital ties.

His daughter, Daman Singh, is married to Ashok Pattnaik, a 1983-batch IPS officer from Odisha. The Gujarat-cadre officer served as the CEO of the National Intelligence Grid (NATGRID) from 2016 to 2018. 

His family hails from Cuttack and is currently based at Kharavela Nagar in the city.

Daman is an accomplished writer and author of ‘Strictly Personal: Manmohan and Gursharan’, a memoir providing intimate insights into her parents’ lives. Her other books, including ‘The Sacred Grove’ and ‘Nine by Nine’, reflect her versatility as a storyteller.

The Singh family often visited her in-laws’ place in Cuttack and Bhubaneswar. There, however, was a small pause to those frequent trips when Singh took charge as the PM.

In 2012, Singh was in the city for the National Science Congress. Though he could not, Gursharan visited their home. Daman’s mother-in-law Ratnamala had then told Telegraph that the former Prime Minister and his wife, as well as all their daughters, were very fond of Odia tradition, cuisine and language. She also mentioned about Singh’s love for fish curry.

Ashok’s younger sister further stated that the Singh household addressed Ratnamala as ‘bou’. “Not only my sister-in-law, all the members of their family speak very good Odia and converse with us in the language most of the time,” she was quoted as saying.