Former Union Minister Murli Deora Passes away

Former Union Minister and Senior Congress leader Murli Deora passed away after prolonged illness. He was 77. Mr. Deora, had held several important portfolios at local and national level politics during his decades-long political career.

About Murli Deora

• Murli Deora was popularly known as Murli bhai. He was an economics graduate, industrialist and social worker-turned-politician.
• He started his political career after contesting for the civic elections in Mumbai in 1968 and was elected as corporator . He was Mayor of Mumbai from 1977 to 1978.
• Later he was elected to the Lok Sabha four times from Mumbai South, a seat later held by his son, Milind, who is also a former MP and ex Union minister. Currently, he was serving his third term as a Rajya Sabha MP. For 22 years, he was President of Mumbai Congress.
• He was Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas during the UPA-1 regime.
• In 2006, he joined the Union Cabinet shortly before he turned 70 and led oil diplomacy in Myanmar, Algeria and Egypt, and held talks with ministers from Sudan, Chad, Ethiopia and Comoros.
• In November 2007, as Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, he successfully hosted the first India-Africa Hydrocarbon Conference and Exhibition.
• After 2009 Lok Sabha elections, he retained the portfolio of Petroleum and Natural Gas in the UPA-2 government under former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Month: Current Affairs - November, 2014