Relaxed Manmohan Singh winds down, no holiday plans

The 81-year old prime minister had announced earlier this year that he would not seek a third term in case the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) comes back to power.

Among the engagements over the last few days were the last meeting of the National Advisory Council on Tuesday, during which Sonia Gandhi praised his "consensus-making skills" in helping push the policy initiatives of the powerful body. He was presented with a set of documents consisting of all recommendations of the advisory body chaired by the Congress president.

On April 30, the prime minister attended a farewell meeting of the Planning Commission, of which he is the chairperson. He is also attending farewell meetings with the staff of the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), which is also busy stacking and packing its documents.

The prime minister, a strong proponent of science and technology, also met senior scientists of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) two weeks ago. Around a dozen senior scientists who accompanied ISRO chairperson K. Radhakrishnan presented Manmohan Singh with replicas of the projects they were in charge of and explained each one.

The meeting, slotted for 15 minutes, went on past half an hour as the prime minister evinced keen interest in each project, another official told IANS.

The prime minister is chairperson or president of several institutions, including the Gandhi Smriti and Council of Scientific and Industrial Research. He is also associated with some universities as chancellor.

"Officials from these institutions are coming to meet the prime minister," the PMO official said.

The Oxford and Cambridge-educated Manmohan Singh has been prime minister since May 2004 when Sonia Gandhi hand-picked him for the job.

The prime minister has not entertained requests for interviews in the past few weeks and addressed only a few rallies during the Congress campaign for the Lok Sabha elections.

His aides said the prime minister was keen that "younger leaders" of the Congress hog the limelight.

Officials said the prime minister is keen to stick to the expenditure limits in his new accommodation for furniture, A/Cs and the like.

Manmohan Singh joined the government as an economic adviser in the commerce ministry in 1971. Among the many government positions that he has occupied are secretary in the finance ministry, Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission, Governor of theReserve Bank of India,  adviser to the prime minister and chairman of the UniversityGrants Commission.