Dr Angela Merkel on Dr Manmohan Singh

Former German Chancellor, Dr Angela Merkel, delivering the inaugural Dr Manmohan Singh Memorial Lecture at the Le Méridien Hotel in New Delhi on February 26.

The warmth and respect shared between the two statespersons was evident as the former German Chancellor, Dr Angela Merkel, spoke about the late Dr Manmohan Singh, recounting their interactions and noting that he was open and inquisitive.

From left. Meera Diwan, Arun Maira, N N Vohra, Jaspreet Waraich and Shivshankar Menon

Dr Merkel was delivering the inaugural Dr Manmohan Singh Memorial Lecture at the Le Méridien Hotel in New Delhi on February 26.

She spoke on "Germany and India in Times of Global Change" and later interacted with Ambassador Shivshankar Menon.

Mrs Sonia Gandhi and Mrs Gursharan Kaur waitiing for Dr Merkel to arrive.

In the audience was a galaxy of eminent people from Delhi and others like Jaspreet and me, who had traveled the distance to attend this event in memory of Dr Manmohan Singh. The event was impecably choreographed by Dr Singh's daughters, Upinder and Daman.

Coverage in The Tribune

We met many friends, some after a long time, and a day later, we were pleasantly surprised to see the report and pictures in The Tribune, since both of us were visible in the pictures that were printed in the paper. Excerptsfrom Dr Merkel's speach were published a as OpEd in The Tribune later.

Dr Merkel's speach, excerpted in The Tribune on 3 March 2026