Samresh Singh cremated with full state honours

Bokaro: Veteran politician and former lawmaker Samresh Singh was cremated at his native village Debultand in Chandankyari on Friday evening with full state honours. The 81-year-old former lawmaker and minister’s cremation was attended by Union tribal affairs minister Arjun Munda, former chief minister Raghubar Das, Dhanbad MP P N Singh and lawmakers Biranchi Narayan, Saryu Roy and Kumar Jaimangal. Jharkhand Congress president Rajesh Thakur also attended Singh’s cremation.
Singh’s mortal remains left for Chandankyari in a procession from his Bokaro residence in a vehicle decorated with flowers. Hundreds of supporters followed the vehicle in scooters, bikes and cars as the procession stopped at 90 spots and covered the 26 km route to Debultand village in eight hours. The vehicle carrying Singh stopped briefly outside the Ram Mandir at sector one and Kali Mandir at sector two of the BSL township.
“He knew everyone in the area by their first name and was extremely popular among its people. He was a visionary who worked tirelessly for the development and the betterment of people,” Mrityunjay Mahatha, a native of Debultand, said.
Singh was a father-figure even to his political opponents. “He was an inspiration for all of us. I looked up to him as a guardian,” Thakur, who is a native of Bokaro, said. Das termed Singh’s death as an “irreparable loss”.