Kochi: Former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh has been chosen for the first Oommen Chandy Memorial Award instituted by the Kerala unit of the Youth Congress. The award, carrying a cash prize of Rs 2 lakh and memento, will be given away to Dr Singh at an event in Delhi later, Youth Congress state president Rahul Mamkoottathil said here on Sunday.

The award was announced by Mamkoottathil at an event held to commemorate the former Kerala chief minister as part of observing his first death anniversary.

Mamkoottathil said Dr Singh was chosen for the maiden award for his contributions to the progress of the country and for introducing milestone decisions such as the 'Right to Information' and 'Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme.'

In a tribute to Chandy, the Youth Congress also announced that it would bear the medical expenses of 10 children who need cochlear implant surgery. A sum of Rs 70 lakh will be spent on this.

In 2012, Oommen Chandy's government introduced Sruthi Tharangam, which provides cochlear implants to children below five years.
Read: How Oommen Chandy as CM launched cochlear implants over a widow's plaint.

Addressing the event, Mamkoottathil remembered Chandy as a leader who introduced the most dignified form of democracy with his mass contact programme.
Congress Working Committee member and former Union Home Minister P Chidambaram inaugurated the event. Chidambaram has remembered former Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy as a leader who understood what the people needed.

Chidambaram said the kind of final farewell Chandy received in which millions of people took part was not a tribute everyone would get. He remembered seeing huge crowds during the funeral processions of leaders like Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, but he could not believe his eyes as he saw “a native son of Kerala who knew his limits” receive the same kind of affection from the people.