Military legend for the nation, humble man to his children

The nation will remember Marshal of the Indian Air Force Arjan Singh as a military legend but in the eyes of his children, Arvind and Asha Singh, he was an extremely humbleman who treated everyone with equal respect.

Arvind Singh, who flew in from the United States for his father's last rites, said he learnt humility by observing him.

"One thing that struck me (about my father) was that he was always very humble. He always treated people well. If he saw a sweeper he would treat him equally and that is something I learnt from him," he said.

His father, who died on Saturday at the age of 98, was a philanthropist, he added.

"He was destined for greatness," Singh told PTI at Brar Square where Arjan Singh's last rites were conducted with full state honours today.

Daughter Asha Singh, too, underlined how the IAF legend was a man of the people.

"He would greet people very easily -- a good officer or a not so good an officer. He remembered people 50 or 60 years after he met them," Asha Singh said.

She describes the passing away of her father as her "biggest loss".

"For me it is the biggest loss. He was a great human being and an inspiration for me. I am glad that he will live on in the annals of history," she said.

Actor Mandira Bedi, Arjan Singh's niece, recalled how the IAF icon rarely spoke about his own feats.

"He was a wonderful conversationalist. Here is someone who achieved so much in his life but he never wanted to talk about himself. He was always interested in your life and wanted to know about you."

Arjan Singh, the only officer to attain the highest post of Marshal of the Air Force, a rank equivalent to the Army's five star Field Marshal, was an exceptional pilot who played a major role in transforming the IAF into one of the most potent air forces globally and the fourth biggest in the world.