Milkha couple remembered

Chandigarh, May 15

People from different walks of life attended the prayer meeting of the ‘Milkha couple’, who succumbed to Covid complications, in June last year. Milkha Singh, former Indian sprinter, who is known as ‘Flying Sikh’, and his wife Nimral Milkha Singh, former captain of Indian Volleyball team and first Joint Director of the UT Sports Department, died five days apart.

Meanwhile, the prayer meeting was hosted by Indian golfer Jeev Milkha Singh ahead of their death anniversary next month. Jeev, while paying tributes to his father Milkha Singh and mother Nirmal Kaur, turned emotional.

“Everybody feels about the parents in the same way like we do. We still feel the void and can’t believe that they are not with us anymore. After their departure, I came to know… how lucky we all are to be born in this family. We were blessed to be born in a house where we were given the right guidance, values and taught to be humble. You (the gathering) were part of their life and everyone must have their fond memories. They are my real heroes,” said the winner of six Asian Tour titles, four European Tour titles, and four Japan Tour titles, Jeev.

He also recalled having asked his father once why he was so firm and mother Nirmal so gentle, to which the former sprinter had replied (In Punjabi), “mawaan thandiyan chawan” (mothers are calm), te piu garam gheeo (fathers are firm).

About his parents’ friends and well-wishers, Jeev said: “You made them smile at the golf course, played cards with them and cracked a joke. We cherish that and we appreciate what everybody did for them.”

A month after coming in contact with Covid, the ‘Milkha couple’ breathed their last in the month of June. Milkha, who tested positive for Covid-19 on May 20 after a domestic help at his residence was found infected, was initially admitted to a Mohali hospital before being brought home on May 30. However, he was admitted to the PGI after his oxygen level fell and breathed his last there.