Boutros Boutros-Ghali
- Veteran Egyptian diplomat and the first United Nations Secretary-General from Africa, Boutros Boutros-Ghali, passed away on February 16, 2016 at the age of 93.
- Being the 6th UN Secretary-General, his term was marked by brutal conflicts in Haiti, Somalia, Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia, among others.
- Boutros-Ghali became a member of the Egyptian Parliament in 1987, and at the time of his appointment as UN chief, he had been Deputy Prime Minister for Foreign Affairs of Egypt since May, 1991, and had served as Minister of State for Foreign Affairs from October 1977 until 1991.
Abdul Rashid Khan
- Eminent Hindustani classical vocalist Ustad Abdul Rashid Khan passed away on February 18, 2016 at the age of 107. He was a resident guru at the ITC Sangeet Research Academy at Kolkata for the past 20 years.
- Despite movement restrictions and age-related illness, he used to appear for public performances till recently. He was a recipient of Padma Bhushan in 2013 and Sangeet Natak Akademi award.
ONV Kurup
- Noted Malayalam poet and lyricist ONV Kurup passed away on February 13, 2016 at the age of 84.
- A professor of repute who served in many colleges, he was the face of the Malayalam cultural world through his works.
- His love for poetry began during his school days. The period saw his poem ‘Munnottu’ (Forward) about his patriotic feelings, being first published in 1946.
- Known for his Leftist leanings, ONV was fielded as a candidate of the Left Democratic Front in 1989 in the Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha elections, but lost to Congress candidate A. Charles.
Aurobindo Mukherjee
- Veteran film Director Aurobindo Mukherjee passed away on February 11, 2016 at the age of 97. Mukherjee was the maker of cult Bengali classics like ‘Agniswar’, ‘Mouchak’ and ’Nishipadma’, all starring matinee idol Uttam Kumar, in the early 70s.
- Mukherjee had discovered a young Jaya Bhaduri who would later become famous as a Bollywood actress and marry superstar Amitabh Bachchan in ‘Dhanyee Meye’ in 1971.
- Shakli Samanta’s ‘Antar Prem’, starring Rajesh Khanna and Sharmila Tagore, was inspired by ‘Nishipadma’.
Kailash Yadav
- Uttar Pradesh Panchayati Raj Minister Kailash Yadav passed away on February 9, 2016 at the age of 65. He was an MLA from Ghazipur.
- He was a senior Samajwadi Party (SP) leader and a Cabinet Minister in the present Akhilesh Yadav government.
- He remained a Minister of State for Revenue and Industrial Development in the Mulayam Singh government from 2003 to 2007.
- He was bom in 1951 at Ghazipur, East Uttar Pradesh. He had started his political career from a rural background i.e., from holding the post of a Gram Pradhan. Then, he was elected as a member of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly.
