# Thakur Devi Singh

Thakur Devi Singh (born c. 1922 - died 1989) was a politician from Himachal Pradesh, India. He was among the early major political figures from the Scheduled Tribes of Himachal Pradesh.

## Personal life

Singh belonged to the Lahaul valley in the present-day Lahaul and Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh. He was born in Lahaul while Lahaul was still a part of the Kangra district of the Punjab Province of British India. His father was Seth Tenzin, who owned 500 goats and sheep. He went to Government School Katrain (in the Kullu valley) for his schooling, where in 1935, he first met Shiv Chand Thakur, also from Lahaul. Thereafter, both went to the Government High School in Kullu.
In 1944, Thakur Devi Singh and Thakur Shiv Chand became the first two graduates ever from Lahaul, when they completed their BA degrees from the DAV College, Lahore. Singh was active in the Indian Independence movement. The two closely collaborated over their careers in helping bring development to Lahaul and Spiti district - the former as a politician and the latter as an officer of the Himachal Administrative Service (H.A.S.).

## Career

In 1948, during the Indo-Pakistan War of 1947-48, Thakur Devi Singh, Thakur Nihal Chand, and Shiv Chand Thakur from Lahaul were instrumental in persuading and facilitating the Indian army to route its supplies to Ladakh - then under attack from Pakistani forces - through Lahaul, via the Rohtang and Baralacha passes. Thakur Devi Singh and Thakur Shiv Chand Thakur played key roles in the struggle that led to the Lahaul and Spiti district the status of a tribal area in 1952. In the 1960s, Singh served as the Block Development Officer of Lahaul. In this period, he worked with the IAS officer K.S. Bains in introducing disease-free seed potatoes to Lahaul.

## Politics

In the 1967 Vidhan Sabha elections, Singh had contested and won the MLA seat for the Lahaul and Spiti assembly constituency as an independent candidate. In 1972, he contested this seat on a Lok Raj Party ticket, and lost to Lata Thakur. He won this seat in the 1977 elections on a Janata Party ticket, and in 1982 and 1985 on Indian National Congress tickets.
During the first term of the Janata Party leader Shanta Kumar as the Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh (1977-1980), Singh was appointed as a cabinet minister, and came to hold the post of forest minister.

## Electoral performance

1985 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election: Lahaul and Spiti :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | INC | Thakur Devi Singh | 8,646 | 96.31% | 42.92 |
| | Independent | Shiv Chand Thakur | 331 | 3.69% | New |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 8,315 | 92.63% | 71.88 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,977 | 61.17% | 11.85 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 15,175 | | 2.09 |
| | INC hold | INC hold | Swing | | |
1982 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election: Lahaul and Spiti :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | INC | Thakur Devi Singh | 5,636 | 53.40% | New |
| | BJP | Surinder Chand | 3,446 | 32.65% | New |
| | Independent | Bir Singh | 768 | 7.28% | New |
| | CPI | Khushal Chand | 705 | 6.68% | New |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 2,190 | 20.75% | 34.61 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 10,555 | 72.63% | 17.17 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 14,864 | | 8.03 |
| | INC gain from JP | INC gain from JP | Swing | 22.86 | |
1977 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election: Lahaul and Spiti :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | JP | Thakur Devi Singh | 5,649 | 76.26% | New |
| | Independent | Shiv Chand Thakur | 1,548 | 20.90% | New |
| | Independent | Phunchog Rai | 211 | 2.85% | New |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 4,101 | 55.36% | 44.16 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 7,408 | 55.53% | 24.37 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 13,759 | | 11.82 |
| | JP gain from INC | JP gain from INC | Swing | 20.65 | |
1972 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election: Lahaul and Spiti :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | INC | Lata Thakur | 5,351 | 55.60% | 12.04 |
| | Independent | Thakur Devi Singh | 4,273 | 44.40% | New |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 1,078 | 11.20% | 3.35 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 9,624 | 78.21% | 14.44 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 12,305 | | 42.91 |
| | INC gain from Independent | INC gain from Independent | Swing | 4.19 | |
1967 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election: Lahaul and Spiti :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Independent | Thakur Devi Singh | 7,066 | 51.41% | New |
| | INC | N. Chand | 5,987 | 43.56% | New |
| | Independent | D. Datt | 691 | 5.03% | New |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 1,079 | 7.85% | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 13,744 | 63.78% | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 21,553 | | |
| | Independent win (new seat) | Independent win (new seat) | Independent win (new seat) | Independent win (new seat) | Independent win (new seat) |

## Memorials

* The district library of the Lahaul and Spiti district in the district headquarters at Keylong is named 'Thakur Devi Singh Memorial District Library'.
* The bridge over the Chandra River at Tandi in Lahaul is named 'Thakur Devi Singh Bridge'.