Jalandhar, Jul 20 (PTI) World's oldest marathoner Fauja Singh, known by the nickname 'Turbaned Tornado', was cremated on Sunday with full state honours here in Beas, his native village.
Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, Minister Mohinder Bhagat and several other politicians attended the funeral.
Fauja Singh's son Harvinder Singh lit the funeral pyre. Punjab Police gave a gun salute before the pyre was lit.
Fauja Singh was 114 when he was hit by an SUV being driven by Canada-based Amritpal Singh Dhillon on July 14.
He was crossing the Jalandhar-Pathankot highway when the incident occurred. Fauja Singh later succumbed to injuries.
Governor Kataria recalled how Fauja Singh walked with him during a Nasha Mukt yatra - an anti-drug campaign — last year. He said that after walking for 1 km, he asked him to stop, but to his surprise, Fauja Singh insisted that they continue to walk.
Fauja Singh was a source of inspiration for everyone, said Kataria, while speaking to reporters, after paying floral tributes to him at his house.
Mann said Fauja Singh participated in many marathon races and made the country proud with his achievements.
The presence of several dignitaries and other personalities here showed how popular he was, said Mann while speaking to reporters.
He said the state government will rename the village school after Fauja Singh and statues in his honour will be erected at the village stadium and the sports college in Jalandhar.
Mann said his hard work, dedication and perseverance will always inspire the young generation.
He hailed Fauja Singh as a global symbol of endurance and healthy aging and said that the sports fraternity will ever remain indebted to him for his enormous contribution in taking the athletics to new heights, despite his age.
The death of Fauja Singh shocked the entire world, he said.
Mourners started thronging Fauja Singh's house in Beas early in the day.
His body was kept in a glass casket with his photograph beside it to allow the people to take a last look at the running legend and pay their last respects.
Later, his body was carried in a decked-up hearse to the cremation ground.
The funeral procession started from his residence with several people including politicians taking part in it.
Political leaders including Congress MLAs Pargat Singh, Rana Gurjeet Singh, Hardev Singh Laddi, Sukhwinder Singh Kotli, AAP MLA Balkar Singh, AAP leader Pawan Kumar Tinu and Shiromani Akali Dal leader Daljit Singh Cheema attended the cremation.
Earlier, one of Fauja Singh's relatives told reporters that they were shocked when they came to know about his death in the road accident.
Another relative, Paramjit Singh, said he had spoken to Fauja Singh around 20-25 days back and inquired about the health of his family.
He said the whole family was proud of his achievements.
Another family member said Fauja Singh was quite particular about his walk. When he would visit family members in Canada and if there was snow outside, he would walk in the house, he said.
He would know how many steps he took to cover a mile during his walk, said the relative.
Fauja Singh was fond of 'alsi pinnis,' he added.
The family member also said Amritpal Dhillon, who hit the marathoner with his SUV, should have stopped and taken Fauja Singh to a hospital.
"Had he (Fauja Singh) survived, he would have said, 'do not say anything to him (Dhillon).' He was such a person," said the relative.
Dhillon, who police said had returned to his home in Punjab three weeks ago, was arrested Tuesday night. He was sent to judicial custody the next day.
He was nabbed from his house in Dasupur, not very far away from the Beas village.
According to villagers, Fauja Singh was tossed five to seven feet in the air after being hit.
The Punjab-registered Toyota Fortuner was identified through CCTV footage, and fragments of its headlight and other parts recovered from the accident spot.
Leaders cutting across party lines offered their condolences for the marathoner's death, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying he was extraordinary because of his unique persona and how he inspired the youth of India on fitness.
Fauja Singh's career as a marathon runner began when he was 89. He was soon propelled into being a global icon, gaining the nickname 'Turbaned Tornado' for his endurance and athleticism, and became the first centenarian to complete a marathon.
He ran several marathons, including in London, New York and Hong Kong.
Among the most memorable of his runs was in 2011 when he turned 100. The invitational meet in Toronto was named in his honour, and he broke several world records for his age group.
A characteristically nonchalant Fauja Singh spent a better part of his running career in Britain and had returned to his roots just about three years ago after retiring.