Modi government may appoint Vice Chairman of Niti Aayog Arvind Panagariya as the new RBI governor, as per media reports.
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In January 2015, Modi appointed Panagariya to be vice-chairman of the NITI Aayog, the Modi government’s think tank aimed at replacing the Planning Commission.
India-born Panagariya, a native of Rajasthan, holds a PhD from Princeton University and has served as a Professor of Economics and the Jagdish Bhagwati Professor of Indian Political Economy in the School of worldwide and Public Affairs at Columbia University in NY.
The government is in the lookout for a new RBI governor after Raghuram Rajan tenure ends on 4 September and he was not given another term.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Subramanian Swamy had last month triggered speculation by asking the Centre to deny Rajan a second term, saying his hawkish policies have ruined the Indian economy.
NITI Aayog is now working on a 15-year vision plan complemented by a seven-year strategy and a three-year short-run macro framework plan, he said.
Among other possible contenders to replace Mr Rajan, on-leave Professor of Finance at Chicago University and a former chief economist at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Mr Gokarn is now serving as an Executive Director at the Fund, a post previously held by Mr Mohan as well. He has worked in World Bank, IMF, WTO and the United Nations.
Pangariya, who is said to have been mentored by noted economist Jagdish Bhagwati, has been a vocal supporter of various economic policies of Narendra Modi, including as Prime Minister and before that as Chief Minister of Gujarat.
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The PMO declined to comment, but said a decision on the new central bank governor would be made before July 18.
