Shamika Ravi, Rathin Roy Out As Govt Reconstitutes Economic Advisory Council To The PM Headed By Dr. Bibek Debroy

The Union Government has reconstituted the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM) for a period of two years. The reconstituted advisory panel will come into effect from September 26, 2019.

Noted Economist Dr Bibek Debroy will continue the Chairman of the council and Ratan P. Watal will also continue to be the Member Secretary of the reconstituted EAC-PM.

Apart from these two Full-Time Members, the EAC-PM will have two Part-Time Members. While Dr. Ashima Goel continues to be one of the Part-Time Members, Dr. Sajjid Chinoy is nee entrant to the council as a Part-time Member.

Dr Chinoy currently serves as Chief India Economist of J.P. Morgan’s. He had served on the Advisory Council to the 15th Finance Commission set up by the Government of India. He has previously worked at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and McKinsey & Company. Dr.Chinoy holds a Ph.D. in economics at Stanford University.

Two existing part-time members of the council, Rathin Roy and Shamika Ravi, have not found any place in the newly constituted EAC-PM.

Another key member of the council Dr. Surjit Bhalla quit the EAC earlier this year to focus on his media and consulting assignments.

Bhalla did not mention reasons for his leaving, but a government official who spoke on condition of anonymity said the economist wanted to join the media industry

EAC-PM functions as an independent body constituted to give advice on economic and related issues to the Government of India, specifically to the Prime Minister. EAC-PM provides analysis of any issue, economic or otherwise, referred to it by the Prime Minister and advising him on issues of macroeconomic importance.