Montek Singh Ahluwalia | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission | |
| In office 6 July 2004 – 26 May 2014 | |
| Prime Minister | Manmohan Singh |
| Preceded by | K.C. Pant |
| Succeeded by | Post abolished Arvind Panagariya as Vice-Chairman ofNITI Aayog |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1943-11-24)24 November 1943 (age 82) |
| Spouse | Isher Judge Ahluwalia (until her death in 2020) |
| Children | 2 |
| Alma mater | University of Delhi (B.A.) University of Oxford (M.A.,M.Phil.) |
| Profession | Economist Civil servant |
Montek Singh Ahluwalia (born 24 November 1943) is an Indian economist and civil servant who was the Deputy Chairman of thePlanning Commission ofIndia, a position which carried the rank of a Cabinet Minister. He resigned from this post in May 2014 following the impending end of theUPA II regime at the center.[1] He was previously the first director of the Independent Evaluation Office at theInternational Monetary Fund.[2]
Montek Singh Ahluwalia was born inRawalpindi,British India, as the son of Jagmohan Singh, a clerk with the Defence Accounts Department, and Pushp Kaur. He was educated atSt. Patrick's High School, Secunderabad, and atDelhi Public School inDelhi. He then graduated with a B.A. (Hons.) degree in Economics fromSt. Stephen's College, Delhi, of the Delhi University.
Ahluwalia was a Rhodes scholar at theUniversity of Oxford, where he studied atMagdalen College, Oxford, as a graduate, obtaining an M.A. degree inphilosophy, politics, and economics.[3] He then read for an MPhil atSt Antony's College, Oxford. While atOxford, he was president of theOxford Union. He has received several honorary degrees, including an honorary degree of Doctor of Civil Law from the University of Oxford and an honorary degree of Doctor of Philosophy from the Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee. He is an Honorary Fellow of Magdalen College.[4]
After graduating from University of Oxford, Ahluwalia joined theWorld Bank in 1968. At the age of 28, he became the youngest "Division Chief" in the World Bank's bureaucracy, in charge of the Income Distribution Division in the World Bank's Development Research Centre. After his return to India in 1979 he took up the position of Economic Adviser in the Ministry of Finance. He held several senior positions as a civil servant, including Special Secretary to the Prime Minister, Commerce secretary, Secretary Department of Economic Affairs in the Finance Ministry and Finance Secretary. In 1998 he was appointed Member of the Planning Commission. In 2001, he was chosen by the Board of International Monetary Fund to be the first director of the newly created Independent Evaluation Office, in which capacity he supervised several studies critical of various aspects of the functioning of the IMF. In June 2004, he resigned from the IMF position to take up as the deputy chairman of the Planning Commission as part of theUnited Progressive Alliance government in New Delhi.[5]
As deputy chairman of the Planning Commission, he supervised the preparation of both the Eleventh Plan (2007–08 to 2011–12) titled "Towards Faster and More Inclusive Growth" and subsequently also the Twelfth Plan (2012–13 to 2016–17) titled "Faster, More Inclusive and Sustainable Growth".[6][7]
He has published a number of articles on various aspects of the Indian economy in academic journals. He is one of the authors of "Redistribution with Growth" by Chenery et al., published by Oxford University Press in 1974. He has also written on various aspects of India's economic reforms and on the inclusiveness of India's growth process.[5]
In 2011 Ahluwalia was awarded the Padma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian honour for public service by MrsPratibha Patil, thenPresident of India.[8]
In February 2020, he published his bookBackstage: The Story Behind India’s High Growth Years withRupa Publications. The book is a mix of personal reflections and national economic history, and sets forth Ahluwalia's ideas on issues of contemporary significance including education, rural development and energy.[9]
He currently holds the position of Distinguished Fellow at the Centre for Social and Economic Progress - a New Delhi based think tank.[10] In June 2021, Ahluwalia was named for the high level advisory group formed jointly by IMF and World bank in the face of dual challenges of Climate Change and COVID-19 pandemic.[11]
Ahluwalia was married to fellow economistIsher Judge Ahluwalia and has two sons Pawan Ahluwalia and Aman Ahluwalia.[13]
| Year of award or honor | Name of award or honor | Awarding organization |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Honoris Causa Doctorate of Science | Indian School of Mines |
| 2011 | Honoris Causa Doctorate of Science | IIT Roorkee.[14] |
| 2011 | Padma Vibhushan | President of India. |
| 2008 | Doctor of Civil Law | Oxford University. |
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