Team Blitz India
NEW DELHI: The Finance Ministry on December 31 notified President Draupadi Murmu’s order for Arvind Panagariya’s appointment as the Chief of the Finance Commission.
Panagariya is a trade economist who had served as the first vice chairman of the Niti Aayog, which replaced the erstwhile Planning Commission, from 2015 to 2017.
The names of the members of the Commission will be notified separately, as per the order, which also appointed Ritvik Ranjanam Pandey, who was earlier a joint secretary in the Department of Revenue, as the panel’s secretary.
“The Chairman and other members of the Commission shall hold office from the date on which they respectively assume office upto the date of the submission of report orOctober 31, 2025, whichever is earlier,” the order specified.
October 2025 is the deadline set for the Commission to submit its recommendations, so that they can be incorporated in the Budget exercise for 2026-27. The Finance Commission usually takes about two years to consult stakeholders in the States and Centre and arrive at their conclusions.