Dr Bibek Debroy, a prominent economist and Chairman of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Economic Advisory Council (EAC-PM), on Friday passed away at age 69.
A Padma Shri awardee, Debroy also served as the Chancellor of the Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics in Pune. The top economist was also a member of NITI Aayog from its inception in January 2015 till June 2019.
He wrote several books, articles and was also a consulting/contributing editor with several newspapers. Prior to joining the NITI Aayog (then called Planning Commission), Bibek Debroy served as the Chairman of the Railways Ministry's high-powered committee on restructuring the country's lifeline.
In 2015, the veteran economist was awarded a Padma Shri. A year later, the US-India Business Summit awarded Debroy with the Lifetime Achievement Award. In September 2017, he was appointed Chairman of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister.
Debroy made significant contributions to economic theory, income and social inequalities, poverty, law reforms, railway reforms and Indology, among others. Debroy also anchored 'Itihasa', a show telecast on Sansad TV. He has also translated the unabridged version of the Mahabharata into English, in a series of 10 volumes, apart from several such valuable translations.
PM Narendtra Modi said, Debroy has "left an indelible mark on India's intellectual landscape." "Dr Debroy was a towering scholar, well-versed in diverse domains like economics, history, culture, politics, spirituality and more. Through his works, he left an indelible mark on India's intellectual landscape. Beyond his contributions to public policy, he enjoyed working on our ancient texts, making them accessible to the youth," the Prime Minister posted on X social media platform.
Will be missed: Jairam Ramesh
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Friday paid rich tributes to Dr Bibek Debroy, Chairman of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Economic Advisory Council (EAC-PM), who passed away at age 69 on Friday.
Highlighting that Debroy left his mark on almost all institutions he worked with, Ramesh wrote on his social media handle X, "He will be missed for his scholarship as well for his dry sense of humour."
A Padma Shri awardee, Debroy also served as the Chancellor of the Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics in Pune. The top economist was also a member of NITI Aayog from its inception in January 2015 till June 2019. He wrote several books, articles and was also a consulting/contributing editor with several newspapers.
(With inputs from IANS)
