Shaktikanta Das Is New RBI Governor
SRINAGAR: Veteran bureaucrat Shaktikanta Das will take over as the 25th Governor of the Reserve Bank of India for a period of three years, the government said in an announcement this evening.
“The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Shri Shaktikanta Das, IAS Retd., former Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, as Governor, Reserve Bank of India for a period of three years,” said a government statement.
The appointment follows the surprise resignation of Urjit Patel on Dec. 10. Patel decided to step down immediately citing “personal reasons” amid a stand-off with the government on a host of issues.
Who Is Shaktikanta Das?
Shaktikanta Das is a 1980 batch IAS officer from the Tamil Nadu cadre. He is currently a member of the Fifteenth Finance Commission. He also represents India at the G-20 in a role of a sherpa.
Das was the economic affairs secretary to the Government of India till May 2017 and was in office when demonetisation was announced. During that period, when cash was in short supply, Das was often seen defending the government’s decision even as the RBI remained silent.
Das toed the government’s line that demonetisation would help reduce unaccounted wealth in the economy, bring down the problem of counterfeit money and help push digital payments. He had also countered the concerns over the growth impact of demonetisation by saying that any short-term dip in growth has been factored in.
