Top exit at Niti Aayog: Arvind Panagariya resigns as Vice Chairman

In what could be the first high profile exit from government's top policy think tank, Arvind Panagariya on Tuesday resigned as the Vice-Chairman of Niti Aayog, also called the National Institution for Transforming India.

Panagariya has reportedly said that he will return to academia and August 31 is expected to be his last day in office.

Panagariya has been a Professor of Indian Political Economy at Columbia University. Panagariya also worked as Chief Economist of the Asian Development Bank and Professor of Economics at the University of Maryland at College Park.

Panagariya holds a Ph.D. degree in Economics from Princeton University and has worked with the World Bank, IMF and UNCTAD in various capacities.

His book India: The Emerging Giant (2008, OUP, New York) was listed as a top pick of 2008 by the Economist magazine

Panagariya had earlier questioned the need for the Planning Commission but was later appointed the Vice Chairman of Niti Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India), which replaced the Planning Commission.