Sir — Arvind Panagariya has announced his intention to move on from Niti Aayog to go back to Columbia University. He as an Indian-American is the second high-profile academic after former Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan to quit a Government post in India to return to teaching in the US.
Rajan had resigned from the Central bank after a three-year term last year to rejoin Chicago University. Somewhat similar to the dust kicked by Rajan’s departure, speculation is swirling around Panagariya’s departure too. In any case, his move to shift comes in the background of a growing skepticism about the nature of economic growth. Panagariya’s resignation is the first major depletion from the core Narendra Modi team, though it is not easy to determine whether it is an unhappy departure or not.