Govt Names Manoj Panda As Full Time Member Of 16th Finance Commission

Panda became a part of the economic body after Artha Global Executive Director, Niranjan Rajadhyaksha, stated that he wouldn’t be able to join the commission

The Government of India named economist Manoj Panda as the new member of the 16th Finance Commission. The Commission is chaired by Arvind Panagariya and comprises of four members. 

While former expenditure secretary Ajay Narayan Jha and retired bureaucrat Annie George Mathew hold the full-time membership of the commission, the SBI Group Chief Economic Advisor, Soumya Kanti Ghosh, is a part-time member of the body, reported PTI. 

The appointment of Panda, former Director, the Institute of Economic Growth, was confirmed via an official notification. Panda will be joining the body as a full-time member. 

The appointed member would hold office from the date of assuming charge till the Report submission date or till October 31, 2025, whichever is earlier, the statement said. Panda became a part of the economic body after Artha Global Executive Director, Niranjan Rajadhyaksha, stated that he wouldn’t be able to join the commission. The latter was named as a full-time member on January 31, 2024. However, he informed in February that he would not be able to accept the membership due to personal reasons.

The 16th Finance Commission organised its first meeting on February 14, 2024. The body was formed by the government under the chairmanship of Panagariya on December 31, 2023. The economic body will submit its final report to the President by October 31, 2025, and the report will cover a tenure of five years, starting April 1, 2026. 

In addition to providing recommendations on tax devolution between the Centre and states, the Commission will also look into revenue-boosting measures, and examine current arrangements for financing disaster management programmes in respect to the funds constituted under the Disaster Management Act, 2005. 

The commission is a constitutional body meant to share suggestions on the relationship between Centre and States. The 15th Commission, chaired by N K Singh, gave recommendations of giving 41 per cent of the divisible tax pool of the Centre to the states during the five-year tenure from 2021-22 to 2025-26. This share remained the same in the recommendations submitted by the earlier 14th Finance Commission, under Y V Reddy.