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Meeting No: 2517 846 9397
Password: budget

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Abstract

The Union Budget, is a comprehensive financial roadmap for a nation. In its essence, it reflects the government's fiscal policies, outlining revenue and expenditure plans to achieve economic stability and growth. Thus, a crucial role in shaping the socio-economic landscape, addressing challenges, and fostering development. The discussion will involve the upcoming interim Union Budget and its plausible outcome.

About the Speakers

Dr. Ravindra H. Dholakia

Professor Dholakia was the Economics Area faculty at IIM Ahmedabad from 1985 to April 2018 when he superannuated. He received the Most Distinguished Faculty Award for the year 2017-18 at IIMA. He has about 41 years of experience of teaching Economics to different groups like students, executives, policy makers and senior government officers. He was a regular visiting faculty to teach at the European Management Institute (ESCP-EAP), Paris from 2002 to 2005. He has collaborated on a series of research projects with the Earth Institute of Columbia University from 2004-05 to 2012-13. He has considerable practical experience working in high powered policy making and evaluation bodies in both the Central and State Governments in India. He was on the Monetary Policy Committee of India (2016-21). He was a member of the Sixth Central Pay Commission (2006-08) deciding revision of the pay and pension of more than 10 million employees in India. He was also a Member of the High Level Committees on Leveraging Postal Network in India (2014), HR Issues in the Merger of Air India and Indian Airlines (May 2011- Jan.2012), Public Expenditure Management (2009-10), and on Savings and Investment Estimation (2008-09) appointed by the Government of India; a Member of the Expert Committee on Restructuring of the State Public Sector Units (2004-08), the Public Debt Management Committee (2005-06), and the State Public Finance Reform Committee (1998 – 2000) appointed by the Government of Gujarat. He has recently chaired a Committee on Financial Sector Statistics (2016-18) and is currently chairing a Committee on Sub-National Accounts appointed by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Government of India (2018 onwards) and had chaired a Committee on Cost Saving and Resource Use Optimization in Air India, appointed by Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India (2013).

Surjit Bhalla

Dr. S.S. Bhalla, is a Senior India Analyst for the Observatory Group, a New York based macroeconomic policy advisory firm and Chairman of Oxus Research & Investments. In 2017, he was appointed as Member of the Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council. He has been a member of the Secondary Markets Advisory Committee of SEBI and the National Statistical Commission of India. Dr Bhalla writes extensively on economic issues and has recently authored another book titled, The New Wealth of Nations.

Dr. Ashok Vishandass

Ashok Vishandass, Professor (Applied Economics) (IIPA) has interest in Sustainable Agriculture, Risk Management, International Trade & Commerce. As ex-Chairman (CACP) in the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare at the level of the Secretary to the Govt. of India, he has rich experience of formulation of Agriculture Price and Non-Price Policies, nuances of fixing MSP of various agriculture commodities. Before joining IIPA, he had also served FAO of United Nations Organisation (UNO) as the Chief Technical Adviser. In his stint with the UNO, he provided high-level technical and economic advice relating to Food Security, SDGs, agricultural Marketing and brought out eight Reports.

Prof. Ashok holds Ph.D. (Agri. Economics), M.A. (Economics) (University of Manchester), M.B.A. (Financial Management), PG Diploma in Population and Development (JNU), M. Stat. (Master of Statistics) (Gold Medalist).

Rattan Chand

Dr Rattan Chand is one of the founding Directors, EGROW Foundation. He is a former officer of the Indian Statistical Service and has served the Government of India in various positions for more than 35 years. While in the service, he worked closely with many Development Partners including USAID, World Bank, United Nations, World Health Organization etc. He has represented the Government at many national and International Meetings, Conferences and Seminars in the Health Sector. As Chief Director, in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, he was responsible for Monitoring and evaluation and during his tenure many activities like establishing Health Management Information System (HMIS), Annual Health Surveys, District Level Household Surveys and National Family Health Survey were initiated and completed.

He obtained Ph.D. in Population Studies from IIPS, Mumbai, PG Diploma in Population and Development from JNU and Master of Statistics from Punjabi University.

Col (Dr) Mohinder Pal Singh

Col (Dr) Mohinder Pal Singh is a graduate in science form prestigious St Xaviers College, Mumbai. He is an MBA from IIFT , New Delhi and a gold medalist in MSc from Allahabad University. He has completed his Doctorate in international relations from the Department of Defense and Strategic Studies, University of Allahabad. He has published number of articles in all leading journals and websites on strategic issues.

He has served in the Indian army, in the elite Infantry Regiment for thirty years tenating various appointments in all kinds of terrain and operations . He was also awarded ‘Chief of Army Staff Commendation’ for his work. He has been an instructor in Infantry School and an Assessor in the Officer Selection Process for over six years. He successfully commanded administrative battalion.

Apart from his extensive experience in army and his academic pursuits he is also a prolific writer who has to his credit many articles in books on strategic and national security subjects and has individually authored five books. His two recent books ‘Teams of Tomorrow’ and ‘Myanmar and its Strategic Dilemmas’ have been well received in the environment. He is currently Director of EGROW Foundation.

K. Gayithri

Gayithri Karnam is a Consultant (Academic and Research) at the Fiscal Policy Institute, Government of Karnataka, Bengaluru. She was formerly a Professor of Economics in the Center for Economic Studies and Policy at the Institute for Social and Economic Change, Bangalore. She specializes in the area of Public Economics, Industrial Economics and Public policy studies. She has conducted extensive research in the area of state fiscal studies, public expenditure planning and management, Budget reforms. She has served as an advisor on a number of state government committees and as consultant to international donor agencies like USAID and DFID in state level fiscal studies. She has been a recipient of Shastri Indo Canadian faculty research fellowship twice to undertake comparative fiscal studies at the Carleton University, Canada. She has undergone training at the Duke Center for International development, Duke University on aspects relating to ‘public budgeting and financial management’. She has also participated in the executive education program on ‘Public financial management in a changing world’ at the John F Kennedy School of government at the Harvard University, Boston.

Saswati Choudhury

Saswati Choudhury has been with OKDISCD, Guwahati since 2002. Prior to her joining OKDISCD, an ICSSR Institute, she was Ph.D Fellow at Indian Institute of Bank Management, Guwahati. Her area of work includes, Regional Development, Gender and Health.

Ajit Pai

Ajit Pai is Chairman, Delhi Urban Art Commission, and Strategy Lead Partner for Government and Public Sector at EY’s Strategy and Transactions group.
Prior to this, he was Distinguished Expert, NITI Aayog, where he headed Economics & Finance, oversaw Public Disinvestment and Public Enterprises., was Consultant to the Vice Chairperson, and handled matters related to the World Bank, IFC, IMF, ADB, NDB, OECD, and the G20.

Previously, he had a career in the private sector including working internationally at firms like McKinsey, Lazard, Thomas Weisel Partners and Stifel Financial, the latter two as Managing Director. He has been awarded over six years a record five #1 Starmine Awards in the Forbes/Financial Times World’s Best Analysts Survey for forecast accuracy.

Mr. Pai holds a B.Arch. from the School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi, a M.Arch. from the Yale School of Architecture and a MBA from the Yale School of Management. He attended Yale University as a Tata Scholar and also served as a John M Olin Fellow for research in markets and regulatory behavior.

His active interests include Architecture, Design, Anthropology, Urbanism, Planning, History, Economic Development, Sustainability, Horticulture, Finance, Technology, Policy, and Governance. He is on the Advisory Board of the Future Institute, and is registered with the Council of Architecture.

Dharmakirti Joshi

Dharmakirti Joshi is currently the Chief Economist at CRISIL. With over 33 years of experience in economic research and consultancy, his career began in NCAER where he spent 11 years. He then moved on to senior positions in Central Electricity Regulatory Commission, New Delhi and CRISIL- An S&P Global Company. He has extensive experience in ‘macroeconomic analysis, medium term assessment of Indian economy and forecasting as well as in public finance issues at the central and state levels. He has been a consultant to the state governments on fiscal issues. He is currently member of Working Group on Revision of Wholesale Price Index set up Government of India.

Mr Joshi holds a master’s degree in economics from Punjab University, Chandigarh. He has attended program on Macroeconomic Policy and Management at Harvard University and was a visiting scholar to Economic Research Unit of University of Pennsylvania. He is also the Chairman of Economic Affairs group Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry and member of Economic Affairs council of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). He has co-authored a book on state finances and has several research articles to his credit. He often writes for leading newspapers and expresses his views on the economy in the electronic media.