Kerala Government Set to Appoint Economists to State Planning Board

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Set to ensure continuity in economic expertise even with a change in political leadership, the UDF government is all set to accommodate three economists with experience in public finance, development economics and taxation on the State Planning Board. Noted economist D Narayana, former director of the Gulati Institute of Finance and Taxation (GIFT), Centre for Development Studies professor M Parameswaran and GIFT assistant professor Kiran Kumar are being considered as economic advisers to the Planning Board, which is set to be reconstituted under former cabinet secretary K M Chandrasekhar. Among them, the choice of Narayana is likely to attract the most political attention. The proposed appointment of Narayana has triggered discussions within the Congress over the extent to which the UDF government should retain elements from the LDF administration’s economic policy framework. According to Congress sources, Chandrasekhar was keen on including Narayana as a member in the planning board. However the proposal faced opposition from some sections as he was closely associated with the Pinarayi government.