The government names Arvind Panagariya to lead the 16th Finance Commission
Arvind Panagariya, a former vice chairman of Niti Aayog, was named by the government on Sunday to lead the 16th Finance Commission.
The government said in a notice that Ritvik Ranjanam Pandey, a joint secretary in the finance ministry, would serve as the secretary to the panel.
“The President is happy to create the Finance Commission, whose chairman will be Dr. Arvind Panagariya, a professor at Columbia University and a former vice-chairman of NITI Aayog. It said that notifications to Commission members would be sent individually.
By October 31, 2025, the panel will provide its report to the President covering the five-year period (2026–27 to 2030–31).
The Terms of Reference (ToR) for the 16th Finance Commission were agreed by the Union Cabinet, which is led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, last month.
The panel will examine current arrangements for funding disaster management activities with reference to the funds established under the Disaster Management Act, of 2005, in addition to proposing revenue augmentation strategies and tax devolution between the federal government and the states.
A constitutional authority that offers recommendations on center-state financial relations is the Finance Commission.
The previous Finance Commission, led by NK Singh, suggested that states get 41% of the Center’s divisible tax pool for the five-year period 2021–2022–2025–26. This recommendation was consistent with the 14th Finance Commission’s.
