Economy · 3 minutes read
Committees have played a pivotal role in shaping India’s economic policies and reforms since Independence. From taxation and poverty estimation to banking, agriculture, infrastructure, and financial inclusion, expert groups and high-level panels have guided successive governments in setting priorities and implementing structural changes.
The following compilation classifies important committees on economic reforms and policy in India (1950–2025) by theme, along with their years of formation and key contributions.
NOTE: Year ranges (e.g., 2013–2014) indicate the year of constitution (first) and the year of report submission (second).
Contents
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Committees on Poverty Estimation & Poverty Lines
| Year | Committee / Chairperson | Suggestions |
|---|---|---|
| 1977–1979 | Y. K. Alagh Committee | First systematic poverty line; calorie norms (2400 rural, 2100 urban). |
| 1989–1993 | Lakdawala Committee | Poverty line based on consumption expenditure & calorie norms; report 1993. |
| 2005–2009 | Suresh Tendulkar Committee | Shift from calorie norms; uniform PLB; included health & education in poverty basket. |
| 2012–2014 | C. Rangarajan Committee | Revised poverty lines; new methodology; report June 2014. |
Committees on Banking & Financial Sector Reforms
| Year | Committee / Chairperson | Suggestions |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Narasimham Committee I | Prudential norms; NPAs; autonomy; private bank entry. |
| 1998 | Narasimham Committee II | Capital adequacy; mergers; ARCs for stressed assets. |
| 2013–2014 | Urjit Patel Committee | Inflation targeting; proposed Monetary Policy Committee (MPC). |
| 2014 | P. J. Nayak Committee | Bank Boards Bureau precursor; PSB governance reforms. |
| 2015 | Deepak Mohanty Committee | Medium-term roadmap for financial inclusion. |
| 2020 | K. V. Kamath Committee | Loan restructuring framework for COVID-stressed borrowers. |
| 2020 | RBI IWG (P. K. Mohanty) | Ownership norms for private banks. |
Committees on Taxation & Fiscal Policy
| Year | Committee / Chairperson | Suggestions |
|---|---|---|
| 1953–1955 | Taxation Enquiry Commission | Comprehensive tax review; broaden base. |
| 1991–1993 | Raja J. Chelliah Committee | Direct tax rationalisation. |
| 2002 | Kelkar Committee (Tax) | FRBM-linked fiscal roadmap. |
| 2012 | Parthasarathi Shome Committee | GAAR & anti-avoidance clarity. |
| 2016–2017 | N. K. Singh Committee (FRBM Review) | Debt-GDP anchor; escape clauses. |
Committees on Agriculture & Food Policy
| Year | Committee / Chairperson | Suggestions |
|---|---|---|
| 2004–2006 | M. S. Swaminathan Committee | Recommended MSP be at least 50% more than the weighted average cost of production. |
| 2014–2015 | Shanta Kumar Committee | Reform of FCI; DBT; rationalise NFSA coverage. |
| 2016–2018 | Ashok Dalwai Committee | Doubling farmers’ income; 14-volume report. |
Committees on Financial Inclusion & Digital Payments
| Year | Committee / Chairperson | Suggestions |
|---|---|---|
| 2013–2014 | Nachiket Mor Committee | Proposed Payments Banks & Wholesale Banks |
| 2016 | Ratan Watal Committee | Strengthening digital payments ecosystem. |
| 2018–2019 | Bimal Jalan Committee | RBI’s economic capital framework. |
| 2019 | Nandan Nilekani Committee | QR codes; MDR reduction; expand payments. |
| 2021 | RBI WG on Digital Lending (Dash) | Lending app regulation; consumer protection. |
Committees on Corporate Governance & Capital Markets
| Year | Committee / Chairperson | Suggestions |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | R. H. Patil Committee | Corporate bond & securitisation market. |
| 2017 | Uday Kotak Committee | SEBI governance norms for listed companies. |
| 2025 | SEBI High-Level Committee on Conflict of Interest (Pratyush Sinha; Vice: Injeti Srinivas) | Strengthen SEBI disclosures and conflict norms. |
Committees on Infrastructure & PPP
| Year | Committee / Chairperson | Suggestions |
|---|---|---|
| 2014–2015 | Bibek Debroy Committee | Railway reforms; PPP; resource mobilisation. |
| 2015 | Kelkar Committee on PPP | Balanced risk-sharing; renegotiation framework. |
Committees on External Sector & Trade
| Year | Committee / Chairperson | Suggestions |
|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Abid Hussain Committee | Trade liberalisation. |
| 1997 | Tarapore Committee I | Roadmap for Capital Account Convertibility. |
Committees on Technology, Crypto & Statistics
| Year | Committee / Chairperson | Suggestions |
|---|---|---|
| 2017–2019 | IMC on Virtual Currencies (Garg) | Recommended ban on private cryptocurrencies. |
| 2023–2024 | Standing Committee on Statistics (Pronab Sen) | Oversight of national statistics |
| 2025 | High-Level Committee for Regulatory Reforms | Ease of Doing Business; non-financial sector reforms. |
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