Artha Global's Rajadhyaksha Can't Join 16th Finance Commission

New Delhi, Feb 19 (PTI) Artha Global Executive Director Niranjan Rajadhyaksha has expressed his inability to join as a member of the 16th Finance Commission due to personal reasons, the Finance Ministry said on Monday.

The government had on January 31, appointed four members of the 16th Finance Commission chaired by Arvind Panagariya.

Apart from Rajadhyaksha, former expenditure secretary Ajay Narayan Jha and retired bureaucrat Annie George Mathew were appointed as full-time members of the commission. SBI Group Chief Economic Advisor Soumya Kanti Ghosh was named a part-time member.

"Dr. Rajadhyaksha has expressed his inability to take up this responsibility due to unforeseen personal circumstances. Action will be taken to appoint a Member of the 16th Commission in lieu of Dr. Rajadhyaksha," a ministry statement said.

Officials said Rajadhyaksha did not attend the first meeting of the 16th Finance Commission which was held on February 14.

The government constituted the 16th Finance Commission under the chairmanship of Panagariya on December 31, 2023. The panel would submit its report to the President by October 31, 2025. The report would be for five years commencing April 1, 2026.

Besides suggesting tax devolution between centre and states and revenue augmentation measures, the commission would review the present arrangements for financing disaster management initiatives with reference to the funds constituted under the Disaster Management Act, 2005.

The Finance Commission is a constitutional body that gives suggestions on centre-state financial relations.

The erstwhile 15th Finance Commission under NK Singh had recommended that states be given 41 per cent of the divisible tax pool of the Centre during the five-year period 2021-22 to 2025-26, which is at the same level as was recommended by 14th Finance Commission under Y V Reddy.