S Mahendra Dev Appointed as New Chairperson of Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council (EAC-PM).

Appointment

In June 2025, the Government of India appointed eminent economist Prof S Mahendra Dev as the Chairperson of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM) for a two-year term, succeeding Suman Bery, who took charge after Bibek Debroy’s demise in November 2024.


      - Following his appointment, Prof Mahendra Dev resigned from the Board of Directors of Axis Bank, as the Chairperson role is a full-time position.

      - The reconstitution of the EAC-PM was approved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and notified by the Cabinet Secretariat. The new part-time members include Soumya Kanti Ghosh, K V Raju, Chetan Ghate, Pami Dua, Pulak Ghosh, and Gourav Vallabh, while Poonam Gupta was excluded.

     

Main Point :-   (i) Prof Dev began his academic journey at the Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research (IGIDR) in 1988 and served as its Director and Vice-Chancellor from 2010 to 2022.

      (ii) Prof Dev served as an Independent Director at Kotak Mahindra Bank (2013–2021) and Axis Bank (2021–2025). He is currently the Chairman of the Institute of Development Studies, Andhra Pradesh (part-time) and Editor of Economic and Political Weekly since August 2023.

(iii) The Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM) is a non-constitutional, non-statutory, independent advisory body that provides economic insights and recommendations directly to the Prime Minister of India. It comprises a Chairperson, along with full-time and part-time members.

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