Important Economic Committees
in India: Complete List for UPSC
A sector-wise list of the committees most useful for Prelims and Mains, with chairs, years and purpose. It includes the High Level Committee on Banking for Viksit Bharat, constituted on 30 October 2026.
Nearly every aspirant knows that the R.N. Malhotra Committee dealt with insurance. Yet a Prelims 2026 question linked it to IRDAI, and that row was wrong. This list of economic committees in India is built for that kind of trap, because UPSC now tests more than the name and the subject.
The Malhotra Committee came first, in 1993, and the IRDAI was established later. One date was enough to eliminate the row. You need the same kind of understanding for every important committee.
Let's be honest: long committee lists feel impossible to retain. You read fifty names on Sunday, and by Wednesday they have started to blur. At Legacy IAS Academy, we suggest learning them by sector and by outcome, so each name connects to a reform you already know from your GS3 Economy notes.
India has set up far too many committees for any list to be truly exhaustive. This guide covers the ones most useful for UPSC. Years can vary between sources because a committee may be set up in one year and report in another, so always link the name to its purpose first.
Latest Economic Committees in India (2025–26)
Start here, because recent panels make natural current affairs questions.
| Committee | Date | Purpose | Remember |
|---|---|---|---|
| Suresh N. Patel: High Level Committee on Banking for Viksit Bharat | 30 Oct 2026 | Review the banking sector and recommend reforms for 2047 | Six-month tenure; announced in Budget 2026-27; covers AI, capital needs and PSL |
| Rajiv Gauba: High-Level Committee on Non-Financial Regulatory Reforms | Aug 2025 | Review non-financial regulations, licences and permissions | Trust-based regulation and lower compliance burden |
| Arvind Panagariya: 16th Finance Commission | Tabled 1 Feb 2026 | Centre-State tax sharing for 2026-31 | States' share retained at 41% |
Banking and Monetary Policy Committees
| Committee | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Tandon | 1974 | Norms for bank credit to industry |
| Chakravarty | 1985 | Review of the monetary system |
| Vaghul | 1987 | Development of the money market |
| Narasimham I | 1991 | Financial system reforms |
| Narasimham II | 1998 | Second-generation banking reforms |
| Tarapore | 1997 | Capital account convertibility |
| C. Rangarajan | 2008 | Financial inclusion |
| Y.H. Malegam | 2010 | Microfinance sector reforms (RBI) |
| Justice B.N. Srikrishna (FSLRC) | 2013 report | Rewrite financial sector laws; draft Indian Financial Code |
| Bimal Jalan | 2013 | Advisory panel on new bank licences |
| Urjit Patel | 2014 report | Revise the monetary policy framework; inflation targeting (RBI) |
| Nachiket Mor | 2014 report | Financial services for small businesses and low-income households |
| P.J. Nayak | 2014 | Governance of bank boards |
| Sunil Mehta | 2018 | Stressed asset resolution (Project Sashakt) |
| Bimal Jalan | 2019 report | RBI's Economic Capital Framework |
| Rajiv Mehrishi | 2020 | Impact of waiving interest during the COVID moratorium |
| K.V. Kamath | 2020 | Parameters for COVID-related loan restructuring |
Insurance, Capital Market and Corporate Committees
| Committee | Year | Purpose | Set Up By |
|---|---|---|---|
| R.N. Malhotra | 1993 | Insurance sector reforms | Government of India |
| L.C. Gupta | 1996 | Roadmap for derivatives trading | SEBI |
| Kumar Mangalam Birla | 1999 | Corporate governance | SEBI |
| J.J. Irani | 2005 | Company law reforms | Government of India |
| T.K. Viswanathan | 2015 report | Bankruptcy law; led to the IBC | Finance Ministry |
| Uday Kotak | 2017 | Corporate governance | SEBI |
Tax, Fiscal and Disinvestment Committees
Link this group with your preparation on the Budget, GST and fiscal federalism. Our Indian Economy current affairs page helps you connect these panels to recent policy.
| Committee | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Raja Chelliah | 1991 | Tax system reforms |
| C. Rangarajan | 1993 | Disinvestment of public sector enterprises |
| Vijay Kelkar | 2002 | Direct and indirect tax reforms |
| Vijay Kelkar | 2012 | Roadmap for fiscal consolidation |
| Parthasarathi Shome | 2012 | General Anti-Avoidance Rules (GAAR) |
| Arvind Subramanian | 2015 | Revenue Neutral Rate and GST rate structure |
| N.K. Singh | 2017 report | Review of the FRBM framework; debt anchor and fiscal council |
Agriculture and Food Committees
For deeper reading, use our GS3 Agriculture notes.
| Committee | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| B. Sivaraman | 1979 | Agricultural and rural credit; led to NABARD |
| Abhijit Sen | 2000 | Long-term grain policy |
| M.S. Swaminathan | 2004 | National Commission on Farmers |
| A. Vaidyanathan | 2004 | Revival of rural cooperative credit |
| Shanta Kumar | 2014–15 | Restructuring of the Food Corporation of India |
| Ashok Dalwai | 2016 | Doubling farmers' income |
Poverty, Labour and Statistics Committees
| Committee | Year | Purpose | Key Point |
|---|---|---|---|
| Y.K. Alagh | 1979 | Poverty line | Calorie-based approach |
| D.T. Lakdawala | 1993 | Poverty estimation | State-specific poverty lines |
| Suresh Tendulkar | 2009 | Poverty methodology | Moved away from the calorie anchor |
| C. Rangarajan | 2014 | Poverty methodology | Higher poverty ratio than Tendulkar for 2011-12 |
| Anoop Satpathy | 2019 | National minimum wage | Methodology for setting a national minimum wage |
| Ramesh Chand | 2019 | Wholesale Price Index | Revision of the WPI series |
Infrastructure and Energy Committees
| Committee | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Kirit Parikh | 2010 | Pricing of petroleum products |
| Vijay Kelkar | 2015 | Revisiting and revitalising the PPP model |
| Bibek Debroy | 2015 | Restructuring of Indian Railways |
| Kirit Parikh | 2022 | Review of domestic gas pricing |
How UPSC Tests Economic Committees
The Prelims 2026 question matched four committees against both an objective and a parent organisation.
| Row in the Question | Verdict | Why |
|---|---|---|
| R.N. Malhotra: insurance reforms, IRDAI | Incorrect | Set up by the Government in 1993, before the IRDAI existed |
| L.C. Gupta: derivatives roadmap, SEBI | Correct | SEBI set it up in 1996 |
| Urjit Patel: housing-sector lending, RBI | Incorrect | It dealt with the monetary policy framework |
| Y.H. Malegam: microfinance reforms, RBI | Correct | RBI set it up in 2010 |
Do not stop at "committee equals subject". Ask who set it up, what triggered it and what changed because of it. Those three questions turn a list into understanding. — Legacy IAS Faculty
Same-Name Traps
- Rangarajan: Disinvestment (1993), financial inclusion (2008) and poverty (2014).
- Kelkar: Taxes (2002), fiscal consolidation (2012) and PPP (2015).
- Bimal Jalan: New bank licences (2013) and the RBI's Economic Capital Framework (2019).
- Patel: Urjit Patel worked on monetary policy, while Suresh N. Patel now heads the 2026 banking panel.
- Kirit Parikh: Petroleum product pricing (2010) and gas pricing (2022).
Test your recall through our Daily Static Quiz and Prelims previous year papers. The Prelims syllabus will help you decide how much time to give this topic.
Using Committees in Mains Answers
A committee reference gives your answer instant authority, but only when it fits the argument. Name the panel, state its core recommendation and show its status. Here are three examples.
- Fiscal policy: The N.K. Singh Committee recommended a 60% general government debt target. The 2018 FRBM amendment adopted a debt anchor, but the proposed fiscal council has not been set up.
- Food security: The Shanta Kumar Committee proposed restructuring the FCI. It also found that few farmers benefit directly from MSP procurement, a finding that still shapes the debate.
- Federalism: The 16th Finance Commission retained the 41% share, which you can discuss alongside State concerns about fiscal space.
Practice Question
"Committees often diagnose India's economic problems well, but implementation remains the real test." Critically examine with suitable examples. (15 marks, 250 words)
- Introduction: Explain why governments use expert committees for complex reforms.
- Where recommendations led to change: Use Viswanathan and the IBC, Urjit Patel and inflation targeting, and Malhotra and the IRDAI.
- Where they stalled or stayed partial: Use the fiscal council proposal and the FSLRC's Indian Financial Code.
- Reasons: Discuss political economy, federal concerns, capacity and changing conditions.
- Way forward: Suggest public reporting of action taken and time-bound reviews.
Write this within the time limit, then practise more from our Mains Practice Questions and the Mains syllabus. Our subject-wise PYQs and Prelims Test Series will help you check your progress.
A Simple Revision Plan
- Day 1: Learn the latest panels and the banking table.
- Day 2: Cover the capital market, tax and fiscal tables.
- Day 3: Cover the agriculture, poverty and infrastructure tables.
- Day 4: Write the same-name traps from memory, then self-test.
- Every month: Add new panels from our Daily Current Affairs.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which economic committees are most important for UPSC?
Prioritise those linked to major reforms: Narasimham, Urjit Patel, N.K. Singh, Viswanathan, Shanta Kumar, Tendulkar and Rangarajan. Then add recent panels such as the Suresh N. Patel banking committee and the Rajiv Gauba regulatory committee.
Do I need to memorise the year of every committee?
No. Purpose and parent organisation matter more. Learn years for the major committees, and use dates when they help you eliminate an option, as the Malhotra and IRDAI case shows.
Is the Finance Commission a committee?
No. It is a constitutional body under Article 280. We include the 16th Finance Commission here because its recommendations are central to fiscal questions.
Are committee recommendations binding on the government?
Generally, no. Governments can accept, modify or reject them. Finance Commission recommendations are also advisory in nature, though the government must lay them before Parliament with an explanatory memorandum.
Who heads the latest banking committee?
Former Central Vigilance Commissioner Suresh N. Patel chairs the High Level Committee on Banking for Viksit Bharat, constituted on 30 October 2026 with a six-month tenure.
Where can I find the books for this topic?
Committee names appear across standard economy texts and reports. Start with our Best Books for UPSC list, then build your own running table.
Ready to begin? Legacy IAS offers both Classroom and Online batches across Bengaluru and pan-India.
Key Takeaways
- Learn each committee by purpose, parent body and outcome, not by name alone.
- Use the Prelims 2026 question as your model: check the organisation as well as the subject.
- Add the Suresh N. Patel banking committee and the Rajiv Gauba regulatory committee to your notes today.
- Revise same-name traps such as Rangarajan, Kelkar and Bimal Jalan as separate entries.
- In Mains, cite a committee with its recommendation and implementation status.
- Keep a running table and update it each month from current affairs.
