The government on Thursday extended the tenure of chief economic adviser V Anantha Nageswaran by more than two years till March 2027, virtually ruling him out as a contender for the post of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) deputy governor.
Nageswaran is one of the candidates interviewed for the role of deputy governor in place of Michael Patra, who was in charge of monetary policy at the RBI and retired in January.
The chief economic adviser has recently pitched for a change in the RBI’s inflation target to exclude food. His first term as CEA was for three years until January 2025.
In a notification on Thursday, the finance ministry said Nageswaran will remain in his current post until March 31, 2027, or until further order, whichever is earlier.
The office of CEA is responsible for advising the government on various economic policies and drafting of the Economic Survey that is tabled in Parliament a day ahead of the Union Budget.
Nageswaran, an academic and former executive with Credit Suisse Group AG and Julius Baer Group, succeeded K V Subramanian.
His extension comes weeks after the Economic Survey 2024-25 projected a growth of 6.3-6.8% for the next financial year amid the economy showing signs of moderation.