Raja Jesudoss Chelliah (12 December 1922 – 7 April 2009) was an economist and founding chairman of the

Madras School of Economics Madras School of Economics is an institution of higher education in economics, located in Chennai, India. Madras School of Economics was founded in 1993 as a post-graduate institution for teaching and research in economics. MSE offers ...

. He completed an MA in economics from the

University of Madras The University of Madras (informally known as Madras University) is a public state university in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Established in 1857, it is one of the oldest and among the most prestigious universities in India, incorporated by an a ...

and PhD in the United States. He worked as the chief of the Fiscal Analysis Division, Fiscal Affairs Department,

International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster glo ...

between 1969 and 1975. He served as a consultant to the government of

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

on Centre Provincial Financial Relations. He also worked in several state and central government financial institutions in India. He was considered a public finance expert in India, instrumental in bringing about the early reforms to the direct taxation structure. He was awarded

Padma Vibushan The Padma Vibhushan ("Lotus Decoration") is the second-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "exceptional and distinguished service". All persons without ...

in 2007. He is often referred to as "The Father of Tax Reforms".

Personal life and education

He was born on 12 December 1922. His father Chelliah Pillai was his greatest inspiration. He graduated with a master's degree in economics from

and worked as a lecturer in Madras Christian College for five years before going to the United States on a Fulbright scholarship to do a PhD at the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the univers ...

. He was married to Sita Chelliah with whom he had two daughters. He died on 7 April 2009.

Career

Upon his return from the United States, he worked as a senior economist at the National Council of Applied Economic Research,

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament Ho ...

between 1958 and 1961. He was a reader and professor at the Department of Economics of

University of Rajasthan University of Rajasthan is a public and state university in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India and is one of the oldest universities in the state. It was set up on 8 January 1947 as the University of Rajputana Rājputana, meaning "Land of the ...

between 1961-1966 and professor of economics at

Osmania University Osmania University is a collegiate university, collegiate Public university, public State university (India), state university located in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. Mir Osman Ali Khan, the 7th Nizam of Hyderabad in 1918 , He released a farma ...

between 1966 and 1969. He was invited to work with the

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

and worked as a chief of Fiscal Analysis Division, Fiscal Affairs Department between 1969 and 1975. He was the founding director of the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy between 1976 and 1985. He was a member of the Planning Commission between 1985-1990 and also member of the Finance Commission from 1987 to 1989. He served as chairman of Tax Reforms Committee of

Union Government The Government of India ( ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...

between 1991 and 1993 and as chairman of the Tax Reforms and Revenue Augmentation Commission in

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil language ...

during 2002-2003

External links

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chelliah, Raja Recipients of the Padma Vibhushan in public affairs 1922 births 2009 deaths University of Madras alumni Indian expatriates in Papua New Guinea Indian expatriates in the United States