The government appointed four members of the newly-constituted Sixteenth Finance Commission on Wednesday.
The Commission, chaired by former Vice Chairman of Niti Aayog Arvind Panagariya, will have 4 members, who will be assisted by Secretary Ritvik Ranjanam Pandey, two Joint Secretaries, and one Economic Advisor.
This includes former Expenditure Secretary Ajay Narayan Jha and SBI Group Chief Economic Advisor Soumya Kanti Ghosh.
According to a notification released by the Finance Ministry, retired bureaucrat Annie George Mathew and Artha Global Executive Director Niranjan Rajadhyaksha have been appointed as full-time members of the 16th Finance Commission.
Soumya Kanti Ghosh will be a part-time member, the Finance Ministry said.
“The Chairman and other members of the Commission shall hold office from the date on which they respectively assume office up to the date of submission of report or October 31, 2025, whichever is earlier,” the notification added.
The Sixteenth Finance Commission was constituted on December 31, 2023 with Arvind Panagariya, former Vice-Chairman, NITI Aayog as its Chairman.
Panagariya is a trade economist who served as the first vice chairman of the Niti Aayog, which replaced the erstwhile Planning Commission, from 2015 to 2017.
Notably, the Sixteenth Finance Commission has been requested to make its recommendations available by October, 31, 2025, covering an award period of 5 years commencing 1st April 2026.
The 16th Finance Commission will recommend the tax revenue sharing formula between the Centre and the States for the five years beginning April 2026.
Usually, the Finance Commission takes about two years to consult stakeholders in the States and Centre and arrive at their conclusions.