K.N. Raj’s Impact as an Economist and Teacher
(Photo: K.N.Raj, at extreme left, and members of the Planning Commission with Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, right, 1950. Courtesy Wikimedia Commons.)
May 24, 2024 and May 18, 2024
May 13, 2024, marked the 100th birth centenary of Kakkadan Nandanath (K.N.) Raj. As an economist, he played a key role in India's post-independence economic development. He was an advisor to several Indian Prime Ministers, including Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, and P.V. Narasimha Rao.
At the age of 26, Raj helped draft India's first Five Year Plan (1951 to 1956), including writing the introductory chapter. While serving on the Planning Commission of India, Raj and his colleagues prepared a 20-year perspective of increasing the rate of savings, among Indian households, from 5% in 1950 to 20 per cent by 1971. In 2004, Raj told The Frontline that by the target year 1971 India had "superbly met its (savings) projections".
Raj was a professor of economics at Delhi University for 18 years and was among those who founded the Delhi School of Economics. He earned his Ph.D. from the London School of Economics and a BA from Madras Christian College, Chennai, India.
In 1971, upon returning to his home state of Kerala, he founded the Centre for Development Studies in Thiruvananthapuram. CDS, as it is known, focused on an “empirical study of different aspects of Kerala and India’s economy” employing applied economics and social science research.
Professor Raj passed away on February 10, 2010.
CDS will host a conference and other events to celebrate Raj’s centennial, October 19 to 22, 2024.
Former students recall what Raj meant to them while they were at CDS, from economics and teaching insights to help with their research. Contributors on May 24, 2024, are A.V. Jose, C. Rammanohar Reddy, Cherian Samuel, Mihir Shah, P.K. Michael Tharakan, P.S. Vijayshankar, Rakesh Basant, and Ignatius Chithelen
In the first part, published May 18, 2024, the contributors were Arvind Sardana, N. Chandra Mohan, Nagaraj Rayaprolu, and Sunil Mani.
