V. K. R. V. Rao
Vijayendra Kasturi Ranga Varadaraja Rao (8 July 1908 – 25 July 1991) was an Indian economist, politician and educator.[1]
V. K. R. V. Rao | |
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| Born | Vijayendra Kasturi Ranga Varadaraja Rao 8 July 1908 |
| Died | 25 July 1991 (aged 83) |
| Occupation(s) | Economist, politician |
| Known for | Founder of the Delhi School of Economics |
| Awards | Padma Vibhushan (1974) |
Early life
Rao was born on 8 July 1908 at Kancheepuram in Tamil Nadu to Kasturirangachar and Bharati Amma. He had his early schooling in Tindivanam and Madras (Chennai).[2] He was a recipient of the Padma Vibhushan. He served as a Union Minister for the Education in 1971, elected as member for Bellary in 1967 and 1971. He obtained a B.A and M.A in economics from Bombay University before earning another B.A from Cambridge where he was a member of Gonville & Caius College. He was awarded the Ph.D. of Cambridge in 1937; the title of his doctoral thesis was "The national income of British India, 1931-1932". He studied with John Maynard Keynes.
Institute builder
Central Institute of Indian Languages, Mysuru, an office of the Ministry of Human Resource Development, is considered to be the brainchild of Rao.[3]
Publications
Notable among his works are: Taxation of Income in India (1931), An essay on India’s National Income -1925-29 – (1936); The National Income of British India (1940); India and International Currency Plans (1945); Post-War Rupee (1948); Greater Delhi A Study in Urbanization 1940-1957 (1965); Gandhian Alternative to Western Socialism (1970); Values and Economic Development – The Indian Challenge (1971); the Nehru Legacy (1971); Swami Vivekananda – Prophet of Vedantic Socialism (1978); Many Languages and One Nation – the Problem of Integration (1979); India’s National Income 1950-80 (1983) Food, Nutrition and Poverty (1982); Indian socialism: Retrospect and Prospect (1982), etc.[4] He was awarded Padma Vibhushan by the Government of India in 1974.
Positions held
- Adviser for Planning, Food Department (1945–46)
- Food and Economic Adviser, Government of India at Washington (1946–47)
- Director, Delhi School of Economics, Delhi (1948–57)
- Vice Chancellor, University of Delhi (1957–60)
- Director, Institute of Economic Growth, Delhi (1960–63)
- Member, Planning Commission (1963–66)
- Union Cabinet Minister for Transport and Shipping (1967–69)
- Union Cabinet Minister for Education & Youth Services (1969–71)
- Director, Institute for Social and Economic Change, Bangalore (1972–77)
- National Professor, Government of India (1985-1990).
Legacy
He is commemorated by the VKRV Rao prizes in Social Science Research.[5]
References
- "VKRV Rao". www.isec.ac.in. Retrieved 17 July 2023.
- Vijendra Kasturi Ranga Varadaraja Rao; S. L. Rao (2002). The Partial Memoirs of V.K.R.V. Rao. Oxford University Press. p. 1. ISBN 9780195658231.
- Kachru, Braj B. (1995). "Debi Prasanna Pattanayak (Ed.), Multilingualism in India. (Multilingual matters, 61.) Clevedon (UK) & Philadelphia (PA): Multilingual Matters, 1990. Pp. Xii, 116. Pb $19.00". Language in Society. 24 (4): 608–611. doi:10.1017/S0047404500019151. S2CID 145670855.
- Rao, Vijendra Kasturi Ranga Varadaraja; Desai, Prasannavadan Bhagwanji (1965). Greater Delhi: A Study in Urbanisation, 1940-1957. Asia Publishing House.
- "VKRV Rao Prize".
Further reading
- S. L. Rao (ed.) The Partial Memoirs of V.K.R.V. Rao Oxford University Press: USA, 2002 ISBN 0-19-565823-X reviewed in Tale of triumph — or disillusionment?, The Hindu, 20 January 2002 accessed at [Usurped!] 30 August 2006
- Rao, Jayaram,Rao, Nadkarni and Deshpande (ed)"A Passionate Humanitarian", Academic Foundation, New Delhi 2008.
