Bimal Jalan (born 1941) is a former Governor of India's Reserve Bank and a nominated member of the Upper House of India's Parliament, the Rajya Sabha during 2003-2009.[1]
Jalan graduated from Presidency College, Calcutta, and later was at Cambridge and Oxford.
A leading economic bureaucrat, Jalan held several administrative and advisory positions in the Government of India. He was the Chief Economic Adviser in the 1980s, Banking Secretary between 1985 and 1989 and Finance Secretary, Ministry of Finance. As Finance Secretary, he was also on the Central Board of Directors of the Reserve Bank of India. He has also been the Chairman of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister between January 1991 and September 1992. Jalan has served as the Executive Director representing India on the Boards of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. At the time of his appointment as the Governor of the Reserve Bank, Jalan was the Member-Secretary, Planning Commission in New Delhi.
He was the Governor of Reserve Bank of India for two terms. The Government of India reappointed Jalan as Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, first for a period of two years commencing November 22, 2000 to November 21, 2002 and again for a further period of two years commencing from November 22, 2002 and ending November 21, 2004. He was succeeded by Y. Venugopal Reddy on September 6, 2003.[2] During his tenure the Indian Rupee note of 1000 denomination was introduced.[3]
| Government offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Dr. C Rangarajan |
Governor of RBI 1997 – 2003 |
Succeeded by Dr. Y Venugopal Reddy |