India lost eminent public intellectual with demise of Bibek Debroy: President Murmu

PTI, Nov 1, 2024, 12:58 PM IST

President Droupadi Murmu on Friday said the country has lost an eminent public intellectual in the demise of Bibek Debroy, Chairman of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM), and offered condolences to his family members.

Debroy (69) passed away on Friday, a senior EAC-PM official said.

“In the demise of Dr. Bibek Debroy the country has lost an eminent public intellectual who enriched diverse fields, from policy making to translating our great scriptures. His understanding of India’s social, cultural and economic landscape was exceptional. For his extraordinary contributions, he was honoured with Padma Shri. I convey my condolences to his family, friends and admirers,” Murmu said in a post on X.

He was also a Member of NITI Aayog up to June 5, 2019. He authored/edited several books, papers and popular articles and had also been a Consulting/Contributing Editor with several newspapers.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled Debroy’s passing and called him a “towering scholar”.

“Dr Bibek Debroy ji was a towering scholar, well-versed in diverse domains like economics, history, culture, politics, spirituality and more. Through his works, he left an indelible mark on India’s intellectual landscape. Beyond his contributions to public policy, he enjoyed working on our ancient texts, making them accessible to the youth,” he said in a post on X.

He also shared a picture of himself with Debroy.