RBI Grade B • NABARD Grade A • SEBI Grade A • UPSC EPFO EO/AO & APFC
⚡ Quick Answer & AI Exam Snapshot (TL;DR)
Direct MCQs asking ‘Which Committee recommended X?’ account for 4 to 8 marks across RBI Grade B (Phase-1 & Phase-2), NABARD Grade A, SEBI Grade A, and UPSC EPFO. This Master Reference Hub organizes over 100 landmark Indian Committees and Commissions into 4 high-yield domain tables: (1) Central Banking, Monetary Policy, Banking Reforms & FinTech Committees (Hilton Young 1926 to Bimal Jalan ECF, Urjit Patel MPC, P.J. Nayak, Nachiket Mor, Nandan Nilekani, K.V. Kamath, Jayant Kumar Dash on Digital Lending, and T.V. Somanathan on UPS); (2) Capital Markets, Corporate Governance & Insurance/Pension Committees (Pherwani, L.C. Gupta, Kumar Mangalam Birla, Narayana Murthy, Uday Kotak, T.K. Viswanathan, R.N. Malhotra, S.A. Dave OASIS); (3) Agriculture, Rural Credit, Cooperatives & PRI Committees (Gorwala 1954, Gadgil/Nariman Lead Bank, Narasimham RRBs, B. Sivaraman NABARD, R.V. Gupta KCC, S.K. Kalia SHG, Vaidyanathan Cooperatives, Swaminathan NCF, Ashok Dalwai DFI, Shanta Kumar FCI); and (4) Poverty, Tax, Centre-State & Labour Committees (Alagh, Lakdawala, Tendulkar, Rangarajan, N.C. Saxena, Hashim, Whitley, Ravindra Varma & 2nd NCL).
1. Banking, Monetary Policy, Financial Inclusion & FinTech Committees (RBI Domain)
Memorize this complete directory of Banking and RBI Committees tested in RBI Grade B, SBI/IBPS, and UPSC EPFO:
| Committee / Commission | Year | Core Mandate & Signature Recommendation |
|---|---|---|
| Hilton Young Commission (Royal Commission on Indian Currency & Finance) | 1926 | Recommended establishing the Reserve Bank of India (RBI Act, 1934; operational 1 April 1935) and separating currency from government fiscal control. |
| A.D. Gorwala Committee (All-India Rural Credit Survey) | 1954 | Recommended converting the Imperial Bank of India into the State Bank of India (SBI Act, 1955 — 1 July 1955). |
| D.R. Gadgil Study Group & F.K.F. Nariman Committee | 1969 | Recommended the ‘Service Area / Area Approach’, leading RBI to launch the Lead Bank Scheme (Dec 1969)! |
| Sukhamoy Chakravarty Committee | 1985 | Reviewed the working of the Monetary System in India; recommended Monetary Targeting with Feedback and Fiscal Deficit definition. |
| M. Narasimham Committee-I (1991) & Committee-II (1998) | 1991 & 1998 | • 1991 (Financial System): Phased reduction of SLR/CRR, 4-tier banking structure, 90-day NPA norm, Capital Adequacy (CRAR), and DRTs. • 1998 (Banking Sector Reforms): Stronger Basel norms, narrow banking, and Asset Reconstruction Companies (SARFAESI Act, 2002). |
| S.S. Tarapore Committee-I (1997) & Committee-II (2006) | 1997 & 2006 | Roadmaps for Fuller Capital Account Convertibility (FCAC) (3-year precondition targets on Fiscal Deficit, Inflation, and NPAs). |
| C. Rangarajan Committee (2008) & Nachiket Mor Committee (2013–14) | 2008 & 2014 | • Rangarajan (2008): Committee on Financial Inclusion (National Rural Financial Inclusion Plan). • Nachiket Mor (2014): Committee on Comprehensive Financial Services for Small Businesses and Low-Income Households → Recommended Differentiated Banks: Payments Banks & Small Finance Banks (while Usha Thorat Committee evaluated SFB licences and Nachiket Mor evaluated Payments Bank licences!). |
| Urjit Patel Committee | 2014 | Recommended transitioning to Flexible Inflation Targeting (FIT) using Headline CPI-Combined (4% $\pm$ 2%) as the nominal anchor and establishing the 6-Member Monetary Policy Committee (MPC, 2016)! |
| P.J. Nayak Committee | 2014 | Governance of Boards of Banks in India → Recommended repealing Bank Nationalisation Acts and setting up the Bank Boards Bureau (BBB, 2016 — now transformed into FSIB [Financial Services Institutions Bureau] in July 2022!). |
| U.K. Sinha Committee & K.V. Kamath Committee | 2019 & 2020 | • U.K. Sinha (2019): Expert Committee on MSMEs (recommended ₹5,000 Cr Distressed Asset Fund & ₹20 Lakh collateral-free MUDRA/SHG limit). • K.V. Kamath (2020): Financial parameters across 26 sectors for COVID-19 loan restructuring. |
| Bimal Jalan Committee | 2019 | Reviewed the Economic Capital Framework (ECF) of the RBI (under Section 47 of RBI Act) → Prescribed maintaining the Contingency Risk Buffer (CRB) between 5.5% and 6.5% of RBI’s Balance Sheet! |
| Nandan Nilekani Committee (2019) & Jayant Kumar Dash Working Group (2021) | 2019 & 2021 | • Nandan Nilekani (2019): Deepening of Digital Payments (recommended 24×7 NEFT/RTGS & zero MDR). • Jayant Kumar Dash (2021): Working Group on Digital Lending including lending through online platforms and mobile apps (led to RBI’s Digital Lending Guidelines 2022 & SRO-FT). |
2. Agriculture, Rural Credit, Cooperatives & Panchayati Raj Committees (NABARD Domain)
| Committee / Commission | Year | Core Mandate & Signature Recommendation |
|---|---|---|
| M. Narasimham Working Group | 1975 | Recommended setting up Regional Rural Banks (RRBs — 2 Oct 1975) combining the local feel of cooperatives with the professionalism of commercial banks. |
| B. Sivaraman Committee (CRAFICARD) | 1979 | Committee to Review Arrangements for Institutional Credit for Agriculture and Rural Development → Recommended establishing NABARD (12 July 1982). |
| Khusro Committee (ACRC) | 1989 | Agricultural Credit Review Committee (‘A Review of the Agricultural Credit System in India’) → Recommended merging RRBs with their Sponsor Banks. |
| S.K. Kalia Committee (1992) & R.V. Gupta Committee (1998) | 1992 & 1998 | • S.K. Kalia (1992): Launched NABARD’s SHG–Bank Linkage Programme (SHG-BLP). • R.V. Gupta (1998): Recommended the Kisan Credit Card (KCC) Scheme (Aug 1998). |
| Y.K. Alagh Committee (2000) & A. Vaidyanathan Committee (2004) | 2000 & 2004 | • Y.K. Alagh (2000): Legal framework for Farmer Producer Companies (FPOs) in the Companies Act. • A. Vaidyanathan Task Force (2004): Revival of Short-Term and Long-Term Rural Cooperative Credit Structure (PACS/DCCBs/StCBs). |
| M.S. Swaminathan Commission (NCF — 2004–2006) | 2004–2006 | National Commission on Farmers (submitted 5 Reports) → Recommended fixing MSP at least 50% above the Weighted Average Cost of Production ($C_2 + 50\%$)! |
| Y.H. Malegam Committee (2010) | 2010 | Studied issues and concerns in the Microfinance (MFI) Sector → Led to creation of the NBFC-MFI category by RBI. |
| Shanta Kumar Committee (2015) & Ashok Dalwai Committee (2016–18) | 2015 & 2016 | • Shanta Kumar (2015): Restructuring of Food Corporation of India (FCI) and NFSA rationalization. • Ashok Dalwai (2016–18): 14-Volume Blueprint on Doubling Farmers’ Income (DFI) & promoting GrAMs (Gramin Agricultural Markets). |
3. Poverty Estimation, Capital Markets (SEBI), Taxation & Labour Committees (EPFO & SEBI Domain)
1. Evolution of Official Poverty Estimation Committees in India (Chronological Order — Asked Every Year!):
1. Pre-Independence: Dadabhai Naoroji (Poverty and Un-British Rule in India, 1901 — ₹16 to ₹35/capita/year) → National Planning Committee (1938, Subhas Chandra Bose / Nehru — ₹15–₹20/month) → Bombay Plan (1944 — ₹75/year).
2. Working Group of Planning Commission (1962) & V.M. Dandekar and N. Rath (1971): First systematic assessment using NSSO data and 2,250 kcal/day norm for both rural and urban areas.
3. Y.K. Alagh Task Force (1979): Defined Poverty Line based on per capita daily calorie requirement: 2,400 kcal/person/day in RURAL areas and 2,100 kcal/person/day in URBAN areas!
4. D.T. Lakdawala Expert Group (1993): Retained Alagh’s 2,400/2,100 calorie norms but introduced State-specific poverty lines updated using CPI-AL (Rural) and CPI-IW (Urban).
5. Suresh Tendulkar Committee (2009): Moved away from pure calorie anchor to a broader basket including Health and Education expenditure; shifted from Uniform Reference Period (URP) to Mixed Reference Period (MRP); fixed 2011–12 poverty line at ₹27.20/day (₹816/month) for Rural and ₹33.33/day (₹1,000/month) for Urban (estimating 21.9% overall poverty in 2011–12: 25.7% Rural & 13.7% Urban!).
6. C. Rangarajan Committee (2014): Reintroduced normative nutrition (2,155 kcal Rural / 2,090 kcal Urban + protein & fat norms) using Modified Mixed Reference Period (MMRP); fixed 2011–12 poverty line at ₹32/day (₹972/month) for Rural and ₹47/day (₹1,407/month) for Urban (estimating 29.5% overall poverty in 2011–12!).
7. Arvind Panagariya Task Force (NITI Aayog, 2015) & National Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI — Based on Alkire–Foster Methodology across 3 Dimensions & 12 Indicators): According to NITI Aayog’s 2024 MPI Discussion Paper, 24.82 Crore Indians escaped multidimensional poverty over 9 years, bringing headcount poverty down from 29.17% (2013–14) to 11.28% (2022–23)!
1. Pre-Independence: Dadabhai Naoroji (Poverty and Un-British Rule in India, 1901 — ₹16 to ₹35/capita/year) → National Planning Committee (1938, Subhas Chandra Bose / Nehru — ₹15–₹20/month) → Bombay Plan (1944 — ₹75/year).
2. Working Group of Planning Commission (1962) & V.M. Dandekar and N. Rath (1971): First systematic assessment using NSSO data and 2,250 kcal/day norm for both rural and urban areas.
3. Y.K. Alagh Task Force (1979): Defined Poverty Line based on per capita daily calorie requirement: 2,400 kcal/person/day in RURAL areas and 2,100 kcal/person/day in URBAN areas!
4. D.T. Lakdawala Expert Group (1993): Retained Alagh’s 2,400/2,100 calorie norms but introduced State-specific poverty lines updated using CPI-AL (Rural) and CPI-IW (Urban).
5. Suresh Tendulkar Committee (2009): Moved away from pure calorie anchor to a broader basket including Health and Education expenditure; shifted from Uniform Reference Period (URP) to Mixed Reference Period (MRP); fixed 2011–12 poverty line at ₹27.20/day (₹816/month) for Rural and ₹33.33/day (₹1,000/month) for Urban (estimating 21.9% overall poverty in 2011–12: 25.7% Rural & 13.7% Urban!).
6. C. Rangarajan Committee (2014): Reintroduced normative nutrition (2,155 kcal Rural / 2,090 kcal Urban + protein & fat norms) using Modified Mixed Reference Period (MMRP); fixed 2011–12 poverty line at ₹32/day (₹972/month) for Rural and ₹47/day (₹1,407/month) for Urban (estimating 29.5% overall poverty in 2011–12!).
7. Arvind Panagariya Task Force (NITI Aayog, 2015) & National Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI — Based on Alkire–Foster Methodology across 3 Dimensions & 12 Indicators): According to NITI Aayog’s 2024 MPI Discussion Paper, 24.82 Crore Indians escaped multidimensional poverty over 9 years, bringing headcount poverty down from 29.17% (2013–14) to 11.28% (2022–23)!
- Key Capital Market (SEBI), Tax & Labour Committees:
- Capital Markets & Corporate Governance: M.J. Pherwani Committee (1991) (recommended setting up National Stock Exchange [NSE]); L.C. Gupta Committee (1998) & J.R. Varma Committee (1998) (introduced Exchange-Traded Financial Derivatives in India); Kumar Mangalam Birla (1999), Naresh Chandra (2002), N.R. Narayana Murthy (2003), J.J. Irani (2005 — Companies Act 2013), and Uday Kotak (2017) (Corporate Governance & Clause 49 / SEBI LODR); T.K. Viswanathan Committee (Fair Market Conduct / Insider Trading & IBC Reforms).
- Taxation & Fiscal Federalism: Raja J. Chelliah Committee (1991) (Tax Reforms); Vijay Kelkar Task Force (2002/2012) (Direct/Indirect Taxes, GST & Fiscal Consolidation); N.K. Singh Committee (2017) (FRBM Review — recommended 60% combined Debt-to-GDP ceiling: 40% Centre + 20% States); Sarkaria Commission (1983) & M.M. Punchhi Commission (2007) (Centre–State Relations).
- Labour Reforms: Royal Commission on Labour (J.H. Whitley, 1929); First National Commission on Labour (Justice P.B. Gajendragadkar, 1966–1969); and Second National Commission on Labour (Ravindra Varma, 1999–2002) (recommended consolidating 29 central labour laws into the 4 Labour Codes!).
🎯 High-Yield Exam One-Liners (Last-Minute Revision Box)
- The Hilton Young Commission (1926) recommended the establishment of the Reserve Bank of India, while the A.D. Gorwala Committee (1954) recommended the creation of the State Bank of India.
- The Lead Bank Scheme (December 1969) was launched by RBI on the recommendations of the D.R. Gadgil Study Group and the F.K.F. Nariman Committee.
- Regional Rural Banks (RRBs, 1975) were established on the recommendation of the M. Narasimham Working Group, while NABARD (1982) was established on the recommendation of the B. Sivaraman Committee (CRAFICARD, 1979).
- The Nachiket Mor Committee (2014) recommended the creation of Differentiated Banks (Payments Banks and Small Finance Banks).
- The Urjit Patel Committee (2014) recommended Flexible Inflation Targeting (4% +/- 2% Headline CPI-Combined) and the 6-member Monetary Policy Committee (MPC).
- The P.J. Nayak Committee (2014) recommended setting up the Bank Boards Bureau (BBB, now FSIB) to select heads of Public Sector Banks and financial institutions.
- The Bimal Jalan Committee (2019) reviewed RBI’s Economic Capital Framework (ECF) and mandated a Contingency Risk Buffer (CRB) of 5.5% to 6.5% of RBI’s balance sheet.
- The Y.K. Alagh Task Force (1979) fixed India’s calorie-based poverty line at 2,400 kcal/person/day for Rural areas and 2,100 kcal/person/day for Urban areas.
- The Suresh Tendulkar Committee (2009) used the Mixed Reference Period (MRP) and estimated India’s 2011–12 poverty ratio at 21.9% (₹27.20/day Rural and ₹33.33/day Urban).
- The C. Rangarajan Committee (2014) used the Modified Mixed Reference Period (MMRP) and estimated India’s 2011–12 poverty ratio at 29.5% (₹32/day Rural and ₹47/day Urban).
- The M.J. Pherwani Committee (1991) recommended the establishment of the National Stock Exchange (NSE), and the L.C. Gupta Committee (1998) recommended the introduction of equity derivatives trading in India.
- The First National Commission on Labour (1966–1969) was chaired by Justice P.B. Gajendragadkar, and the Second National Commission on Labour (1999–2002, which recommended the 4 Labour Codes) was chaired by Ravindra Varma.
📝 UPSC & Regulatory Level Practice MCQs (With Detailed Solutions)
Q1. Arrange the following official Committees on Poverty Estimation in India in the correct chronological order from earliest to latest: (1) Suresh Tendulkar Committee; (2) Y.K. Alagh Task Force; (3) C. Rangarajan Committee; (4) D.T. Lakdawala Expert Group; (5) V.M. Dandekar & N. Rath Study.
Correct Answer: (A) — The exact chronological order of India’s poverty estimation committees is: (5) V.M. Dandekar & N. Rath (1971 — 2,250 kcal norm) -> (2) Y.K. Alagh Task Force (1979 — 2,400 kcal Rural / 2,100 kcal Urban) -> (4) D.T. Lakdawala Expert Group (1993 — CPI-AL/CPI-IW state lines) -> (1) Suresh Tendulkar Committee (2009 — MRP, 21.9% poverty in 2011–12) -> (3) C. Rangarajan Committee (2014 — MMRP, 29.5% poverty in 2011–12).
Q2. Match the following landmark Financial Sector Committees with their core recommendations: (1) Nachiket Mor Committee (2014); (2) Bimal Jalan Committee (2019); (3) P.J. Nayak Committee (2014); (4) M.J. Pherwani Committee (1991).
Correct Answer: (B) — (1) Nachiket Mor Committee (2014) recommended Differentiated Banks (Payments Banks and Small Finance Banks); (2) Bimal Jalan Committee (2019) reviewed RBI’s Economic Capital Framework (5.5%–6.5% CRB); (3) P.J. Nayak Committee (2014) reviewed governance of bank boards and recommended the Bank Boards Bureau (now FSIB); and (4) M.J. Pherwani Committee (1991) recommended establishing the National Stock Exchange (NSE).
Q3. Which Commission’s report in 2002 directly recommended the rationalization and amalgamation of existing central labour laws into 4 or 5 broad functional groups (which formed the basis of the 4 Labour Codes of 2019–2020), and who was its Chairman?
Correct Answer: (C) — The Second National Commission on Labour (appointed in 1999, report submitted in 2002), chaired by former Union Labour Minister Ravindra Varma, recommended amalgamating the 29+ central labour laws into broad functional codes covering (1) Wages, (2) Industrial Relations, (3) Social Security, and (4) Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions.
Q4. Under the N.K. Singh Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) Review Committee (2017) recommendations, what was the recommended combined General Government Debt-to-GDP ceiling (and its split between the Centre and the States)?
Correct Answer: (B) — The N.K. Singh FRBM Review Committee (2017) recommended using Debt-to-GDP as the principal medium-term anchor with a combined ceiling of 60% of GDP (comprising 40% for the Central Government and 20% for State Governments) alongside an Escape Clause permitting a deviation of up to 0.5% of GDP during exceptional shocks.
Q5. Match the following Agriculture and Rural Credit Committees with their recommendations: (1) A.D. Gorwala Committee (1954); (2) D.R. Gadgil & F.K.F. Nariman Committees (1969); (3) R.V. Gupta Committee (1998); (4) A. Vaidyanathan Committee (2004).
Correct Answer: (B) — All four matches in Option B are foundational rural credit milestones tested every year in NABARD Grade A and RBI Grade B.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions (Exam FAQs)
Q: What is the difference between the Tendulkar Committee and Rangarajan Committee poverty estimates for 2011–12?
Using 2011–12 NSSO consumption data: the Suresh Tendulkar Committee (using Mixed Reference Period — MRP) estimated all-India poverty at 21.9% (Rural: 25.7%, Urban: 13.7%; daily cut-off ₹27.20 Rural / ₹33.33 Urban), whereas the C. Rangarajan Committee (using Modified Mixed Reference Period — MMRP) estimated all-India poverty at 29.5% (Rural: 30.9%, Urban: 26.4%; daily cut-off ₹32 Rural / ₹47 Urban).
Q: What are the 3 Dimensions and 12 Indicators of NITI Aayog’s National Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI)?
NITI Aayog’s National MPI assigns equal 1/3rd weight to 3 Dimensions across 12 Indicators (adding 2 India-specific indicators — Maternal Health and Bank Account — to the global Oxford OPHI/UNDP 10-indicator MPI): (1) Health (Nutrition, Child & Adolescent Mortality, Antenatal Care/Maternal Health); (2) Education (Years of Schooling, School Attendance); and (3) Standard of Living (Cooking Fuel, Sanitation, Drinking Water, Electricity, Housing, Assets, and Bank Account).
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