Finance Commission chairman Arvind Panagariya advises Kerala to make good policy choices
16th Finance Commission Chairman Arvind Panagariya urged Kerala to adopt business-friendly policies and leverage the Vizhinjam seaport for economic growth. He also advocated for national-level reforms, including the privatization of public sector banks.
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Chairman of the 16th Finance Commission Arvind Panagariya on Tuesday (August 11, 2026) encouraged Kerala to make “good policy choices” to boost economic activity. Dr. Panagariya also pointed out that the State should exploit the full potential of the Vizhinjam international seaport.
The Finance Commission chairman was speaking on ‘Urbanisation: The Growth Engine for Viksit Bharat @ 2047’ organised by the Kerala Lok Bhavan.
“Make good policy choices. If you have good policies, entrepreneurs will decide what are the right activities to engage in. They are much better placed than economists or the government to decide,” he said.
On the Vizhinjam port, he pointed out that the port’s ability to boost the economy can be exploited better with “some imaginative thinking.” “There is a lot of assembly activity that can happen there. You can bring in components, assemble and export it back,” he said.
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