BANGALORE: Well-known economist, educationist and administrator D.M. Nanjundappa, who served the State in various capacities, passed away at Narayana Hrudayalaya here this morning following a heart ailment. He was 75 and is survived by his wife and three daughters.

His last and also the most talked about assignment for the State was as Chairman of the High-power Committee for Redressal of Regional Imbalances, which was constituted by the S.M. Krishna Ministry in October 2000. Dr. Nanjundappa was a former professor of Economics in Karnatak University, Vice-Chancellor of Karnatak and Bangalore universities, Economic Adviser and later Secretary for Planning in the State Government, and Deputy Chairman of the State Planning Board. He was Chairman of the Railway Tariff Committee and a member of the Disinvestment Commission set up by the Centre. He had also served as a member of the selection committee of the Union Public Service Commission.

Another important position he had held was that of Chairman of the Indian Council of Social Science Research, New Delhi, during 1996-99. He was born in a family of moderate means at Dogganahal village in Chitradurga district on October 25, 1929. He was educated at Maharaja's College in Mysore from where he obtained a doctorate in economics (public finance). He later joined Karnatak University. He also attended courses in reputed universities and institutions, such as Harvard, the London School of Economics, Oxford, Cambridge, Manchester and Sussex, and came in contact with economists of the standing of Ursula Hicks and John Kenneth Galbraith, who was American Ambassador to the country. He had over 20 works in economics and other topics and wrote over 100 erudite articles in journals. Known for his methodical and scholarly approach to all issues he dealt with, his speeches bore the stamp of his encyclopaedic knowledge.

Out of academia

It was the former Chief Minister D. Devaraj Urs who took him out of academia and brought him into the State Government as Joint Secretary for Planning. All the succeeding chief ministers, including N. Dharam Singh, relied on his advice. He was one of the advisers to the former Governor P. Venkatasubbaiah when the State was under President's rule during 1988-89.

Dr. Nanjundappa proved his mettle as an administrator when he was Vice-Chancellor of Bangalore University from March 1987 to March 1990. He had taken over at a time when the reputation of the University was at a low ebb. He revamped the administration and introduced discipline. Despite his varied contribution, national awards eluded him. He won the Indira Gandhi National Integration Award in 1989 and the Karnataka State Award (Rajyotsava) in 2002.

He was vice-president of the State branch of the Indian Red Cross Society and was connected with the JSS Group of educational institutions. He was also a keen exponent of yoga.

Special development plan

In his report as Chairman of the High-power committee for Redressal of Regional Imbalances, Dr. Nanjundappa recommended a special development plan for the northern districts. But he did not uphold in full the complaint of neglect of these districts.

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