Alagh is invitee chairman of IRMA

Anand, Aug 7 (UNI) Dr Yoginder K Alagh, trustee of the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation, was today unanimously elected as the invitee chairman of IRMA at the board of governors meeting here.

Talking to media persons, IRMA interim chairman Dr Amritaben Patel said Mr Alagh has been appointed as invitee chairman for a three-year term. With Mr Alagh being invited, he is virtually filling-up the vacancy of the Institute's founder Verghese Kurien.

Dr Alagh is an able administrator and scholar of international repute. He has held important portfolios as Union Minister of Power for Planning and Programme Implementation with additional charge of Minister of Science and Technology. He was also a Member of Planning Commission (rank of Minister of state). He was awarded the prestigious V K R V Rao Award in Economics in 1981.

Earlier, on August 5, five senior professors, believed to be loyalists of Dr Kurien, resigned from their posts. Two of these faculty members, Prof Vallabh Biswas and Prof Haribandhu Panda, who were also on the Board, had also quit from the Board of governors.

Prof Smita Panda (wife of Prof Haribandhu), Prof L K Vaswani, the former acting director and Prof S N Biswas were three others who had put in their resignation.

UNI RP-VNB SSS DKA ND1716