Dr. Rakesh Mohan is the Professor in the Practice of International Economics of Finance, School of Management, and Senior Fellow, Jackson Institute of Global Affairs, Yale University from July 2010. He teaches every Fall Semester there. He is also Non Resident Senior Research Fellow of Stanford Centre for International Development, Stanford University Stanford.

He is Chairman, National Transport Development Policy Committee, Government of India, in the rank of Minister of State. In addition, he is Vice-Chairman, Indian Institute of Human Settlements; and Global Adviser, McKinsey and Company. During June 15, 2009 to December 15, 2009, he was Distinguished Consulting Professor at Stanford Centre for International Development at Stanford University.

Prior to this, he was Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (September 9, 2002 to October 31, 2004 and July 2, 2005 to June 10, 2009). In the Reserve Bank, Dr. Mohan looked after the Monetary Policy Department, Department of Statistical Analysis and Computer Services, Department of Economic Analysis and Policy, Secretary's Department, Financial Markets Department and also Co-ordination work. Earlier, in September 2002, he was appointed as the Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank for a period of three years. He relinquished that post in October 2004 when he was appointed as Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Government of India.

Born on January 14, 1948, Dr. Rakesh Mohan received his Masters Degree and Doctorate in Economics from Princeton University and BA in Economics from Yale University. He is also a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Imperial College of Science and Technology, University of London

Dr. Rakesh Mohan has researched extensively in the areas of economic reforms and liberalisation, industrial economics, urban economics, infrastructure studies, economic regulation, monetary policy and the financial sector. He is the author of three books on urban economics and urban development and co-author of one and editor of another on Indian economic policy reforms, and of numerous articles.

Dr. Rakesh Mohan has been Director General of the National Council of Applied Economic Research, Director and Chief Executive of the Indian Council for Research and International Economic Relations and Vice Chairman, Infrastructure Development Finance Company. He also held the position of Adviser to the Finance Minister and Chief Economic Adviser between January 4, 2001 and May 15, 2002.

He has been Member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister; Member of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India; Member of the National Security Advisory Board; Member of the Tariff Authority of Major Ports; and Member of the Securities and Exchange Board of India. Among research institutions he has been Member of the Board of Governors of Institute of Economic Growth; National Institute of Public Finance and Policy; National Council of Applied Economic Research; Madras School of Economics; National Institute of Urban Affairs; Indian Council for Research in International Economic Relations; Centre for Policy Research; Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research.

As Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs he was Alternate Governor of the World Bank and Asian Development Bank, and Member of the Atomic Energy Commission and of the Space Commission. 

He has been Director of the State Bank of India, National Housing Bank, Industrial Reconstruction Bank of India, the Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India (ICICI) and the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI).

He recently co-chaired the "Committee on Financial Sector Assessment" (2009) set up by the Government of India and the Reserve Bank of India.

He also co-chaired the G20 Working Group “Enhancing Sound Regulation and Strengthening Transparency” (2009).

He chaired the Working Group on “Capital Flows and Emerging Market Economies” (2009) set up by the Committee on Global Financial System (CGFS), Bank of International Settlements (BIS).

He has recently published a book titled “Monetary Policy in a Globalized Economy: A Practitioner’s View” (Oxford University Press, 2009), which focuses on the issues relating to the evolution of banking and finance, the conduct of monetary policy, the management of the financial sector and the role of central banking.

His latest book is “India’s Economy: Performance and Challenges” (edited along with Shankar Acharya) (Oxford University Press, 2010), containing essays in Honour of Montek Singh Ahluwalia.

He chaired the Expert Group on Railways (1999-2001); Expert Group on Commercialisation of Infrastructure Projects (1994-96) and the Expert Group on Petrochemicals (1992-93) and the Advisory Committee on National Accounts (1997-2000).

He was a Member of the High Level Committee on Competition Policy and Law (1999-2000), of the Expert Committee on Small Scale Industries (1996), and of the Committee to Review textile policy (1988-90).

He also Co-chaired the Joint Study Groups on economic cooperation between India and Singapore (2002-2003); India and Sri Lanka (2003-2004), and India and China (2004-2005)

He served as Economic Adviser to the Government of India in the Ministry of Industry (1988-1996) where he played a major role in the formulation of the new Industrial, Trade and Foreign Investment Policy and at the Development Policy Division of the Planning Commission (1986-1988).

He started his professional career at the World Bank in 1976 as an Economist at the Development Economics Department, and worked extensively on urban economics for developing countries. He later participated in the Structural Adjustment Programme for the Philippines in the mid-1990s as Senior Economist in the Philippines Division.