The Quarterly BITSian Birla Institute of Technology & Science Alumni Magazine

BYANUPENDRA SHARMA (’87 ECO INSTRU) & ASHISH GARG (’97 INSTRU) THE QUARTERLY BITSIAN: PRITHVIRAJ CHAVAN, MINISTER OF STATE (PMO), GOVERNMENT OF

He has a EEE degree from BITS and a Master’s from U C Berkeley and is one of the youngest members of Prime Minister ’s office. Mr. Chavan has been an active participant in BITS Alumni Association’s Chapter activities and is an active proponent of technology based economic growth in India.

is focused on the common 1998. Mr. Chavan is currently a PRITHVIRAJ Chavan minimum program and all the member of the . During is one the youngest and most ministers speak a common his decade-long career as a important ministers in the language in front of the media. parliamentarian he has also served as current Manmohan Singh Apart from that is also part of the the Congress parliamentary party’s government at the Centre. At standing committee on finance. deputy whip, party general secretary 8pm on Monday he has just and party spokesperson. returned after installing the Mr. Chavan graduated from BITS Congress government in with an EEE in 1967 and headed In 1999 when left , on Tuesday he’s to UC Berkeley for an MS degree. Congress to form his own party due to on a flight to Abu Dhabi along At that time Berkeley was the differences with , Mr. with the President of India to hotbed of student politics in the Chavan chose to stay with Congress. pay homage to the erstwhile US. For Prithviraj Chavan His loyalty and closeness to the UAE President, Sheikh Zayed politics was what he grew up in Gandhi family paid off this year when bin Sultan al Nahyan, he sure is , Maharashtra. he was appointed the Minister of a busy man. State in the PMO making him one of Mr. Chavan’s father Dajisaheb the youngest ministers in the Indian Chavan became an MP after government. winning the election from Karad, as a Peasants and Workers Party He’s a big proponent of investments candidate in 1962. His next three in technology for the advancement of terms as MP were as a Congress the country. He has voiced strongly nominee. Succeeding him in 1977 his views on de-licensing of the 2.4 until 1991 was Mr. Chavan’s GHz band for Bluetooth technology mother, Premilatai Chavan. and formulation of guidelines on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in It was in early 90’s when primary education. Prithviraj Chavan bumped into . “We have many He is different from the perception of technocrats in the country”, said the average politician by way of his He was tipped to be the next Rajiv Gandhi, “but we don’t have humility and soft-spoken nature. Mr Chief Minister of the richest many who can get elected and join Chavan is known for his soft smile state in India but left the politics. You have that potential!” and a firm handshake that make him decision to his party chief, Sonia That is when Mr. Chavan decided an instant hit with the electorate. ¨ Gandhi. Instead he was chosen to join to help run the United politics Progessive Alliance government and was at the centre. elected to the India As a Minister of State in the parliament Prime Minister’s Office, Mr. in 1996. Chavan’s task is to ensure He was re- smooth functioning of the UPA elected as coalition government by an MP in ensuring that the entire cabinet

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