Annie George Mathew (full-time member) 2. Manoj Panda (full-time member) 3. Dr. Soumyakanti Ghosh (member) 4. T. Rabi Sankar (member) Earlier, Dr. Niranjan Rajadhyaksha was appointed as a full-time member, but in April 2024 he was replaced by Manoj Panda. Earlier, Ajay Narayan Jha, appointed as a full-time member, resigned from his post in April 2025 due to personal reasons. # Planning Commission/Niti Aayog ## 1. When was the Planning Commission established?

Explanation

The Planning Commission was a non-constitutional, advisory and consultative body. It was not mentioned in the Constitution. It was constituted by a resolution of the Union Cabinet on 15 March 1950. The Prime Minister was its ex officio Chairperson. Its main function was to prepare the national Five-Year Plans and to determine the allocation of resources for the most effective and balanced use of the country’s resources. From 1 January 2015, it was replaced by the NITI Aayog. At present, the Chairperson of the NITI Aayog is Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Vice Chairperson is Suman Bery. The Prime Minister is the ex officio Chairperson of the NITI Aayog. NITI stands for “National Institution for Transforming India”. ## 2. The Planning Commission is a— (a) Ministry (b) Government department (c) Advisory body (d) Autonomous corporation 39th B.P.S.C. (Pre), 1994 Ans. (c) See the explanation of the above question. ## 3. The Planning Commission of India is— (a) A statutory body (b) An advisory board (c) A constitutional body (d) An independent and autonomous body B.P.S.C. (CDPO) (Pre) 2005 Ans. (b) See the explanation of the above question. ## 4. What is the nature of the Planning Commission? (a) A government department (b) An advisory institution (c) An autonomous corporation (d) A ministry 41st B.P.S.C. (Pre) 1996 Ans. (b) See the explanation of the above question.