The Ex-officio Chairman of the Indian Planning Commission is—

Correct answer: (b) Prime Minister

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”.