Honest John

John Matthai was independent India’s first railways and transport minister. Later, he was India’s second finance minister but resigned due to his differences with Pandit Nehru over the Planning Commission. Matthai served in important position in the Tatas and was a friend and confidant of J.R.D. Tata. He was chairman of the Taxation Enquiry Commission (1953), which provided a framework for the future tax policies of the government. Matthai was the first chairman of the State Bank of India of the court of governors of the Administrative Staff College of India, Hyderabad, and of the National Book Trust. He was also the founder-president of the National Council of Applied Economic Research, New Delhi.