Sam Pitroda appointed adviser to PM

Sam Pitroda — the architect of India’s telecom revolution — has been appointed adviser to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to guide the government on infrastructure, innovation and information.

Sam Pitroda — the architect of India’s telecom revolution — has been appointed adviser to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to guide the government on infrastructure, innovation and information.

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Pitroda aka Satyanarayan Gangarm Pitroda is the second technocrat to have been inducted by the Prime Minister. IT czar Nandan Nilekani was appointed as chairman of the Unique Identification Number Authority of India in July this year.

Manmohan Singh had later promised more appointments to harness the “enormous reserve of knowledge, wisdom and experience” outside the political system.

“We look at organising integration of national knowledge network and broadband connectivity for better service delivery to the citizens,” Pitroda told PTI.

Pitroda — who headed the National Knowledge Commission in the first edition of the UPA government — as well as Nilekani, hold the rank of Cabinet Ministers.

Pitroda will operate out of the Prime Minister’s Office but the Planning Commission has issued his formal appointment orders. Nilekani’s UID Authority is also anchored in the Planning Commission.

A senior government official said that this had been done to avoid complications in the PMO’s hierarchical structure.