Eminent bureaucrat P.C. Alexander dies

Thiruvananthapuram: Distinguished bureaucrat and former governor of Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu P.C. Alexander died on yesterday morning in Chennai.

The widely respected Alexander, who hails from Kerala and was secretary to three prime ministers of India, was 90.

He was also a former member of the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Indian parliament, and India's high commissioner in London. Padinjarethalakkal Cherian Alexander, who was from Mavelikkara in south Kerala, was a towering figure in New Delhi for well over two decades.

His body is expected to be taken to Mavelikkara tomorrow for the last rites. Ahead of that, the body is likely to be kept at Kochi briefly for the public to pay their last respects.

For all his achievements as a bureaucrat, what stood out in his career was his close association with three prime ministers, with whom he worked as principal secretary, namely, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and P.V. Narasimha Rao.

More than being a secretary, Alexander was considered a close confidante and adviser to all the three prime ministers that he served. He was also with the United Nations civil services.

Key player

Alexander can also be said to be a key player in the path that India chose for itself in 1991 in the backdrop of the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi.

At a time when India was facing an issue of stability after the assassination of a former prime minister and also burdened by foreign exchange concerns, it was on Alexander's advice that Narasimha Rao, who had been chosen as prime minister by the Congress party in 1991, decided to bring in Manmohan Singh as the finance minister.

Singh then went on to launch path-breaking financial reforms that led to a liberalisation of the Indian economy, which changed the face of the country's economy and policies over the next two decades.

Singh himself then went on to be the prime minister twice.

Alexander, who held a number of top jobs in the country, only narrowly missed out on becoming the president of India.

He had been tipped for that post when the National Democratic Alliance coalition that was in power at the time opted for A.P.J. Abdul Kalam for the president's job.

After retirement, Alexander had chosen to live in Chennai. He had been admitted to a private hospital where he died.