P. Chidambaram

Born On: September 16, 1945
Born In: Kanadukathan, Sivaganga District, Tamil Nadu, India
Career: Lawyer

Popularly known as PC by the Indian press, P. Chidambaram is a person who practiced law, worked in High and Supreme Courts and started off his political career as a Congressman. As far as the country of India goes; he brought about a huge change in the commercial and financial setup of India. If at all India has been doing well for quite some time and competes at a global level, a part of the credit can go to P. Chidambaram. With his policies and expertise, it would be safe to say that he lead from the front, without failing to inspire. By profession, P. Chidambaram is a lawyer, but he is most famous for the roles he played in active politics. Go ahead and read on to know more about P. Chidambaram, one of those few politicians who to this very day knows what they are doing and are concerned about the welfare of the country they lead.

Early Life
Born on September 16, 1945 to Palaniappa Chettiar and Lakshmi Achi, P. spent his childhood in the village of Kanadukathan in Sivaganga District of Tamil Nadu state, India. He hails from a family of Nagarathar or Nattukotai Chettiars. He studied at the Presidency College, Chennai, and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree and then received his Bachelor of Law degree from the Law College of the University of Madras, Chennai. He later went to the Harvard Business School where he finished a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree. He also holds a post graduate degree from the Loyola College, Chennai. Apart from studies, P. Chidambaram was also interested in playing tennis, badminton and chess.

Career
In 1968, P. Chidambaram married Nalini, a successful lawyer in her own right. In 1969, he enrolled as an advocate in the Madras High Court and established a successful law firm. He was also designated as a senior advocate in 1984. He has chambers in Delhi and Chennai and practices in the Supreme Court and in various High Courts in India. He has also appeared in a number of arbitration proceedings, both in India and abroad. Very few know that Mr. P Chidambaram, the US educated votary of free enterprise and unbridled economic reforms used to be a hard-core leftist arguing in favor of the command economy in the late 1960s. He was elected to the Parliament from the Sivaganga constituency in Tamil Nadu in 1984 and became a Deputy Minister under the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. Later he held the commerce and finance portfolios in various governments. In the elections held in 2004, United Progressive Alliance formed the Government and P. Chidambaram once again became the Finance Minister. In 2008, he moved to the home portfolio. As the Home Minister he has initiated steps to bring various agencies that are responsible for law and order together and work in a cohesive manner.

Contribution
P. Chidambaram.s main contribution to the society as a whole materialized during the budget of 2008; his move to waive off farmers. debts played a role in boosting aggregate demand in the Indian economy, thereby effectively insulating India from the impact of recession. His contribution to the finance and commerce sector of our country is immense. In the "dream-budget" for 1996-97, he brought discipline in government spending and launched an ambitious tax reform program to tackle an unwieldy fiscal deficit..

Awards And Accolades

Timeline
1945: Born in Kanadukathan village, Tamil Nadu.
1969: Started off career as an advocate.
1984: He got into politics and was first elected to the Lok Sabha from the Sivaganga constituency in Tamil Nadu.
1985: He first became a minister in the Rajiv Gandhi-led government as a Deputy Minister.
1986: He was elevated to the rank of Minister of State.
1991: He became a Minister of State (Independent Charge) in the Ministry of Commerce.
1996: He quit the Congress and joined the Tamil Maanila Congress (TMC).
1996: After the elections of 1996, P. Chidambaram joined the coalition government and became the Union Finance Minister.
2008: He became the Home Minister of India after Shivraj Patil was forced to give up his position.