Economist Suman Kumar Mukerjee passed away on Thursday evening following a cardiac arrest, his family said on Friday. Mukerjee was 75.
Mukerjee did his MA in economics at the Delhi School of Economics. Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was one of his teachers, said his elder son Shomik. “It so happened that Manmohan Singh and Amartya Sen were both his teachers at the Delhi School of Economics. The foreword for his PhD was written by Amartya Sen,” said Shomik.
Mukerjee, who was the director general at Bhawanipur Education Society College, joined St Xavier’s College after returning from the Delhi School of Economics in the 1970s. He taught at the college for 24 years.
Father Dominic Savio, the principal of St Xavier’s College, said in a text message: “He (Mukerjee) was a great teacher. He taught economics at St Xavier’s College for many years. He was a good economist and much sought-after for debates on economics issues. His analysis on the Union budget was much appreciated. He was a vice president of our alumni association. His death comes as a shock for all of us at St Xavier’s College”.
Mukerjee, a former student of Calcutta Boys’ School, had studied at St Xavier’s College. Mahalaya Chatterjee, a professor of economics at Calcutta University and Mukerjee’s student at St Xavier’s College, said: “He was known for his out-of-the-box approach to teaching”.
He was also the director at Ernst & Young LLP. Mukerjee is survived by sons — Shomik Kumar Mukerjee and Shrutorsi Mukerjee — and his wife Sudakshina Mukerjee.