NITI Aayog member VK Saraswat has courted controversy with his remarks that shutdown of Internet services in Jammu and Kashmir since the abrogation of Article 370 did not have any significant effect on its economy as people there only use Internet for "watching dirty films".
Who is VK Saraswat ?
The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) appointed Dr VK Saraswat as full-time member of newly established National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog. Dr Saraswat is former Secretary of Defence (Research & Development- R&D), but is more known as one of the high profile former chiefs of Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO). However, his inning at the DRDO was marred by controversies resulting in the government turning down his extension. He was even awarded a jail sentence for contempt of court.
Dr Saraswat was the key scientist in the development of the Prithvi missile and its induction in the Indian armed forces.
A PhD in Combustion Engineering, Dr Saraswat started his career in DRDO in 1972 at Hyderabad-based Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), he was responsible for the development of the country’s first Liquid Propulsion Engine, DEVIL. As Project Director of Prithvi, he steered the design, development, production and induction of the first indigenous Surface-to-Surface missile system into the armed forces. He is regarded as one of the key scientists in the team of former President of India, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, who is said to have had a deep influence on Dr Saraswat.
He was conferred the Padma Shri in 1998. He was also conferred the Padma Bhusan by the Government of India in 2013.