Prem Das Rai is an Indian politician from the Sikkim Democratic Front party.
Education
He did his chemical engineering from IIT, Kanpur and his master of business administration (Master of Business Administration), in 1978, from Indian Institutes of Management, Ahmedabad. Prem Das Rai was educated at IIT Kanpur (bachelor of technology in chemical engineering) and at Indian Institutes of Management Ahmedabad (Master of Business Administration).
Career
In the 2009 election, he was elected to the Lok Sabha from the Sikkim constituency of Sikkim, India. He is also a former Eisenhower Fellow (2000) from India. Rai did his schooling at Wynberg Allen School, Mussoorie.
In 2002, he was awarded the prestigious and selective Eisenhower Fellowship (United States of America) for his contribution to Sikkim’s economic and industrial growth.
Rai joined the SDF in its formative years. He served as the party’s General Secretary and has worked at all its various structural levels.
He has helped with SDF’s manifesto and vision, and continues to work for the party and for the prosperity of the Sikkimese people. Most recently, he served as the Deputy Chairman of the State Planning Commission of the Government of Sikkim.
The positions held by Rai include: senior executive at Bank of America (Kolkata), managing director of Sikkim Milk Union, establishing Sikkim Flour Mills, chairman of Sikkim Industrial Development and Investment Corporation (SIDICO) and Sikkim Scheduled Tribes and All Other Backward Classes Financial Development Corporation (SABCO), founding chairman of the Ecotourism and Conservation Society of Sikkim (ECOSS), and Chief Executive Officer (north-east) of BASIX. At BASIX, one of India’s largest microfinance and livelihood promotion institutions, he implemented microfinance initiatives for Sikkim and other north-east states by working with farmers, villagers, and non-governmental organizations.
Membership
He has the distinction of being the first member of parliament with both Indian Institutes of Technology and Indian Institutes of Management degrees.