A new chair in the memory of former Reserve Bank of India Governor IG Patel will be created at the London School of Economics and Political Science.

Nicholas Stern, second permanent secretary of the UK Treasury, will be the first holder of the Chair and will head a new India Observatory within London School of Economics' Asia Research Centre.

The appointment was announced by Howard Davies, director, London School of Economics, at its third Asia Forum.

"The new chair is dedicated to Patel, who was also the ninth director of London School of Economics between 1984 and 1990. Patel passed away last year and the forum is dedicated to him," Davies said.

The IG Patel Chair in Economics and Government will lead the London School of Economics India Observatory. The chair is supported by the RBI and State Bank of India.