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Thank you for your interest!
We are looking forward to meeting the policy minds who’ll be taking India to new heights of growth.
You’ll be receiving a mail on your registered Email ID with further details.
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Recruiter’s Guide
Dr. Anant Maringanti
Dr. Anant Maringanti is an urban expert, writer and teacher based in Hyderabad. He heads the Hyderabad Urban Lab Foundation (HUL), a think tank committed to developing urban solutions sensitive to local contexts. Since 2012, HUL has produced research on a number of policy relevant areas and gained international reputation as a thought leader in urban development in the global south. Their work spans across urban infrastructure, housing and community development. HUL is an advocate of small public infrastructures in rapidly growing cities like Hyderabad. In this regard, HUL entered into a MOU with the Government of Telangana to run Low Cost Action Lab. The aim is to position Hyderabad and Telangana in international urban research and action.
Ms. Sharmila Chavaly
Having just completed her tenure as Advisor, National Institute of Smart Governmen (NISG), Sharmila Chavaly is currently Advisor, Climate Policy Initiative (India chapter). In over three and a half decades as a civil servant, she has worked in various capacities in the Ministries of Railways and Finance in the Government of India, including as Joint Secretary (Infrastructure) at the Department of Economic Affairs, where she was in charge of setting up InvITs, revamped REITs & Municipal Bonds, Infrastructure Credit Rating Scale, the Credit Enhancement Fund, etc. She was Member Secretary of the Committee for Revitalising PPPs.
She has served as Director on the Boards of the OVL, IIFCL and IRFC and as India’s representative on the G-20’s Infrastructure Working Group.
Her areas of expertise include Infrastructure Finance, PPPs, Sustainable Finance, Foreign Exchange management and multilateral negotiations.
Dr. M. V. Rajeev Gowda
Vice Chairman, State Institute for Transformation of Karnataka
Rajeev Gowda is an Indian politician and academician. He represented Karnataka in the Rajya Sabha from 2014-20. He is Chairman of the Indian National Congress party’s Research Department and one of its national spokespersons. He has served as Professor of Economics and Social Sciences and Chairperson of the Centre for Public Policy at the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore. He has been Associate Professor at the University of Oklahoma, and a postdoctoral fellow at the University of California, Berkeley. He obtained his PhD from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. He was a Director of the Central Board, Reserve Bank of India from 2011-14. He co-founded the Resurgent India Trust, MentorTogether and the Karnataka Quiz Association.
Hitesh Kakkar
Director – Admissions & New Initiatives
Mr. Kakkar believes “Career Counselling, Admissions, Marketing, and Mountaineering are siblings in
approach”.
Mr. Kakkar is an awarded professional for his business achievements, an acclaimed marketing professional by the American Marketing Association, and positioned among the world’s TOP 15% of digital marketing professionals. He has helped several students build careers with specially curated career mapping sessions, soft skills training, GD-PI, and interview cracking tips. With his data-driven, process-oriented, and people-first approach, he has fostered workplace growth as an Institution Nurturer to meet desired business objectives. He is a Postgraduate in Business Management and earned a few high-value badges, and certifications in Career Counselling, Soft Skills, and in Digital Marketing from Google, LinkedIn, SEMRUSH, Hubspot, ElementsK, & many more.
“REACH | ENGAGE | DELIVER | RETAIN | TEAM 1st | BE HUMBLE & RESOURCEFUL, ALWAYS” is his mantra at work. In his free time, he loves to cook, travel, and identify new areas of upskilling & reskilling.
Shreya Maheshwari
Executive Assistant to the Dean
Shreya works as an Executive Assistant to the Dean at Kautilya School of Public Policy. She holds a Master's degree in Law, Politics, and Society from Ambedkar University Delhi and did her bachelor's in Political Science Honors (with minor in Economics) from the University of Delhi. Prior to joining Kautilya, she was working for the Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC) in the women frontal team, Bihar Campaign. Her interests span across policy analysis, research and project management. She loves exploring new places and taking on new opportunities. Shreya aspires to build a career in program management.
Dr. Parikshit Ghosh
Professor, Delhi School of Economics
He has a Ph.D. in economics from Boston University and has taught in various other institutions from Texas A&M University to the University of British Columbia and the Indian Statistical Institute.
Dr. Shagata Mukherjee
Deputy Director, Centre for Social and Behaviour Change, Ashoka University Academic Lead, Behavioural Insights Unit of India, NITI Aayog
Dr. Shagata Mukherjee is the Lead – Behavioural Insights Unit of India, NITI Aayog and a Deputy Director at the Centre for Social and Behavioural Change at Ashoka University. Prior to this position, Dr Shagata was an Associate Professor of Economics and Public Policy at the Meghnad Desai Academy of Economics. He was also a Visiting Fellow at the Mumbai School of Economics and Public Policy at the University of Mumbai and an Affiliated Faculty at the Centre for Experimental Social Sciences (CESS) Nuffield -FLAME. He is the recipient of the Vernon L. Smith Young Talent Award in Experimental Finance for his research on gender and microfinance and is a co-founder of the Mumbai Behavioural Network. Dr Shagata holds a PhD in Behavioural and Experimental Economics from the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies at Georgia State University, a Master’s degree in Economics from Jawaharlal Nehru University and a B.Sc. in Economics from Presidency College.
Dr. Sharon Barnhardt
Director – Research, Centre for Social and Behaviour Change, Ashoka University
Dr. Sharon Barnhardt is the Director – Research at the Centre for Social and Behaviour Change at Ashoka University. She is an applied development economist and behavioral scientist who uses experiments to study policy-relevant topics in India. Her behavioral research focuses on sanitation and malnutrition. Dr Sharon is also active in Executive Education for the policy sector, having taught Behavioral Economics at the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration and program evaluation with J-PAL South Asia and CLEAR. She is a Faculty Affiliate at the Jameel Abdul Latif Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) and the Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA, Bonn). Her experience includes positions at the Centre for Experimental Social Sciences (Nuffield College’s lab in India), the Indian Institute of Management – Ahmedabad, IFMR Business School (at Krea University), the World Bank, and J.P. Morgan. Dr. Sharon’s academic record comprises a Ph.D. from Harvard University, an M.P.A. from Princeton University, and a Bachelor’s from NYU.
Dr. Pavan Mamidi
Director, Centre for Social and Behaviour Change, Ashoka University
Dr. Pavan Mamidi is an empirically informed senior advisor in the policy space, and a social scientist. Substantively, he pursues two streams of professional work and scholarship – law/policy, and applied behavior science. He currently serves as the Director of the Centre for Social and Behaviour Change at Ashoka University, and also works closely with the NITI Aayog. He has led the initiative to set up India’s first Nudge Unit, the Behavioural Insights Unit of India. He has also helped set up Behavioural Insights Units for the states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. His main work focuses on development related issues in education, health, nutrition, and gender. He has a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) from the University of Oxford and a Master’s (LL.M.) from Harvard Law School.
Dr. Faizan Mustafa
Vice Chancellor, Chanakya National Law University, Patna
Prof. (Dr) Faizan Mustafa is the former Vice-Chancellor of NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad. He was the founder Vice-Chancellor of National Law University, Orissa. He has also served as Dean, Faculty of Law, Aligarh Muslim University, and Registrar of AMU. He is an eminent jurist and legal scholar known for his inclusive leadership ensuring a democratic space on campuses. Prof. Mustafa has completed his Ph.D. in Copyright Law and also has a diploma in International and Comparative Human Rights from the International Institute of Human Rights, Strasbourg, France. Prof. Mustafa has been the Vice-president and President of Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute and President of the Consortium of National Law Universities. He received the SAARC’s prestigious Best Law Teacher Award in 2014. He has contributed extensively to previously unexplored areas such as Copyright Law, HIV Law, Art.356, Strict Liability Law, Freedom of Information Law, Religious Conversion Laws, etc.
Sreshtha Majumdar
Academic Associate
Sreshtha completed her Master’s and Bachelor’s in Economics from XIM University, Bhubaneswar. Her Master’s thesis was on the relationship between gender and competitiveness, titled “Are 21st Century Women More Competitive to Each Other?” and her Bachelor’s thesis was on how various types of information on e-commerce sites create cognitive bias in individual decision-making processes, titled “A Survey on Cognitive Biases in E-commerce Sites and Individual Decision-making.” She is interested in uncovering the hidden drivers behind human decision-making using behavioral economics, which impacts how we understand and approach economic behavior
Ms. Srividya Reddy Gunampalli
Vice- Chairperson, G Narayanamma Institute of Technology and Science (For Women) and G Pulla Reddy Charities Trust
Ms. Srividya Reddy Gunampalli, Vice-Chairperson of G Pulla Reddy Charities Trust holds a Graduate degree in Engineering from JNTU, an MBA from ICFAI, one of the pioneers in management education, and holds a leadership certification from University of Pennsylvania. She leads a multi-faceted life as an educationist, entrepreneur and community volunteer while being actively associated with the G. Pulla Reddy Charities Trust for over two decades now.
Ms. Srividya Reddy proactively involves herself with the constituent educational institutions under the GPR Charities Trust in formulating and managing the overall strategies and operations. The Trust currently has 5 technical institutions offering higher educational studies and 5 high schools under its wing. Her contribution to the education sector extends in her participating in several technical education policy-making committees organized by the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India.
Neha Rathore
Administrative Assistant
Neha Rathore is an Administrative Assistant at Kautilya School of Public Policy. She has completed her Master’s in Public Administration from Rajasthan University. In the past, she has worked as an Assistant Manager for Student Affairs at JK Lakshmipat University, Jaipur where she streamlined and monitored student affair policies, contributed towards the ‘NAAC A’ grade accreditation for the university .Neha enjoys volunteering and is part of the Global Shapers community, an initiative by the World Economic Forum. Her passion in Social work motivated her to take up the Nutrition and Health program with Durga Kriti Society, a Rajasthan based NGO, impacting 100+ children along with small scale CSR projects with Decathlon and Mahindra.Outside of the office, you may spot her clicking pictures of all the things she finds beautiful!
Mr. Prabodha Acharya
Chief Sustainability Officer, JSW Group
Mr. Acharya partners with CEOs, functional heads, senior executives and operations heads to develop and drive sustainability strategy for the JSW Group companies of Steel, Energy, Cement, Paints, Infrastructure etc. An M.Tech in Environmental Engineering, he has worked for more than three decades in the field of corporate environmental management, emissions reduction, climate change, corporate strategy on sustainability and policy development across various sectors and geographies.
Beginning his career with SAIL, he has worked and managed a variety of environmental issues from mining to manufacturing in the metal (iron and steel) sector. Later, he managed the climate change, sustainability and customized Assurance Service for South Asia at Lloyd’s Register, UK and then worked as Sr. Vice President for Aditya Birla Group Sustainability before joining the JSW Group as the CSO
Mr Acharya provides thought leaderships through his capacity as the Chairman of Climate Change and Energy Committee of ISA, Vice Chair of Climate Change and Environment Subcommittee of ASSOHAM, Members of Climate Change and Circular Economy Committee of FICCI, Member of Climate Change and Environmental Committee of CII, Member of Environment Committee of Worldsteel etc. He is a professional lead assessor registered with IRCA, UK and EPD Verifier as per The International EPD System.
Amb. DB Venkatesh Varma
Amb. DB Venkatesh Varma holds a profound understanding of India’s Security and Defence policies, including its nuclear, missile, and space programs. He has been India’s Ambassador to the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, to the Kingdom of Spain, and to the Russian Federation. He has served as Joint Secretary in charge of Disarmament and International Security in the Ministry of External Affairs. His diplomatic tenure also includes him working with the UN First Committee and United Nations Disarmament Commission. He was also a key member of the Indian negotiating team involved in the Civil Nuclear Initiative with the US. Amb Varma was the first recipient of the S.K. Singh Award for Excellence in the Indian Foreign Service in 2011 for his contribution to the negotiations of the Civil Nuclear Initiative. He also served as Joint Secretary in charge of Disarmament and International Security in the Ministry of External Affairs. He was also a member of the UN Group of Government Experts on Missiles and on Disarmament and Nuclear Nonproliferation Education. He holds an M.Phil in International Relations from the Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi.
Lt. General Sanjiv Langer(Retd)
Lt. General Sanjiv Langer(Retd), PVSM, AVSM, is a distinguished military veteran with a service span of 39 years, where he held several operational and logistic appointments. During his work, he dealt with strategic and operational issues with the Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Home Affairs, and Ministry of External Affairs. Sanjiv Langer was the first Indian to be selected to serve at the UN Headquarters as an International Civil Servant under the Department of Peacekeeping for Africa region. He also commanded an Operational Infantry Division and Strike Corps during his tenure. Later, he was appointed as Director General, Defence Intelligence and Deputy Chief Integrated Defence Staff and also as a Member of the Armed Forces Tribunal.
Amb. Sanjay Bhattacharya
Amb Sanjay Bhattacharya has specialized in diplomacy for an era of globalization and transformative change, boundary and security issues, economic engagement, and negotiations. He led the government’s policy-making on Act East and Arab affairs at different stages in his career. He was BRICS Sherpa during India’s Presidency. He was Ambassador to Switzerland and Liechtenstein till December 2022. He has also served in China, Japan, and Belgium, where he focussed on EU relations. He was Ambassador to Turkey between 2018-20 and Ambassador to Egypt and the Arab League during 2015-18. He studied Economics at St Stephen’s College (1980-83) and Delhi School of Economics (1983-85). He has also learned Chinese at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and participated in Strategy and Leadership program at Cambridge Judge Business School. He lectured extensively at universities, business schools, and think tanks in India and abroad on the India story, public policy and governance, and foreign policy issues.
Mr. Sridhar Pabbisetty
Senior Director School of Government at MIT, Pune. Founding Director, Kautilya School of Public Policy, Visiting Faculty, Kautilya School of Public Policy.
Sridhar Pabbisetty, Senior Director School of Government at MIT, Pune, has been working in public policy and governance over the last decade. Before working on public policy, he has worked in technology, innovation and management consulting for a decade. He has served as the COO, Centre for Public Policy at IIM Bangalore, and as the CEO, Namma Bengaluru Foundation, where he was able to bring in innovation in the delivery of public services and improve urban governance. He has also served as the Advisor to Government of Karnataka’s Sakala Mission and served on various Government appointed committees for Sustainability and Lake Governance.
Dr. Judith Spiegel
Assistant Professor of Law, Kuwait International Law School, Visiting Faculty, Kautilya School of Public Policy
Judith Spiegel (Netherlands) is assistant professor of law at Kuwait International Law School. She started her teaching career in 2000 at Amsterdam University, while simultaneously practicing trade law at a firm in Rotterdam. Having a broad interest, she did a doctorate in newspaper journalism in 2008. She has been working and living in the Middle East since 2009. In her teaching and writing she focuses on the crossroads between law and other disciplines. She sees law as an instrument rather than a goal in itself and is therefore an avid supporter of multidisciplinary academic programs. She also believes that teaching is two-way rather than one-way activity and that she learns as much from her students as they from her. Hence her rather nomadic (work) life. Her current focus is on human rights and trade, climate change and trade, and – corollary to these subjects – transparency and the right to know. She’s the author of numerous articles and three books.
Priyanka Roy
General Manager – Admissions and Outreach
Priyanka Roy, a compassionate clinical psychologist and advocate for queer affirmative practices, has made a profound impact in the fields of psychology and education. With experience at esteemed institutions like Symbiosis Hyderabad, Woxsen University, and Smt. Sulochanadevi Singhania School, Priyanka has donned different hats in the areas of counseling, admissions, outreach, and marketing.
She understands the importance of staying relevant in an ever-changing world and embraces continuous learning to stay abreast of evolving demographic trends. Rooted in empathy and understanding, Priyanka creates a safe and inclusive environment for individuals to explore their identities. Her key interest lies in unraveling the unique backgrounds of her students and helping them identify their true potential and career paths. She firmly believes that every individual possesses untapped abilities waiting to be discovered and optimized. Passionate about social responsibility, Priyanka actively contributes to philanthropy and social work, making a positive impact through her involvement in organizations like Mamata Foundation, MHI (Mariwala Health Initiative), and TOC (The Outreach Collective).
Aryaman Chatterjee
Academic Associate
Aryaman completed his Master’s in Sociology from South Asian University, New Delhi. Before coming to Kautilya, he worked as Research and Documentation Manager at Anjali – a Mental Health Rights Organisation in Kolkata. In the past, he has worked with organisations such as Primus Partners, Sanlaap, South Asian Forum for Environment (SAFE), Hope Foundation and Sappho For Equality, Kolkata. Aryaman’s academic interests include gender, sexuality, urban sociology, media, technology and culture. He envisions a career in research and education.
Rituja Ghosh
Academic Associate
Rituja completed her Master’s in International Relations from South Asian University. Her master’s thesis was titled “Crossing the Himalayas- An Enquiry into the Social and Cultural Make up of the Himalayas” with a focus on the silk route trade conducted through Ladakh. Rituja has also presented a paper on climate change titled “Climate Change as a Threat to Human Security: A case study of the Sunderbans” organized by XIM University, Bhubaneswar. Rituja takes an avid interest in the changing contours of global politics and is interested in building a career in research and education.
Mr. Rakesh Dubbudu
Founder of FACTLY and DATAFUL
Rakesh Dubbudu is the founder of ‘FACTLY’, & ‘DATAFUL’, well known media-tech, fact-checking, and public data initiatives. Among other things, Factly works with public policy, public data, Fact-Checking & policy explainers. The work is primarily centered around the intersection of data/information consumption & technology. Rakesh Dubbudu is also a well-known transparency campaigner in India and has been working on data related issues for more than 17 years. He played an instrumental role in the launch of the ‘Open Data Policy’ by the Government of Telangana and has been helping them with opening data and with other e-governance and good governance initiatives.
Dr. Indermit Singh Gill
Chief Economist, World Bank & Visiting Faculty, Kautilya School of Public Policy
Indermit Gill is Chief Economist of the World Bank Group and Senior Vice President for Development Economics. He is a Non-resident Senior Fellow in the Global Economy and Development program at the Brookings Institution, where he co-edits the blog ‘Future Development’. Until 2021, he was a Professor of the Practice of Public Policy at Duke University, where he was Director of the Duke Center for International Development between 2016 and 2018. Gill worked at the World Bank from 1993 to 2016, where he held several leadership positions, including Director for Development Policy in the Office of the Chief Economist, Chief Economist for Europe and Central Asia, Acting Chief Economist for East Asia and the Pacific, and Staff Director for the 2009 World Development Report on Economic Geography. He has taught at Georgetown University and the State University of New York at Buffalo. He has a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Chicago, an MA from the Delhi School of Economics, and a BA (Honours) in Economics from St. Stephen’s College.
He teaches the elective course Big Debates in Development at Kautilya School of Public Policy.
Mr. Udaibir Das
Visiting Faculty, Kautilya School of Public Policy
Udaibir S Das is a former central banker and a senior international policy expert on financial system, systemic stress and crisis, and central banking policies. He has worked in different capacities at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), The World Bank, the Bank for International Settlements, the Bank of Guyana, and the Reserve Bank of India. Mr. Das has been closely associated with the work of the Financial Stability Board and the international standard-setting bodies (including the Basel Committee for Banking Supervision), Toronto Center, and the International Forum of Sovereign Wealth Funds. Mr Das was on the faculty of the Questrom School of Business at Boston University. Mr. Das has managed the global Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP) and participated in developing internationally accepted strategies, policies, and tools for systemic risk analysis, financial stability monitoring, stress testing, debt and reserves management, and sovereign wealth funds. He has led macro-financial surveillance and capacity-building missions to over 40 advanced, emerging, and developing markets such as China, France, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Mongolia, Tanzania, The Philippines, and the United Kingdom. Until recently, Mr. Das oversaw financial and monetary sector developments in Asia, the Pacific, and Europe for the IMF. He is widely published, and his current areas of study and research focus on how the ongoing demographic, climatic, and technological transformation is altering the macro-financial policies landscape and what are its implications for the future of emerging markets, developing economies, and global cross-border financial flows.
Dr. Anant Maringanti
Executive Director, Hyderabad Urban Labs Foundation- Visiting Faculty, Kautilya School of Public Policy
Dr. Anant Maringanti is a geographer with a Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota. His research and teaching interests center on questions of urbanization and globalization from the South Asian vantage point. He is currently the Director of Hyderabad Urban Lab, a multi-disciplinary research center. He is widely published in national and international academic journals on social movements, politics of development, and urbanization.
Dr. Gary Dexter
Visiting Faculty- Kautilya School of Public Policy
Gary Dexter is an experienced American psychologist, management consultant, executive coach, and writer who has dedicated over four decades to leadership development and organizational dynamics. During his tenure at Stanford University Graduate School of Business from 2010 to 2022, Gary taught Interpersonal Dynamics. This course, which is consistently voted as the most popular, focuses on equipping students with essential skills for building solid relationships, a valuable asset for leaders in today’s global, complex, and highly interdependent organizations. Gary works with senior executives in his coaching practice, helping them develop as leaders and individuals. He has provided consulting services to various corporate, non-profit, and government organizations. Additionally, Gary has worked as a trusted advisor and facilitator for globally important governing families. Gary holds a Ph.D. in counseling psychology and an AB (Honors) in psychology from Stanford University.
Ms. Smita Sharma
Independent Journalist; Visiting Faculty- Kautilya School of Public Policy
A senior journalist with more than 18 years of experience, Smita was a prime-time anchor and Foreign Policy Incharge with leading media organizations including India Today TV, TV9, IBN7/CNN-IBN, and The Tribune in the past. She has crisscrossed the length and breadth of India and traveled overseas to report on national elections, natural disasters, conflicts, terror attacks and global summit meets including Paris 13/11 terror strikes, Colombo Easter Sunday attacks and Dhaka hostage crisis in 2016. Her articles and analysis have been published in English and Hindi across national dailies like The Hindu. Hindustan Times, Dainik Bhaskar and leading news outlets including Huffington Post, Quint, Wire, ETV Bharat. She has been invited for comments by international news networks including CBS, BBC, TRT World and CGTN.
Her reportage of the Kashmir conflict in 2010 won her the prestigious Ramnath Goenka award and coverage of the Shahbagh protests in Bangladesh won an ENBA.
Dr. Aman Srivastava
Visiting Faculty, Kautilya
Aman Srivastava is a Fellow with the Initiative on Climate, Energy, and the Environment at the Centre for Policy Research. Aman’s research interests are in the areas of climate and energy policy, specifically the interlinkages between emissions and development pathways, socioeconomic impacts of climate actions, climate finance, and energy consumption behaviours. He is also serving as visiting faculty at the School of Public Policy, Indian Institute of Technology: Delhi.
Aman has previously spent over six years at the World Resources Institute, as a Research Associate (Climate Finance) and subsequently Lead Economist (Climate). He served as a chapter author for the UNFCCC Standing Committee on Finance’s 2016 Biennial Assessment and Overview of Climate Finance Flows report. He has also worked with Indicus Analytics and Kotak Mahindra Bank, and served as a consultant to Vivid Economics, the World Trade Organization, and Ergo.
Aman holds a PhD in energy and behavioural economics from the University of Antwerp, an MSc in finance and development from the University of London, an MBA in finance from the Indian Institute of Management: Lucknow, and a BA (Honours) in economics from the University of Delhi.
Dr. Amir Ullah Khan
Research Director, Center for Development Policy and Practice
Amir Ullah Khan is a former civil servant and now works as advisor to the Sahayata Trust, Research Director at the Centre for Development Policy and Practice, and Adjunct Professor of Economics at the Tata Institute of Social Science, MCR Human Resource Development Institute of the Government of Telangana and the Manipal Institute of Technology. He is visiting faculty at ISB and at NALSAR. Amir has been Director at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the India Development Foundation and Encyclopedia Britannica. Amir studied at the Engineering College at Osmania University, the Institute of Rural Management at Anand and Jamia Millia Central University where he got his PhD for his work on India’s IPR policy. Amir is a columnist with the LiveMint and Deccan Herald.
Dr. Usha Ramachandra
Former Professor and Director- Centre for Energy Studies, Administrative Staff College of India
Usha Ramachandra; Ph.D. Economics, Hyderabad Central University Professor and Director, Centre for Energy Studies (CES), Administrative Staff College of India (Retired September 2021) and Former Dean of Training Programmes (2015-17),
Dr Usha Ramachandra joined the faculty of Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI) in 1998 and became involved in several of ASCI’s training programmes and consulting assignments in the power sector. She contributed to programmes, policy advice and consulting on infrastructure regulation with a focus on power sector and energy reforms.
She has worked in the South Asia region particularly in Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan as a resource person on energy and power sector related issues in several training programmes and regulatory initiatives. She has worked on consulting assignments with power utilities, state and central regulatory commissions and governments in a variety of areas including tariff regulation, private sector participation, restructuring and policy related issues. She has conducted specially designed programmes for the THDC India Ltd., NTPC, PXIL, DVC, IEX, NHPC, Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) etc.
Dr Usha Ramachandra served as an Independent Director on the Board of MIDHANI, a defense PSU which develops and manufacture custom-made alloys to suit the specific requirements of customers for their critical applications from 2015-19. She was also an Independent Director on the Board of the Andhra Pradesh Gas Power Corporation (APGPCL) which is the first group captive power plant set up in the country from 2016-2021. She is currently a member State Advisory Committee of the Andhra Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission (APERC) and a member of the Advisory Council on APIM.
Dr. Jandhyala B G Tilak
Former Vice Chancellor, National University of Educational Planning and Administration
Jandhyala B G Tilak, former Professor & Vice-Chancellor, National University of Educational Planning and Administration and ICSSR National Fellow, is currently Distinguished Professor, Council for Social Development, New Delhi. Dr. Tilak, an economist of education, holds M.A. Degree in Economics with gold medal from Andhra University, and Ph.D. Degree in Economics (of Education) from the Delhi School of Economics. Dr. Tilak served on the research/teaching faculty of the National University of Educational Planning and Administration, University of Delhi, Indian Institute of Education, and as Visiting Professor at University of Virginia, Hiroshima University, and Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning. He was also on the research staff of the World Bank.
Prof Tilak, a recipient of Swami Pranavananda Saraswati award of the UGC in education, Dr Malcolm Adiseshiah award for contributions to development studies, Inspirational Teacher of the Year award and Devang Mehta award for excellence in research in education, has more than twenty books (authored/edited) and 300 research papers in the area of economics of education and development studies, published in reputed journals. Dr Tilak served as the President of the Comparative Education Society of India (2010-2012), and is currently on the Board of Directors of the Comparative Education Society of Asia. He also served as the Editor, Journal of Educational Planning & Administration (1990-2017) and is on the editorial board of several professional journals. Among several honours, Dr Tilak had a rare privilege of delivering a keynote address in a meeting of the Nobel laureates in Barcelona in 2005.
Dr. Vishnu S. Pillai
Assistant Professor, Kautilya School of Public Policy
Dr. Vishnu S Pillai received his Ph.D. in Public Policy from The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology in June 2022. His primary research focuses on risk analysis and Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology regulation. The initial findings of his Ph.D. research are published in the journal Science and Public Policy, a leading international journal on Public Policies for Science, Technology, and Innovation. He also presented his work on the Asia Pacific Public Policy Network, Australasia Public Policy Network, and India Public Policy Network conferences. Prior to joining Kautilya, Dr. Vishnu was a Principal Research Associate at the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs. He was involved in researching innovative CSR and developing courses on Public Policy for corporate professionals and government officers.
Pritish Anand
Academic Associate
Pritish Anand is an education sector professional with close to 7 years of work experience in teaching, teacher training, curriculum design, and program leadership. Pritish has been a Teach For India Fellow and has worked with various organizations like International Sanctuary, Lead School, and Learning Links Foundation. He has also been the Global Governance Initiative Impact Fellow (2022) and received his Associate Certified Coach accreditation from International Coaching Federation in 2022. Pritish earned his Master of Public Policy with a distinguished President’s Gold Medal from Kautilya School of Public Policy, GITAM, Hyderabad. His Master’s thesis was titled “A Micro Study of Gender Gaps in Digital Literacy in Sangareddy”. He also holds a B.Tech in Biotechnology from VIT University, Vellore. He aspires to pursue a career in research. His research interests include reforms in education, the economics of education, and the intersection of gender and education.
Prateek Kanwal
Co-Founder, Kautilya School of Public Policy
Prateek Kanwal, Co-Founder of Kautilya School of Public Policy, did his Master’s in Public Policy (MPP) from the Harvard Kennedy School. He was awarded the prestigious World Bank scholarship for his work in the areas of education reform and social innovation. He is currently working with NewGlobe as the Director, Policy and Advocacy. In the past 12 years, he has worked with CRISIL, Teach For India, Ark and Educate Girls. He is also the Founder of Citizens for Public Leadership (www.cplindia.org). He can be reached out on twitter @prateekkanwal
Ajesh Panicker
Operations Manager
Humble and focused are just a few words often used to describe Ajesh. With over a decade of experience in Hospitality, he is keenly focused on providing guests with the highest level of satisfaction and comfort. He was born in Kerala, God’s own Country, and started his career with The Oberoi Hotels and Resorts. Prior to joining the Kautilya School of Public Policy, he worked as an executive in the food and beverage services section of GITAM Hospitality. He loves traveling and believes that traveling gives your mind a break from the monotonous pattern of life.
Asha Kumari
Administrative Assistant
Asha Kumari works as an administrative assistant at the Kautilya School of Public Policy. She has completed her graduation and Ashoka Scholar Program equivalent to PG in Economics from Ashoka University. She is highly interested in quality education. During her ASP program, she worked on a thesis named ‘Education Spending’. She has completed a Diploma in Electrical Engineering from the Sant Longowal Institute of Engineering and Technology. Originally, She belongs to Bihar and completed her schooling from Bihar. As an intern, she has worked at Ashoka University, Global Vounter Action, and a not-for-profit NGO known as Ek-Pahal located in Bihar.
Recruiter Registration
Our Placement report for the cohort of 2021-23 will be published in September 2023
Yashi Mishra
Academic Associate
Yashi Mishra earned her B.Sc (Hons) in Agriculture from Chandra Shekhar Azad University of Agriculture and Technology and a postgraduate degree in Agricultural Economics from Punjab Agricultural University. “Contract farming of floriculture in Punjab” was the title of her master’s thesis, and she also wrote and presented papers at conferences of Agricultural Economics Research Association, 2021; Indian Society of Agricultural Economics, 2021; and Indian Society For Agricultural Development and Policy, 2021. Journal of Agricultural Development and Policy published her paper on “Constraint analysis of Flower Seed Production under Contract Farming System in Punjab” in 2022, and the International Journal of Chemical Studies published her review article on “Analysis of Factors in Production and Marketing of Pulses: A Review” in 2020. She wants to pursue a career in academia and research. She enjoys traveling in her own time.
Rashad Khan
Academic Associate
Rashad completed his Master’s in Women’s Studies from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai. In the past, he has worked with the British High Commission on developing Gender sensitization programs and then presenting them for students on the college level in Hyderabad. He has co-authored a report for Anveshi, Research Centre for Women’s Studies, on the impact of their bilingual textbook on gender “Towards a World of Equals” in private engineering colleges of Telangana. Rashad has also presented his paper ” Shrinking Spaces: Impact of Hindutva Populism on the Vulnerable ” at Populism and Populist Politics In South Asia Conference organized by Calcutta Research Group/Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung. He finished his Bachelor of Arts in Social Sciences from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Hyderabad.
Vishnu Menon
Admission Advisor
Vishnu is a part of the Admissions Office at Kautilya and helps students choose a career path in public policy. He holds a masters in commerce from Kannur University. Prior to joining Kautilya, he worked as a Relationship Manager with CAPLIFE, a fitness and wellness start-up, based in Bengaluru. He is an ace badminton player and has played at the state level for many years. He was also the Captain of his University badminton team from 2018-2020. He is also a self-taught artist and has a keen interest in sketching portraits, acrylic painting, and watercolors. He loves hearing podcasts about the lives of people and prefers them more than reading.
Dr. Kanica Rakhra
Assistant Professor, Kautilya School of Public Policy
Dr. Kanica Rakhra was working with the Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) where she was with the Policy Planning and Research Division (2016-17) and then the Disarmament and International Security Affairs (D&ISA) Division (2017-2021). At D&ISA, she handled regional organizations in Asia, namely, ARF and CICA. She coordinated international and regional conferences for the division and assisted in producing the AV ‘Internal Compliance Programme for Effective Export Controls’ for MEA. Additionally, she was the founding Lead Coordinator-Annual Disarmament and International Security Affairs Fellowship Programme that was initiated in 2019. She has also worked on counter-terrorism, maritime security, nuclear disarmament, non-proliferation, international security, and a range of multilateral issues during her tenure in the D&ISA division.
In 2022, Kanica joined the India G20 Secretariat, where she was engaged in research for the Development Working Group. Dr. Rakhra executed several position papers and provided valuable inputs for substantive work related to India’s G20 Presidency. In particular, she assisted the G20 Secretariat in the transition period from the Indonesian Presidency to the Indian Presidency, negotiated for various G20 declarations, as well as in G20 meetings, including the First Sherpa meeting in Udaipur. She also participated in the T20 and C20 Summits during Indonesia’s Presidency on behalf of the India G20 Secretariat.
A former Fellow at Middlebury Institute for International Studies (2019), the Swedish South Asian Studies Network (2016), and the Harvard led-Arms Control Negotiation Academy (ACONA-2021), she holds a Ph.D from the Center for International Politics, Organization, and Disarmament (CIPOD) in Jawaharlal Nehru University where she was an ICSSR Doctoral Fellow (2014-16). She has also participated in a number of Track 1.5 and Track 2 dialogues, written chapters for books, and published articles in various journals.
Monika Bishnoi
Admissions Advisor
Monika has completed her master’s in Sociology from the University of Hyderabad and her Bachelor’s in Korean studies from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. She was always keen on working in the education sector. She has also volunteered with Reetika Khera and Jean Dreze on a project titled Public health facilities in rural India. She has an interest in social issues and is a K-drama fan.
Piyush Mittal
Executive Assistant to Dean
Piyush is a graduate of the University of Lucknow and did his masters in International Relations from the School of International and Area Studies, Goa University. He also has a Diploma in French and European Studies from Sciences Po Lyon. He is very interested in the education sector and also did his undergraduate dissertation on ‘Higher Studies in India.’ His other academic interests are in area studies with a focus on the Middle East, Contemporary China, and Europe. He joined Kautilya after a stint with the Social Initiatives Team of BYJU where he was posted in Sikkim as a part of the aspirational districts program in collaboration with the NITI Aayog.
Dr. Manisha Sethi
NALSAR University of Law
Manisha Sethi is a Sociologist by training. She has taught comparative religions, and development studies at Jamia Millia Islamia, from where she is currently on leave. Presently, she teaches at NALSAR University of Law, where she heads the Centre for Criminal Justice Reform and Research. A fellow at Nehru Memorial Museum and Library between 2013-15, she also helps edit Biblio, India’s preeminent book review magazine. Her research interests encompass a wide range: from gender, politics and religion, to law and counterterrorism. Her book publications include the acclaimed Kafkaland: Law, Prejudice and Counterterrorism in India (Three Essays, 2014) and Escaping the World: Women Renouncers among Jains (Routledge, 2012). A volume of essays edited by Sethi, titled, Communities and Courts: Religion and Law in Modern India has been published by Routledge UK in 2022.
Dr. Sanjaya Baru
Writer, Policy Analyst, Economist
Sanjaya Baru was Editor, of Business Standard and The Financial Express; Editorial Page Editor, of The Times of India, and Associate Editor of The Economic Times. He served as the Media Advisor and Principal Speechwriter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh from 2004-08. He was Director for Geo-economics and Strategy, at the International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS), London, Honorary Senior Fellow, at the Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi, and a Distinguished Fellow at the United Service Institution of India, New Delhi.
He has also been Visiting Professor, at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy and Institute of South Asian Studies, Singapore (2008-09); Professor, at the Indian Council for Research in International Economic Relations (1999-2000); Departments of Economics, Jawaharlal Nehru University (1985-86) and University of Hyderabad (1979-1990). Visiting fellow- School of Economic Studies, University of East Anglia, UK, and the first Jhamandas Watamull Fellow at the East-West Centre, Hawaii. He has been a Consultant with the Human Development Report Office, UNDP, and Asian Development Bank. He has lectured at Chatham House (London), National Defence College (Delhi) and the Indian School of Business (Hyderabad).
From 1999-2001 he was a Member, of the National Security Advisory Board of India; and has been a member of several high-level government committees including the Expert Group on Indian National Defence University and the India-ASEAN Eminent Persons Group.
Mr. Arvind Lodaya
Design, Innovation, Branding Consultant, Academic; Visiting Faculty, Kautilya
Mr. Arvind Lodaya is trained in Product Design and has worked extensively in innovation, design and branding. He works across sectors, visits premier institutes in India & overseas, and has worked with innovative startups including a museum on conflict, a tech-enabled skilling venture and a design-led business incubator. He started out designing industrial and consumer products for various brands including Bajaj, Kirloskar and Otis. He was appointed Creative Director at Ogilvy, where he led the corporate rebranding of ICICI and led strategic design assignments for Seagram, HLL, Arvind, Lakme, Godfrey Phillips, and Cadbury’s. He consulted with IMRB International as Innovation Mentor, before launching a ‘breakthrough’ innovation + brand consultancy. He was part of dLabs at ISB and co-founded the Deccan Centre for Innovation & Design [DCID]. He was invited by IIT-G to advise on its B-Tech program, and by Impact Business Leaders, University of Stellenbosch, ISB, IIT Mandi, Ambedkar University and Startup Village to lead programs on Design and Business Innovation.
AVM (Dr.) Arjun Subramaniam (Retd)
Fighter Pilot, Military Historian, Author, Visiting Faculty, Kautilya
Air Vice Marshal (Dr) Arjun Subramaniam is the President’s Chair of Excellence in National Security Affairs at National Defence College, New Delhi. He is a retired fighter pilot from the Indian Air Force who has flown MiG-21s and Mirage-2000s. He has commanded a MiG-21 Squadron and a large flying base and held several operational, staff and instructional assignments in the IAF. He is an air power doctrinal expert having crafted the current IAF doctrine in 2012. He was awarded the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal for distinguished service by the President of India in 2011. A PhD in Defence and Strategic Studies from the Univ of Madras, he has been a Visiting Fellow at The Harvard Asia Center and Oxford Universities, and a Visiting Faculty at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Ashoka and Jindal Universities. He has lectured extensively at a wide range of Universities, think tanks and war colleges in India and abroad and his current areas of focus are international and regional security, contemporary Indian military history, air power in joint operations and the India-China security relationship. He is the author of five books including ‘India’s Wars: A Military History: 1947-1971’ and its newly-released sequel titled Full Spectrum: India’s Wars 1972-2020,’ and the international edition titled ‘A Military History of India since 1972: Full Spectrum Conflict and the Changing Contours of Modern Conflict.’ He is also the editor of an anthology of essays titled ‘Force in Statecraft: An Indian perspective. He is on the review editorial board of several journals and writes extensively for leading newspapers and magazines on military and strategic issues.
Mr. Ankur Kulshrestha
Edtech, Fin Prof., Researcher; Visiting Faculty, Kautilya
Mr. Ankur Kulshrestha has over 15 years of experience which includes both corporate and academic experience. He has taught at postgraduate management programs of leading B-schools, fellowship, and super-specialized programs in Transportation, Entrepreneur, Built Environment, and Social Development. He is a member of the Approved Prep Provider Program of CFA Institute, USA. He is associated as a mentor in Nexus, the startup incubator program by the US Embassy in India. Before joining academia, his industry experience of 10 years spans across firms like Maruti Suzuki and EY.
He co-founded an ed-tech company for CFA training, his online sessions being wired in more than 15 countries. His research interest and contribution include topics covering valuation, mergers and acquisition, value relevance, and trends in financial reporting. He is a chartered accountant, CFA charter holder, Certified Financial Risk Manager, and Certified Finance Planner.
Amb. Vijay Gokhale
Fmr.Foreign Secretary of India
Shri Vijay Gokhale is a former India Foreign Service officer. His previous diplomatic assignments include postings in Hong Kong, Hanoi, Beijing, New York and Taipei. He has also served as India’s High Commissioner to Malaysia from January 2010 to October 2013, Ambassador to the Federal Republic of Germany from October 2013 to January 2016, and Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China from January 2016 to October 2017. He was also the Foreign Secretary from January 2018 to January 2020.
He is the author of the books – Tiananmen Square – The Making of A Protest, A Diplomat Looks Back, HarperCollins, published in May 2021 and The Long Game: How China Negotiates with India, Penguin Random House, published in July 2021.
Mr. Anil Swarup
Author, Retired IAS Officer
Anil Swarup is an Indian author and retired Indian Administrative Service officer of the 1981 batch of Uttar Pradesh cadre. Mr. Swarup, in his 38-year career, has served in various capacities, and later went on to become the Secretary to the Government of India. A successful bureaucrat, Anil Swarup, is known to believe in getting things done, despite the challenges.
Amb. Navtej Sarna
Former Indian Ambassador to the US & Israel
Navtej Sarna was India’s Ambassador to the United States till Dec 2018. As a professional diplomat since 1980, Sarna also served as India’s High Commissioner to the UK, Ambassador to the State of Israel and Secretary at the Ministry of External Affairs. He has the distinction of being India’s longest serving foreign office spokesperson, having held that post for six years. In the earlier years of his service, he served in various diplomatic posts in Moscow, Poland, Bhutan, Iran, Washington and Geneva. Navtej Sarna is also an established author of fiction and non-fiction. His work includes the novels ‘The Exile’ and ‘We Weren’t Lovers Like That’, the short story collection ‘Winter Evenings’, non-fiction works ‘The Book of Nanak’, ‘Second Thoughts’ and ‘Indians at Herod’s Gate’, as well as two translations, ‘Zafarnama’ and ‘Savage Harvest’. He contributes columns and comments regularly to several Indian newspapers and journals. His reviews and short stories have also appeared in the Times Literary Supplement, Financial Times, London Magazine and the BBC.
Dr. Moshik Temkin
Fellow at The Belfer Center for Science and Intl. Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School
Moshik Temkin, associate professor of history and public policy, joined the Harvard Kennedy School faculty in 2009. Previously he taught at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales in Paris and at Columbia University. A specialist in the history of the modern United States in global and comparative perspective, with a focus on the connections between history and public policy, he is particularly interested in the interaction between Americans and non-Americans, the effects that American politics have had on the wider world, the roles that international politics have played in American society and policymaking in the United States, and the dynamics created when American and international politics come into contact, or conflict.
He is the author of The Sacco-Vanzetti Affair: America on Trial (Yale University Press, 2011).
At the Harvard Kennedy School, he convenes the Harvard Seminar on History and Policy and is the co-founder and co-director of the Harvard Initiative on History and Public Policy.
Mr. Steve Jarding
Former Professor, Harvard Kennedy School
Steve Jarding is an American and international educator, lecturer, writer, and political consultant who taught at Harvard’s Kennedy School of government from 2004 – 2019. While there, he was voted “Teacher of the Year” by students in 2016. In addition, his teaching was recognized as “Exemplary” by Kennedy School alumni, and his course on Campaign Management was twice nominated for the “Most Influential Course” Award. His research focuses on political campaign management and messaging and on a new paradigm of political communication that he developed at Harvard and with thousands of trainees around the world. Over a 40-year career, he has lectured, trained, or consulted in over 40 countries in Asia, Africa, South America, and Europe and he has been recognized as one of the most successful political campaign managers and consultants in America compiling an impressive list of winning US Senate and gubernatorial races.
Mr. Glenn Kramon
Lecturer in Management, Stanford School of Business
Glenn Kramon has been an editor for The New York Times for more than a quarter-century. Reporters whom he has supervised and edited have won 10 Pulitzer Prizes, and have been finalists for the Pulitzer 25 times. His projects have included series about the overlooked problem of concussions among young athletes; the dangers of distracted driving; the safety and environmental hazards of sport utility vehicles and pickup trucks; cheating on taxes, and loopholes and inequities in the tax code; medical treatments used despite a lack of evidence that they work; the myths and truths about genetically modified foods; the ways the United States is and is not moving toward a more secure energy future, and environmental devastation in China. He also introduced a system to ensure that Times editors become good managers, and authored a handbook on running the newsroom. Earlier he served as business editor of The Times, and wrote about the business of health care and health insurance.
Dr. Amrendra Pandey
Associate Professor, Kautilya School of Public Policy
Dr. Amrendra Pandey is an economist and researcher with expertise in monetary economics, macroeconomic policy regulation, econometrics, text mining, and machine learning. He has a doctoral degree from the Birla Institute of Management and Technology (BIMTECH), Greater Noida.
He has been a faculty member at BIMTECH, Greater Noida. He was also the Assistant Project Officer of the Organizing Committee of the Commonwealth Games- 2010.
Dr. Pandey has numerous research papers and articles to his credit which have been published in the International Journal of Intercultural Relations, Sage Open, Technology Innovation Management Review, Current Issues in Economics and Finance (Book chapter- Springer Nature), and Advances in Finance & Applied Economics (Book chapter- Springer Nature).’
C Vani Soujanya
Admissions Advisor
Vani is a law graduate and holds a Diploma in Cyber Laws from the University of Hyderabad. She was Vice President of the Parent Teacher Association at St.Francis Girls High School where she tried to bring the relevance of physical, intellectual, emotional, and spiritual nurturing of children in a holistic way for the overall growth of students. She was an active volunteer for paralegal services and conducted legal awareness meetings at the slum level to spread awareness of laws and legal rights. Prior to joining Kautilya, she worked as a Legal Associate.
Prashant Kamani
Operations Manager
Prashant hails from Kolkata, the City of Joy. He worked as a Data Entry Consultant at OLM, Australia after his MBA. He has a BBA from the West Bengal University of Technology, after which he completed his MBA in Supply Chain Management from Monash University, Melbourne. Prashant takes a keen interest in keeping himself abreast regarding current affairs, business, and politics. When not working, he is found immersed in reading books or catching up on the latest movies.
Dr. Duvvuri Subbarao
Fmr RBI Governor; Distinguished Visiting Professor, Kautilya
Dr. Duvvuri Subbarao served as Governor of the Reserve Bank of India for five years (2008-13). Prior to that, he was Finance Secretary to the Government of India (2007-08) and Secretary to the Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council (2005-07). As a career civil servant, he worked in various positions in the state government of Andhra Pradesh and in the federal government of India. He was a Lead Economist at the World Bank (1999 – 2004).In his capacity first as Finance Secretary and later as Governor of RBI, Dr. Subbarao was alternate Governor for India on the Governing Boards of the World Bank and the IMF. He participated actively in the G 20 meetings, the meetings of the International Monetary and Financial Committee (of the IMF), bi-monthly meetings of Governors at the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in Basel and the Asian Consultative Committee of central bank Governors.
Amb D.B. Venkatesh Varma
Former Indian Ambassador to the Russian Federation
Amb Varma holds a profound understanding of India’s Security and Defence policies, including its nuclear, missile, and space programs. He has been India’s Ambassador to the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, to the Kingdom of Spain, and to the Russian Federation. He has served as Joint Secretary in charge of Disarmament and International Security in the Ministry of External Affairs. His diplomatic tenure also includes him working with the UN First Committee and United Nations Disarmament commission. He was also a key member of the Indian negotiating team involved in the Civil Nuclear Initiative with the US. Amb Varma was the first recipient of the S.K. Singh Award for Excellence in the Indian Foreign Service in 2011 for his contribution to the negotiations of the Civil Nuclear Initiative. He also served as Joint Secretary in charge of Disarmament and International Security in the Ministry of External Affairs. He was also a member of the UN Group of Government Experts on Missiles and on Disarmament and Nuclear Nonproliferation Education. He holds an M.Phil in International Relations from the Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi.
Dr. Kaushiki Sanyal
CEO and Co-founder, Sunay Policy Advisory Pvt. Ltd.
Dr. Kaushiki Sanyal has more than 15 years of experience in public policy research and consulting and is the CEO and Co-founder of the public policy research firm Sunay Policy Advisory Pvt. Ltd. Her past work experience includes working as a Senior Analyst for PRS Legislative Research, Centre for Policy Research and Bharti Institute of Public Policy, Indian School of Business. It also incorporates her working as a consultant on Kamonohashi Project as well as for the World bank.
Dr. Sanyal has also co-authored two books, Public Policy in India (Oxford India Short Introductions), 2016 and Shaping Policy in India: Alliance, Advocacy, Activism, 2017. Some of her work has also been featured as book chapters and research reports.
Dr. Sanyal completed her PhD in International Relations from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi and has presented several papers at conferences. Her work has been published in EPW and Governance Now. She has written numerous Op-Eds for Indian Express, Financial Express, Live Mint and the Times of India.
Dr. Srinivas Yanamandra
Group Head – Regulatory Affairs & Policy
Dr Yanamandra is a compliance expert by profession, a regulatory researcher by qualification, and a fintech enthusiast by passion. He specializes in fintech policy and regulation, sanctions compliance, risk-based supervision, financial crime compliance, integrity, and anti-corruption as well as code of conduct. He is a research scholar in areas at the intersection of fintech, law, and economics focusing on metaverse, digital currencies, distributed ledger, and deep learning. He is also a keen observer of each of these areas of finance, tech, and regulation from a philosophical perspective.
Oindrilla Sarkar
Manager – Admissions
Oindrilla Sarkar manages the Admissions and Outreach at Kautilya. Prior to joining Kautilya, she worked as an Associate with the Apeejay Education Society. She has also worked as a business correspondent with the Financial Express and the New Indian Express where she covered the E-commerce and IT sector. A student of history from Presidency College, Kolkata, she did her master’s at the University of Calcutta. Public speaking, story-telling, and creating podcasts are some of her hobbies which are also aligned with her belief that communication is an important management function. She is also an artist and holds a master’s in painting from Rabindra Bharati University. An aspiring author, she loves to write about the life and times of people in distinct social settings blending art and history in pages.
Neelam Mehra
Deputy Director, Career Fulfillment
Neelam Mehra is a postgraduate in MBA – HR with 25+ years of work experience collectively in corporate companies and groups as well as educational institutes. She has a stronghold in mapping corporate requirements and students’ expectations to achieve maximum placements for the organization. She is well versed with the full cycle of recruitment processes of corporate companies as well as in providing relevant insights to the HR team. She has extensive experience in managing students’ orientation processes, placement preparation processes, and overseeing elements of the admission panels. She is connected to a good network within the HR fraternity that is cohesive and encompasses corporates for empanelment of the institute for campus hiring. When she is not working, she loves traveling and cooking for her loved ones. She is also an avid animal lover!
Arushi Jha Thakur
Academic Associate
Arushi has completed her masters in Development Studies from Ambedkar University and completed her bachelor’s in Economics from Lady Shri Ram College for Women. Her Master’s thesis titled “The Changing Landscape of Indian Media” maps out the changing nature of information dissemination in lieu of growing commercialisation, cross-media ownership and changing media objectives. Working as an Academic Associate, Arushi aspires to dwell deeper into development research and is interested in building a career in the education field. Her interests lie in understanding the changing nature of Indian political economy and economic discourse around the world.
Harshita Sharma
Academic Associate
Harshita Sharma is a Young India Fellow and completed her masters in Economics from Panjab University, Chandigarh. Her field of interest lies in socio-economic issues and development economics including gender and Economy. She also has a keen interest in global political economics. She participated in several policy research projects like financial inclusion and agri-marketing associated with RBI and NABARD respectively. Working on the ground and contributing to the process of development is her passion. She comes from a small town of state Haryana called Narwana and pursued her Bachelors, Economics Honors from Panjab University, Chandigarh.
Sanjit Mondal
Academic Associate
Sanjit is pursuing a degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) within the Department of Development Studies at the Rajiv Gandhi National Institute of Youth Development (RGNIYD), Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MoYAS), Government of India (GoI) and has completed his master’s degree in the subjects of Geography and Population Science. He has over five years of experience in the areas of teaching, research, training, and consulting. In the World Bank-funded project, he worked as an Environmental and Social Safeguard Expert. His research interests include the environment, demography, youth development, rural-urban development, green economy, climate change, sustainable development, renewable energy, labor, and employment. He has presented various research papers at national and international conferences and seminars. He has written various peer-reviewed articles and chapters in national and international journals on his areas of expertise. He has published two edited books under the name of “Selected Works of Young Social Science Researchers.” He has conducted many training and community development programmes for reputable organisations, serving the community by resolving conflicts and providing guidance for those in need in the area of development.
Subhash Bhambhu
Academic Associate
Subhash Bhambhu, young India Fellow 22, has completed his masters in South Asian Studies from UMISARC, Pondicherry University. He has keen interest in International affairs including contemporary global politics, South Asia, and Indo Pacific. He wrote his masters dissertation on India-Iran Connectivity Cooperation: the Case of Chabahar. He has pursued his bachelors in Persian Language from JNU, New Delhi. He is an admirer of sufi music, and poetry.
Shivangi Sharma
Program Manager
“Shivangi works as Program Manager at Kautilya School of Public Policy. She has previously worked as Executive Assistant to Dean at Kautilya. Earlier, she was a Teaching Assistant to Dr. Pratap Bhanu Mehta and Dr Mekhala Krishnamurthy. She hails from a small village in the Bundelkhand region of Madhya Pradesh. After completing her schooling locally she completed her Bachelors in Mathematics from the University of Delhi. She also did Young India Fellowship and Masters in Liberal Studies from Ashoka University. She is a trained dancer in Kathak and loves Hindustani poetry and Hindustani classical music. She aspires to build a career in the public policy education sector.”
Dr. Jeevant Rampal
Visiting Faculty, Kautilya
Dr. Jeevant Rampal is anAssistant Professor of Economics at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. He completed his PhD in Economics from the Ohio State University.His research, teaching, and consulting interests are Behavioral and Experimental Economics, Auctions and Market Design, Game Theory, Mechanism Design, Gender Economics, Industrial Organization, Development Economics, and Agricultural Economics.
Rathin Roy
Managing Director, Research and Policy, ODI
Rathin Roy is Managing Director, ODI. He was formerly the Director and CEO of the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy (NIPFP), and Former Director IPC-IG, UNDP, Brazil. He has also served as the Public Resource Management Advisor, and the Acting Cluster Leader, Inclusive Development, in the Poverty Practice, Bureau for Development Policy (BDP), UNDP. On invitation from the Government of India, he also served as the Economic Advisor to the Thirteenth Finance Commission, a Constitutional body of the Government of India.
Lohith Kumar Reddy C
Research Assistant
Lohith finished his Integrated engineering in Information and Communication Technology. He is a University gold medalist in engineering. He left his career in engineering to become a researcher in Public Policy and the future of Public Service delivery. He aspires to research in areas that are a blend of Public Policy and Technology and how technology can revamp public policy space and help in digital transformation. He also worked as a researcher at Speech Signal Laboratory at IIIT Hyderabad and worked on ‘6LoWPAN technology adaptation in IoT devices’ in IIIT – Naya Raipur.
Taj Ud Din Malik
Research Assistant
Taj Ud Din Malik did his Master’s in Development Studies from the Indian Institute of Technology, Mandi and completed his Bachelor’s in Economics from the University of Mumbai. He worked as a Research Assistant at IIT Mandi and has contributed to the development of various National Climate Vulnerability reports. He has also been associated with NGOs like United Way, Mumbai and Centre for Social Action, Mumbai and worked on various projects around environmental protection and tribal welfare. He also worked as an Academic Assistant in the Economics area with the Indian Institute of Management, Kashipur.
Abhyoday Sisodia
Research Assistant
Abhyoday has completed his Masters in East Asia (Area Studies) from the Department of East Asian Studies, University of Delhi. As a researcher cum columnist specializing in international relations, he has gained extensive experience working with online media. He has a keen interest in all things geopolitics and thus enjoys writing on issues pertaining to Foreign Policy, International Relations, and Strategic & Security Affairs; specifically of the Indo-Pacific Region. He has interned with the Kootneeti, the Institute of Chinese Studies (ICS, New Delhi) and Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF), where he has assisted in multiple areas of the functioning of Think Tanks as well as focused on research among other things.
Sudipta Shaw
Research Assistant
Sudipta completed her Master’s in Sociology from the University of Hyderabad. Working at Kautilya as a Research Assistant, she aspires to be a part of the research process and experience the dialogue-creation among various stakeholders regarding the concerned social issue. She likes to experiment and enjoys the process of learn-unlearn-relearn. Her Master’s thesis is titled- ‘Negotiating Patriarchy, Challenging Stereotypes: Gender, Biography, and City in perspective,’ whereby she focuses on the formation of subjective agency through everyday lived experience as the agent negotiates and challenges the existing social structures in any given spatial-temporal context.
Dr. Chandrasekhar Commuri
Visiting Faculty, Kautilya School of Public Policy
Dr. Chandrasekhar Commuri is a professor in the Department of Public Policy and Administration at California State University, Bakersfield. He teaches courses in public policy, nonprofit management, and qualitative research methods. His research interests include exploring how narratives shape policy outcomes. and understanding the identity work carried out by public employees in high-stress situations. At CSU Bakersfield, he served as Department Chair, Director of the Faculty Teaching and Learning Center, and Chair of the Institutional Review Board for Human Subjects Research. He also served on the governing boards at the Kern Community Foundation and the Kern County Network for Children. He has a PhD from the University of Southern California.
Pradeep B
Research Assistant
Pradeep is a Research Assistant at Kautilya School of Public policy. Prior to joining Kautilya, he worked as an Analyst with IPAC. He also worked with different NGOs in the domain of Education for four years. He engaged in roles such as Associate, Resource Person and Cluster Transformation Lead. He has two post-graduate degrees to his name. After completing M.Sc in Biotechnology from SRM University he went on to complete M.A in Development Studies from IIT Guwahati. He writes short stories in Tamil.
Piuli Basu
Research Assistant
Piuli has a Bachelors in Sociology and has completed a Masters in Gender and Women’s Studies from TISS. Her MA thesis titled ‘Mapping Trans/Gender Subjectivities and Non-Binary Possibilities’ documents the trajectories of the contemporary gender-queer movement in India and muses upon the kind of potential structural shift possible in future gendered landscapes within the Indian socio-political environment. She has worked with several NGOs and research projects and has been associated with IIT Bombay where she investigated the consequences of COVID-19 in the country’s performing arts industry. Piuli hopes to make significant academic contributions revolving around emerging issues of social movements, culture and body politics, and ultimately impact policy-driven solutions for the Indian population.
Saniej AK
Sr. Manager – Marketing & Admissions
Saniej is the Sr. Manager – Marketing & Admissions at Kautilya. His areas of expertise include digital marketing, education marketing, data analytics, digital content and strategy, SEM, SMM, SEO, etc. With 7+ years experience in diverse processes including digital marketing, project management and advertising, he has led teams of marketing professionals with a successful track record demonstrated through various awards and recognitions received for excellence in process execution and innovation.
Previously he has worked with IFIM Business School, Bengaluru and National Bank of Abu Dhabi, UAE (presently First Abu Dhabi Bank) and was an F&B entrepreneur in Bengaluru. He holds an MBA degree in Marketing from Manipal University and a Bachelor’s degree in Business Management from Alliance University.
Seshadri Kannan
Program Manager
Seshadri Kannan (Sesh), an entrepreneur at heart, likes to travel the path less taken. With more than 11 years of experience working across industries and functions, he understands the rigour involved in building a career. He believes anyone can be entrepreneurial as long as they are willing to tune their mind to it and that people can become truly employable when they understand the importance of delivering value.
Seshadri has a Masters in Logistics & Supply chain management (MBA) from the University Of Petroleum & Energy Studies, Dehradun and Bachelors in Engineering from Anna University, Chennai. He carries diverse work experience as an analyst across companies like TCS, TVS and Ford and later shifted to management in ed-tech and academics. In his most recent role prior to joining Kautilya, he was handling a project on facilitating adoption of Emerging Technology in Governance.
Srishhti Sinha
Research Associate
She has a background in economics from the University of Mumbai and has her interests across fields of social sciences including urban studies, development economics, policy-making, and sustainability. Earlier, she was associated with the Research Department of the Real Estate Consultancy firm, Knight Frank India, and has assisted with research around Bengaluru’s urban infrastructure in the year 2020. In the coming years, she hopes to contribute immensely to the field of urban-rural studies and public policy-making.
Vijetha S
Program Advisor
Vijetha has 7+ years of experience working as a Client Servicing professional. Being a result-driven Client Servicing Manager prior to this, she has a demonstrated history of ensuring mutually beneficial client acquisition and specializes in Stakeholder Management, Client Relations and Project Life-Cycle Management. She has been committed to successfully following and applying fundamental standards with the goal of maximizing client acquisition, retention and interaction. She was a powerful force in the workplace and with her positive attitude, tireless energy and her passion to bring the best out of people, she successfully trained and mentored a team of content writers and graphic designers ensuring their continuous growth. Her professional journey began as a Production assistant and handling Operations for a music-based start-up/ which was also an electronic music production school in Bangalore, where her responsibilities involved business development for clubs/hotels with respect to music, and went on to manage and promote local artists and musicians Pan India. She has closely worked with several brands, vendors and artists. Vijetha is a music and theatre enthusiast, who gets inspired by the smallest of creations. In her free time, you will find her in a book store, or volunteering for a play production, at a farm practising natural farming or backpacking across smaller Indian cities. She aims to make a difference everywhere she goes, with each living being she connects.
Sudipta Shaw
Intern
She completed her Masters in Sociology from the University of Hyderabad. Working as an intern at Kautilya, she aspires to be a part of the research process and experience the dialogue-creation among various stakeholders regarding the concerned social issue. She likes to experiment and enjoys the process of learn-unlearn-relearn. Her Master’s thesis is titled- ‘Negotiating Patriarchy, Challenging Stereotypes: Gender, Biography, and City in perspective,’ whereby she focuses on the formation of subjective agency through everyday lived experience as the agent negotiates and challenges the existing social structures in any given spatial-temporal context.
Ananth Narayan
International banking and financial markets expert.
Mr. Ananth Narayan is a banking and finance professional with a career in financial markets and sales, spanning twenty four years. He was Regional Head of Financial Markets, ASEAN and South Asia at the Standard Chartered Bank, before he joined academia as a Professor of Finance. His career ranges across foreign exchange, fixed income, debt, capital markets, asset liability management and research.
Mr. Narayan has actively participated in the formulation of financial policies and market development. He was a member of the RBI Working Group for introduction of INR interest rate options (2016), working group on reporting OTC (Over the Counter) Derivatives (2011) and the working group on introduction of interest rate futures (2007). He has also written extensively on the Indian markets in publications like Economic Times, DNA India and CNBC Moneycontrol. Having been a Diversity and Inclusion Lead in his bank he is very zealous about D&I.
A B.Tech in electrical engineering from IIT- Bombay and Post Graduate diploma in Management from IIM- Lucknow, Ananth is very passionate about education for underprivileged children. He is patron and mentor of Society for Education Empowerment and Nutrition for Children (SEENCH).
Vivek Bhargav Oruganti
Research Associate
Vivek Bhargav Oruganti, Research Associate, is a U.S. Exchange Alumnus and a Teach For India Fellow with experience in working with the development, K-12, and higher education sector. He completed his Bachelor’s in Commerce (B. Com) at Badruka College of Commerce & Arts in Hyderabad. During his undergraduate studies, Vivek participated in 2013 NESA UGRAD (GLOBAL UGRAD), a fully sponsored scholarship program of the US Government to study, intern and explore the cultural heritage of the USA for one year. Over here, he studied Business and Accounting at Endicott College, Massachusetts, USA. Returning to India, he resumed studies and interned with Goldman Sachs, where he worked on streamlining prices of fixed-income securities.
Subsequently, he joined Teach For India (TFI) as a 2016-18 Fellow, where he worked as a 6th and 7th grade teacher at Government High School Bowenpally, Hyderabad. As US Exchange Alumnus, Vivek has actively participated in various activities and forums of the U.S. Consulate Hyderabad, where he also attended a bilateral meet between India and the US, deepening their people-to-people relations. After completing the TFI fellowship, he pursued a Master’s in International Affairs from Elliott School, George Washington University. He is currently working as a Research Associate at Kautilya School of Public Policy, studying and researching the dynamics of International Relations and Public Policy issues. His knowledge areas are political science, international relations, public policy, indigenous peoples, K-12 & higher education. His research interests include international relations, comparative politics, political participation and representation, and electoral politics.
Azmathullah Mohammed
Operations Manager
Azmat is an education management enthusiast with over 9 years of experience in the education sectors, In the past Azmat has worked with renowned universities like Al Akhawayn University , Ifrane – Morocco, Miras University, Shymkent – Kazakhstan and American University of Beirut and Lebanese American University in Lebanon. He has spearheaded CSR educational projects in collaboration with UNICEF and ITDA. He has also been a part of few educational startups in the career readiness space. He specialises in academic operations, study abroad and experiential learning programs.
Dr. Vasudha Katju
Assistant Professor, Kautilya School of Public Policy
A gold medalist in Sociology from the University of Hyderabad, she holds a doctorate in Sociology from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and has taught courses in Gender Studies like ‘Sexualities,’ and ‘ Masculinities’ at Ambedkar University, New Delhi. Dr. Vasudha Katju is a specialist in the field of gender studies.
Her interest also lies in academic writing and communications. Her core areas are academic writing and writing for research where she is committed to making the field more enjoyable and less punishable.
She has conducted writing workshops like, “The Pieces and the Puzzle: Theory, Method, and Data in Research Writing”; “How to Write Assignment Questions”; “Abstract Writing”; “Conducting Interviews During Fieldwork”; “Cultivation of Writing in the Field and Archive.”
Vasudha has also co-authored, ‘Human Rights and Gender Studies’ book for high school students under the Central Board of Secondary Education.
Nidhi Razdan
Visiting Faculty, Kautilya School of Public Policy & Fmr. Executive Editor, NDTV
Nidhi Razdan is Senior Journalist and Former Executive Editor, NDTV. She worked with NDTV for nearly 21 years, where she became Executive Editor. She reported extensively on politics and foreign affairs, from places as diverse as Pakistan, POK, Afghanistan, Iran, China, Tibet and Africa. Nidhi anchored NDTV’s prime time flagship news shows “Left, Right and Centre” and “The Big Fight”. She won the International Press Institute (IPI) Award in 2019 and has been a recipient of the Ramnath Goenka Journalism Award for her reporting on Jammu and Kashmir. Her first book was published by Penguin in 2017.
Lt. General Sanjiv Langer
Fmr. Member of the Armed Forces Tribunal
Lt. General Sanjiv Langer(Retd), PVSM, AVSM, is a distinguished military veteran with a service span of 39 years, where he held several operational and logistic appointments. During his work, he dealt with strategic and operational issues with the Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Home Affairs, and Ministry of External Affairs. Sanjiv Langer was the first Indian to be selected to serve at the UN Headquarters as an International Civil Servant under the Department of Peacekeeping for Africa region. He also commanded an Operational Infantry Division and Strike Corps during his tenure. Later, he was appointed as Director General, Defence Intelligence and Deputy Chief Integrated Defence Staff and also as a Member in the Armed Forces Tribunal.
Arun Krishnan
Founder of REPfy, fmr. Associate Director with KPMG
Arun Krishnan is the founder of REPfy, a consultancy firm which provides cost effective advisory services. He was Associate Director with KPMG, Senior Consultant with Rebel Group International and Implementation Consultant with McKinsey & Company
A B.tech in Mechanical engineering from Anna University, Mr. Krishnan did his MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. He has undergone training at the Judge Business School, University of Cambridge on “Managing Innovation Strategically,” and in “Project Finance” from the Amsterdam Institute of Finance.
He has been a part of the Pune ‘smart city’ project, piloted India’s first contactless card payment system in a public bus transport network and operationalized India’s first viability gap funding for a scheduled carrier to operate air services in unserved routes. He has been a guest lecturer in IIM- Shillong, Takshashila Institute of Public Policy and Adani Institute of Infra Management.
Dr. Tarun Jain
Visiting Faculty, Kautilya School of Public Policy
Dr. Tarun Jain is an economist whose area of expertise spans across public economics, labour economics and development economics. He holds a doctoral degree in economics from the University of Virginia and was Associate Professor of Economics at the Indian School of Business Hyderabad. Currently he’s an Associate Prof. at Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.
Dr. Jain has a number of publications under his belt, like, ‘Intergenerational transmission of gender attitudes: Evidence from India’,’ Barriers to skill acquisition: Evidence from English Training in India,’ ‘Social connections and tertiary health care utilizations.’
He has written extensively in national dailies like The Hindu, The Economic Times, The New Indian Express, Telangana Today, FirstPost and Ahmedabad Mirror.
Amitabh Mattoo
Visiting Faculty, Kautilya School of Public Policy
Professor Amitabh Mattoo is presently Professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi and Professor of International Relations at the University of Melbourne. He co-chairs the Australia India Leadership Dialogue and was the Foundation Director of the Australia Institute and serves on its Board. He was till recently Chairman of Miranda House, the top ranking college in India and was an Advisor with Cabinet Rank to the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir. He was awarded the Padma Shri for his contribution to Education and Public Life in 2008.
Prof Mattoo was a Commissioner of the Lancet Commission on Adolescent Health and Well-being. Professor Mattoo has been a Member of the National Knowledge Commission, a high-level advisory group to the Prime Minister of India and the National Security Council’s Advisory Board. He is a member of the Executive Committee and Governing Council of the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs and Chaired the Jammu and Kashmir State Knowledge Initiative; and is the current President of the Indian Association of International Studies.
From 2002-2008, Professor Mattoo was the Vice-Chancellor of Jammu University. He received his doctorate from the University of Oxford and he has been a visiting Professor at Stanford University, the University of Notre Dame, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne, and at the Maison des Sciences de l’Homme in Paris.
Dr. Arvind Mayaram
Vice Chairman of Rajasthan Economic Transformation Advisory Council and fmr Finance Secretary in the Government of India
Dr. Arvind Mayaram is the Vice Chairman of Rajasthan Economic Transformation Advisory Council and Economic Advisor to the Chief Minister of Rajasthan. He is also Chairman of CUTS Institute for Regulation and Competition, an independent think tank. A 1978 batch IAS officer, he holds a doctorate in Finance and was the Finance Secretary in the Government of India.
Dr. Mayaram was the Alternate Governor for India on the Boards of the World Bank, Asian Development Bank and the African Development Bank. He has represented India as the Finance Deputy in G20 and BRICS where he was India’s chief negotiator for BRICS’ New Development Bank and also the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank.
He is an expert in the field of Public Private Partnerships and has been recognized as a “Certified Public Private Partnership Specialist” by the Institute of Public Private Partnerships and the Water, Engineering and Development Centre of Loughborough University, UK.
Dr. PV Ramesh
Retired IAS officer, fmr. Additional Chief Secretary to the Chief Minister of AP
Dr. P.V Ramesh is a distinguished IAS officer who has served for more than 35 years in the Government of Andhra Pradesh and in various international development organizations. He is a 1985 batch IAS officer who has given operational leadership to ministries, departments, international development institutions and corporate entities. He was Additional Chief Secretary and Principal Advisor to the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh.
He has held senior diplomatic assignments in more than 40 countries and was the UNFPA representative to Afghanistan and World Bank appointed Senior Advisor to the Afghan Finance Minister. He was also Director of UNOPS’ East Africa office and held senior assignments in UNOPS headquarters in New York and IFAD in Rome.
He has managed corporate finances as the Chairman and MD of REC Ltd and MD and CEO of Andhra Pradesh Urban Finance and Infrastructure Development Corporation. He has helmed and founded multiple bodies like the Economic Development Board of Andhra Pradesh of which he was the Founder Director.
Mr. Ramesh has studied medicine and surgery at the Christian Medical College Vellore and has an MS in General Surgery from Guntur Medical College.
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Bhargav Krishna
Bhargav Krishna is a Fellow at the Centre for Policy Research. His research interests span across areas of health policy, environmental policy, and environmental epidemiology, focusing on the impact of air quality and climate change on health. He is also the co-founder of Care for Air, a Delhi-based non-profit organization that raises awareness of air pollution among school children. Previously, Bhargav set up and managed the Centre for Environmental Health at the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), where he led work on air quality, climate, and health. He served on Union and State government expert committees on air pollution, biomedical waste, and critically polluted areas in this capacity. He has also carried out work on health systems and sustainable development across several states. Bhargav holds a Doctorate in Public Health from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, a Master’s degree in Global Environmental Change from King’s College London and an undergraduate degree from Anna University Chennai. He is Adjunct Faculty at PHFI and Visiting Faculty at Azim Premji University, where he teaches environmental health and health policy, respectively.
Jyoti Pande Lavakare
Jyoti Pande Lavakare is a columnist, financial journalist and writer who has lived and worked in Britain, the United States and India. Jyoti has written for and worked with publications such as The Wall St. Journal, Dow Jones Newswires, The Financial Times, The Independent, The New York Times’ India Ink blog, The Economic Times, Business Standard and Mint. She has also produced youth programs for radio and television. Her children’s fiction has appeared in Hachette anthologies. She has a Master’s Degree in Economics from the Delhi School of Economics and currently writes an independent column on India’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. Her areas of interest include education and healthcare. She is a clean air missionary.
Anumita Roy Chowdhury
Anumita Roy Chowdhury is the Executive Director, Research and Advocacy, at the Centre for Science and Environment. She has had a distinguished career in research and advocacy on sustainable urbanization, encompassing clean air action, clean and low carbon mobility and sustainable habitat to address the growing public health and climate crisis. She has worked extensively to build the campaign on ‘Right to Clean Air’ that has catalyzed several developments. She has written and published widely on environmental issues. She has played a strong international role in contributing towards urban air quality management strategies and participated as a member and an advisor in national and international committees and organizations. She is a recipient of the prestigious 2017 Haagen Smit Clean Air Award given by the California Air Resources Board, California, USA.
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Dr. Pavan Soni
Founder and Innovation Evangelist at Inflexion Point
Dr. Pavan Soni is an Innovation Evangelist by profession and a teacher by passion. He is the founder of Inflexion Point, offering programs on Design Thinking, Strategic Acumen, and Consulting Skills. He is the author of the book, Design Your Thinking, published by Penguin Random House in 2020. Apart from being an Adjunct Faculty at ISB Hyderabad and IIM Bangalore, Pavan is a columnist at Mint, YourStory, Inc42, Entrepreneur and People Matters.
Pavan was the only Indian to be shortlisted for the prestigious ‘FT & McKinsey Bracken Bower Award for the Best Business Book of the Year 2016’. He has been invited five times to speak at the TEDx, and is featured as one of the ‘100 Digital Influencers of 2020’ by YourStory.
Pavan is a Gold Medalist from MBM Engineering College Jodhpur, and did his PGDIE from NITIE Mumbai. He finished his Doctoral Studies from IIM Bangalore in the domain of innovation management.
M. Sri Bharat
President of GITAM
M. Sri Bharat, President of GITAM (Deemed to be University), holds an undergraduate degree in industrial engineering from Purdue University. He also holds a joint MBA/MA degree from Stanford University. Bharat strongly believes in the need for a world-class public policy school and Kautilya is born out of this belief. With Kautilya, Bharat would like to reinvent public policy in India and beyond, by empowering next generation policy leaders with evidence-based pedagogy and experiential learning.
Syed Akbaruddin
Retired IFS officer, Fmr. Permanent Rep. of India to the UN
Syed Akbaruddin joined the Kautilya School of Public Policy on 1 June, 2021, following a distinguished diplomatic career spanning more than three decades.
Entering the Indian Foreign Service in 1985, he retired in April 2020, upon completion of his tenure as the Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations. He was the Official Spokesperson of India’s Ministry of External Affairs from 2012 to 2015.
He is among the few Indian diplomats who has the distinction of also serving as an international civil-servant in a United Nations entity. From 2006 to 2011, he worked at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna. He was the Head of the External Relations and Policy Coordination Unit and later also the Special Assistant to the Director-General of the IAEA. He has also served as the Consul General of India, Jeddah in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from 2000 to 2004.
Having served as Counsellor at the Indian High Commission in Islamabad (1998-2000) he is well versed in key issues between India & Pakistan. Also, he has worked at the Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations as First Secretary (1995-98). He was a member of the UN’s apex body, the Advisory Committee on Administrative & Budgetary Questions (ACABQ) during 1997-98.
Since his retirement he has written and spoken extensively on global public policy issues. He has a Master’s Degree in International Relations from the Australian National University.
Dilip Cherian
Political Campaign Advisor, Communications Consultant
Dilip Cherian is India’s Image Guru, a political campaign advisor and a cutting-edge policy professional. He actively guides political & policy advocacy and understands the Indian bureaucratic system. Dilip is the Co-founder of and Consulting Partner for Perfect Relations, established in the early 1990s. The company advises CEOs on external communications and public policy. It is South Asia’s largest image management consultancy. Dilip also writes a widely syndicated column on bureaucracy called ‘Dilli Ka Babu’.
Ram Mohan Naidu
Member of Parliament, 17th Lok Sabha
Ram Mohan Naidu is an Indian politician, and a Member of Parliament to the 17th Lok Sabha from Srikakulam (Lok Sabha constituency), Andhra Pradesh. He won the 2014 & 2019 Indian general elections as a Telugu Desam Party (TDP) candidate. He is also the National General Secretary of the TDP and the Leader of the Party in the Lok Sabha.
Priyanka Chaturvedi
Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha
Priyanka Chaturvedi is an Indian politician serving as Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha from Maharashtra, and Deputy Leader of Shiv Sena. She has also contributed columns and blogs for various online sites and print editions of leading newspapers and magazines. She is also a regular on television on various issues as a National Spokesperson. She is a member of Parliament Standing Committee – Commerce & Industries, and Consultative Committee for External Affairs.
Dr. Menaka Guruswamy
Senior Advocate, Supreme Court of India
Dr. Menaka Guruswamy is a Senior Advocate at the Supreme Court. Through her constitutional litigation practice, she has successfully sought reform of the bureaucracy in the country through fixed tenure, defended central government legislation that mandates that all private schools admit disadvantaged children, and overturned Section 377 of the IPC that criminalised same-sex relations.
In her private law practice, she also litigates in the areas of commercial law and white collar crime. Her criminal law defence practice includes cases like Augusta Westland and 2G Spectrum. In her commercial practice, she has represented large multinationals and public sector companies.
Dr. Guruswamy has a Doctorate in Law (D.Phil) from Oxford University, a Masters in Law (LL.M) from Harvard Law School and a basic law degree from the National Law School of India, Bangalore. She was a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford and a Gammon Fellow at Harvard Law. She has been visiting faculty at Yale Law School, New York University School of Law and University of Toronto Faculty of Law. She was the B.R Ambedkar Research Scholar and Lecturer in Law at Columbia Law School, New York from 2017-2019.
She was on Foreign Policy magazine’s list of 100 most influential Global Thinkers for 2019 and with Arundhati Katju on Times Magazine’s 2019 list of 100 most influential people for their work on the decriminalisation of homosexuality. She has been published in the New York Times, the New York Review of Books, the American Journal of International Law, and the Indian Express.
Indermit Singh Gill
Vice President for Equitable Growth, World Bank & Prof. of Public Policy
Indermit Gill is a Non-resident Senior Fellow in the Global Economy and Development program at the Brookings Institution, where he co-edits the blog ‘Future Development’. He is also a Professor of the Practice of Public Policy at Duke University, where he was Director of the Duke Center for International Development until 2018. Gill worked at the World Bank from 1993 to 2016, where he held several leadership positions, including Director for Development Policy in the Office of the Chief Economist, Chief Economist for Europe and Central Asia, Acting Chief Economist for East Asia and the Pacific, and Staff Director for the 2009 World Development Report on Economic Geography.
Dr. Anjali Mohan
Urban & Regional Planner
Dr. Mohan’s research and professional practice over the last 27 years straddles development, institutional and policy frameworks, urban planning and management, and information and communication technologies and development. She has successfully completed several planning assignments in her individual capacity and as part of multi-disciplinary teams. Dr. Mohan has also designed and delivered several training and capacity building programmes, both for state and non-state actors, primarily focusing on planning, heritage-led planning and attendant (e)Governance arrangements.
Cdr. Ashok V M Kumar (Retd.)
Former Navy Officer, Consultant on Human Trafficking
Cdr. Ashok V M Kumar (Retd.) is Regional Director – Investigation & Law Enforcement Development, at International Justice Mission. He was an Officer commanding ships in the Indian Navy, and later held positions with the Coast Guard, Marine Police Force and Naval Police Investigations. In his work, fighting trafficking crime syndicates, he has been directly involved in the rescue of over 3600 women and children from contemporary forms of slavery. Cdr. Ashok assists and provides training to many organisations, as an expert consultant.
Dr. Ashwin Mahesh
Social Technologist, Urbanist and Entrepreneur
Dr. Ashwin Mahesh is a social technologist, urbanist and entrepreneur based in Bangalore, India. After a 15-year career as a polar climate scientist and astronomer, he switched to social enterprise, focused on urban development and governance. He is Founder & CEO of Mapunity, which builds urban social networking platforms and tools for development initiatives. He is also Co-founder of Lithium, which launched the first fleet of electric cars in India. He is Co-founder and Editor of the national public affairs magazine, India Together. He has been an advisor to many initiatives of state & national governments in India. He was awarded the Ashoka Fellowship for Social Entrepreneurs in 2009.
David Sunder Singh
Advocate & Human Rights Lawyer
David Sunder Singh is practising since 2002. After his LL.B., he did his M.A in Human Rights, Duties & Education, and an LL.M. in Labour and Administrative Law. He has been involved in the rescue of bonded labourers and has pursued PILs to secure rights for vulnerable persons. He writes on related issues and is a trainer with various State bodies.
Jayanth Gudimella
Finance Professional & Strategy Consultant
Jayanth is a finance professional with over 18 years of diverse experience across global corporations (JP Morgan, CRISIL-S&P Global, SBI Capital Markets) in the areas of financial analysis, credit rating, IPO management and structured finance. Currently, he is based out of Hong Kong and runs his own consultancy firm engaged in financial advisory, business strategy and fund raising. He helps start-up companies and medium size enterprises in devising their strategy roadmap and helps them raise capital. Jayanth is deeply passionate about education reforms and teaching. He is engaged with many educational institutes and helps them in designing academic processes and operational strategy.
Madhuri Xalxo
Advocate & Human Rights Lawyer
Madhuri Xalxo has been serving with International Justice Mission (IJM) towards strengthening the implementation of laws and policies on the issue of bonded labour and labour trafficking. Prior to joining IJM, Ms. Xalxo practiced in Sessions Court of Jamshedpur, Jharkhand. She has also had a brief teaching stint at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai and National Law University Odisha, Cuttack, respectively.
Piyush Tewari
Founder & CEO, SaveLIFE Foundation
Piyush Tewari is the Founder and CEO of SaveLIFE Foundation, a non-profit organisation best known for getting India a Good Samaritan Law, and for developing an award-winning model for reducing fatalities on Indian highways. Piyush serves on the Boards of Directors of Change.org, YKA Media, and Avanti Fellows. Piyush is a recipient of the prestigious Rolex Award for Enterprise, and in 2019, was named a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader. He has been featured by The New York Times, National Geographic, and Time Magazine, among others. In 2016, he was recognised by GQ as one of the Most Influential Young Indians. Prior to founding SLF, Piyush served as the Managing Director of the Calibrated Group, a US-based private equity fund. Previously, Piyush was as a Program Manager at the India Brand Equity Fund, an initiative of the Prime Minister of India.
Siddharth Raja
Seasoned Corporate Lawyer
Siddharth is a Founder Partner at full-service law firm, Saakshya Law. A seasoned corporate lawyer, Siddharth focuses on private equity and venture capital transactions; and on cross-border and domestic mergers and acquisitions. Siddharth has served as an elected Governor on the Board of the Bangalore International Centre (BIC). He was also a member of the Karnataka Government’s Bangalore Tourism Advisory Committee. Siddharth is also a trained and certified professional mediator. Siddharth serves as an Independent Director on several Boards, including Direct Dialogue Initiatives, Nasmyth India, and Namma Ooru Parampare.
Dr. Mukul Saxena
Founding Professor, Kautilya School of Public Policy
Dr. Mukul Saxena is a soldier and a scholar. An alumnus of the prestigious National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla, Pune, he served in the Indian Army for more than two decades before taking premature retirement in 2017. Alongside his military career, he has an equally strong academic and public policy profile. A PhD from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, he is a Master’s in Public Administration, Harvard University, USA. He is also an LLM in International Human Rights Law, University of Essex, UK, a Draper Hills Democracy Fellow, Stanford University, a Chevening Gurukul Fellow for Leadership and Excellence, London School of Economics and Political Science, United Kingdom). He has strong interdisciplinary experience with a cross section of law and policy in specialized areas of international human rights law, the law of armed conflict, international law of peacekeeping, human rights and development, national security laws, child rights and refugee law.
Dr. Ali Adil
Founding Assistant Professor, Kautilya School of Public Policy
Dr. Adil’s research and experience span across public, private, and non-governmental domains and interdisciplinary subject areas focused on transactional spaces at the nexus of energy studies and social sciences. He has previously worked with ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). Adopting a socially constructive approach, Dr. Adil conceives teaching as an excursion in creating new imaginaries, incorporating existing knowledge of our world with creativity and intellectual novelty that students carry into the classrooms.
Dr. Shanthie Mariet D’Souza
Founding Professor,
Kautilya School of Public Policy
Dr. Shanthie Mariet D’Souza is Founder of Mantraya; Visiting Faculty at the Naval War College, Goa; Board Director at Regional Centre for Strategic Studies, Colombo; Non-Resident Scholar at the Middle East Institute, Washington, D.C.; Member, Board of International Studies, Goa University; Research Fellow at WeltTrends-Institut für internationale Politik, Potsdam; International Advisor for Nordic Counter Terrorism Network, Helsinki; Editorial board member of Small Wars & Insurgencies (UK) and Adviser for Independent Conflict Research and Analysis, London.
As Adviser, Independent Directorate of Local Governance, Government of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan; International Election Observer for audit of Afghanistan’s Presidential Runoff elections in 2014; Senior Transition Consultant, United Nations Mine Action Service and External Reviewer for Action Aid International, she has worked for more than a decade in various provinces of Afghanistan.
Dr D’Souza has previously been Visiting Research Associate at the School of Business & Governance, Murdoch University, Perth; Research Fellow at the Institute of South Asian Studies, National University of Singapore; Associate Fellow at the Institute for Defence Studies & Analyses, New Delhi; Fulbright Fellow at The Paul H Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University, Washington, D.C. She has an Executive Education from John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University and Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies, Washington, D.C.
Dr D’Souza’s research interests and expertise include: Post conflict stabilization of Afghanistan; Countering terrorism; Women, peace and conflict resolution; India’s foreign, maritime and security policy. She has conducted field research in Afghanistan, Pakistan, China, Africa, Jammu & Kashmir and India’s North East.
She has contributed chapters to edited books, international peer reviewed journals, encyclopedias, and media including The Wall Street Journal, The Strait Times (Singapore) and others. Among her most recent published work are edited books titled Countering Insurgencies and Violent Extremism in South and South East Asia (UK: Routledge), Afghanistan in Transition: Beyond 2014?, co-edited books, Perspectives on South Asian Security and Saving Afghanistan.
Nidhi Razdan
Nidhi Razdan (Moderator) is an award-winning journalist, author and the former Executive Editor of NDTV. She has carved out a niche for herself in the television and media industry, with a career spanning 22 years and has been felicitated with the Ramnath Goenka Award for Excellence in Journalism, and the International Press Institute Award, among others. Nidhi has reported extensively on national politics and foreign policy from an expansive geographic terrain including Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, China, POK, Tibet & Africa. Currently, she is engaged as Director – Strategic Programmes and Outreach at GITAM University.
Dilip Chenoy
Dilip Chenoy leads the permanent secretariat of FICCI, which is the largest and oldest apex business organization in India and a powerful voice for policy change. FICCI represents over 2,50,000 members through Member Bodies covering all the States of India. Before joining FICCI, Dilip served as Managing Director & CEO of the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC). NSDC fosters private sector investment and initiatives in training and skill development. Dilip has also worked in several key industry organizations, including SIAM as its Director-General. He was a member of the Harvard Business School project under Professor Michael Porter that worked on the competitiveness of Indian industry. With varied experiences working in the private sector, he advises startups, including organizations in the digital, education, skills and livelihood space. Dilip has also served as Chairman of an Engineering Institute. A fellow of the World Academy of Productivity Science (WAPS), he was awarded the Indian Achievers Award in 2018, The Game Changer Award in 2015 and the Rashtriya Media Ratan Award in 2013.
Dr. Sangita Reddy
Dr. Sangita Reddy is a Global Healthcare influencer and likes to be known as a healthcare technocrat, a social entrepreneur and a humanitarian. She has been conferred with an Honorary Doctorate by Macquarie University Australia to recognize her unwavering commitment to bring transformative changes in healthcare, developing health IT, and championing various initiatives in India and abroad. She is an Honorary Consul of Brazil in Hyderabad, appointed by the Govt. of India. Dr. Sangita Reddy is a member of the World Economic Forum. In December 2019, she became the President of the industry chamber, FICCI, for 2019-2020. She is an Executive Member at the National Association of Software & Services Companies (NASSCOM) and was on the Board for Development Institute, USA and GAVI.Org. She was an elected Member of the Steering Committee on Health for the Twelfth Five Year Plan (2012-2017) by the Planning Commission, Government of India. A graduate in Science from the Women’s Christian College in Chennai, India, Dr. Sangita Reddy has pursued post-graduation courses in Hospital Administration from Rutgers University, Harvard University and the National University of Singapore.
Naina Lal Kidwai
Naina Lal Kidwai is an Indian banker, chartered accountant and business executive. She was formerly a Group General Manager and the Country Head of HSBC India and a former President of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). Kidwai was the first Indian woman to graduate from Harvard Business School and the first woman to guide the functioning of a foreign bank in India. She is on the board of Advent International Private Equity, among others. Kidwai also chairs FICCI’s sustainability, energy and water council and is part of a global think tank on climate change, and several NGOs. She has secured many accolades, including the Padma Shri award for her contributions in trade and industry. She has also received ALL Ladies League’s ‘Delhi Women of the Decade Achievers Award 2013’ for Excellence in Banking. An MBA from Harvard Business School, she has appeared on listings by Fortune and others of leading international women in business. She has authored three books, including the bestsellers, “Survive or Sink – An Action Agenda for Sanitation, Water, Pollution and Green Finance”, and “30 Women in Power: Their Voices, Their Stories”.
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