Scholars

Matric Year: 2021 – Subject: DPhil Inorganic Chemistry – Scholarship: Indira Gandhi Scholar

Karthik’s research interests include soft chemical routes to Lithium-ion battery cathodes and electrolytes. Previously he has worked on projects based on renewable energy for water treatment at Indian Institute of Science, photocatalytic properties of synthesized solids and has performed studies on Bismuth Oxyhalides.

Matric Year: 2021 – Subject: DPhil Condensed Matter Physics – Scholarship: Indira Gandhi Scholar

Sustainability, especially sustainable energy development, has always been an issue in which I have found my purpose. While pursuing my undergraduate education at Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT-B) in Chemical Engineering, I was involved with a student run biodiesel project that was my first foray into clean energy research. However, I truly found my niche as a research fellow at the National Centre for Photovoltaic Research and Education (NCPRE) while working on the subject of perovskite solar cells.

As a research fellow at NCPRE, my work targeted the synthesis of large area perovskite solar cells using industrially scalable techniques such as screen printing. In 2019, I began my Masters study in Chemical Engineering at TU Delft where my thesis was focused on the synthesis and characterization of tin based perovskites which are the most promising low toxicity alternative to lead based perovskite solar cells that are currently popular. In parallel, as part of the Honors program at Delft, I used computational chemistry to study the electrochemical properties of semiconductor quantum dots. Aside from academic research, I have briefly worked at the R&D department at PHYSEE (a sustainable technology startup) to develop luminescent greenhouse coatings that can convert UV light into photosynthetic active light that is more beneficial to certain plants.

Perovskites have recently taken the world by a storm. A cheap and easy to synthesize material, they have been shown to lead to devices that can compete in efficiency with the ubiquitous silicon solar cells. The cost effective and simple manufacturing process makes them especially attractive to low-income countries such as India. However, the technology suffers from significant challenges such as stability and material toxicity that must be addressed before it can be competitively commercialized.

At Oxford, I will be continuing my research on perovskites. As part of the Semiconductors Group at the Condensed Matter Physics department, my work will be aimed at understanding the fundamental properties of various perovskites which can then be used to improve their performance and make high efficiency devices. I am immensely excited to be affiliated with the Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development (OICSD) and to tap into the resources that come through this collaboration. I believe that perovskites will be an important technological leap in the global transition to clean energy and through OICSD I want to use my research to create the greatest impact in the field of clean energy especially for countries such as India.

Matric Year: 2021 – Subject: DPhil Constitutional Law/Public Law – Scholarship: The Gopal Subramanium Scholar

I am reading for the Doctor of Philosophy in Law (DPhil) at Faculty of Law, University of Oxford. My research focuses on judicial review exercised by the Supreme Court of India. I aim to focus on the judicial tools of Public Interest Litigation and Suo Moto cognizance and argue that although created to achieve ‘substantive justice’, the use of these tools has done more harm than good. I aim to propose a theory that shall achieve ‘substantive justice’ without compromising procedure, like these tools do.

I completed my Bachelor of Civil Law (BCL) degree in July 2021, with a focus on Comparative Equality Law, Constitutional Theory, Comparative Constitutional Law and Children, Families and State. Prior to Oxford, I obtained an undergraduate degree in law from National Law University (Jodhpur) India.

I am interested in the exercise of judicial review by the Court and believe that if the power exercised carefully can result in significant reforms to the judicial system. My interest in the field stems from my time appearing before the Supreme Court of India and the Delhi High Court as an advocate and as an intern before. This interest was further solidified during my BCL degree, in the papers of Constitutional Theory and Comparative Constitutional Law.  I am passionate about making the law accessible to the citizens, and to that effect have been running an online personal blog titled “The Basic Structure” since the past two years, wherein I simplify the constitutional law of India for a common man’s understanding.

The Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development has very kindly given me the opportunity to pursue my DPhil at the University. I am particularly excited to join Somerville College, an institution that has significant ties with India. Being the first person from my family to study abroad and also pursue a DPhil, I am truly grateful to the OICSD and Somerville College.

Awards and Previous Qualifications:

JN Tata Scholar, JN Tata Endowment for the Higher Education of Indians (Tata Trusts) (July 2020)).

Enrolled as an Advocate with the Bar Council of Delhi, India (August 2019)

Recipient of Vice Chancellor’s Gold Medal (Best All-Round Student), National law University, Jodhpur

BBA. LLB (Constitutional Law Hons.), National Law University, Jodhpur (June 2019)

Matric Year: 2021 – Subject: MSc Modern South Asian Studies – Scholarship: Indira Gandhi-Radhakrishnan Scholar

Sumedha Chakravarthy holds a bachelor’s degree in English from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi and a master’s in Comparative Literature from SOAS, where she was a Commonwealth Scholar. Since her MA, she has worked as an urban and media studies researcher in Delhi. At Oxford, she hopes to further her training and research in urban anthropology and history. She seeks to study how diverse communities experience, navigate, and shape contemporary urban landscapes in South Asia.

Matric Year: 2021 – Subject: MSc Modern South Asian Studies – Scholarship: Indira Gandhi-Radhakrishnan Scholar

Mrinalini is passionate about art history, visual culture, and urban architecture. During her time at Oxford, she proposes to study the role of Mughal gardens as landscapes and settings in miniature paintings. More specifically, she is interested in examining Mughal gardens as places of production and storing wealth and not merely aesthetic environments. 

Mrinalini graduated from Denison University with honours (Magna Cum Laude) and as a Phi Beta Kappa member in 2020. As a Classicist, she has spent hours tracing the cultural consciousness of ancient communities by studying their art, architecture and philosophy; exploring the processes of identification and reification that produce the imagined landscape of cities (such as Athens and Rome) as locations of culture, history, and memory of communities. The interdisciplinary nature of her liberal arts education allowed her to undertake summer-long research as a Woodyard Scholar in the city of Ayodhya in India, which sparked her interest in urban architecture in South Asia. 

Mrinalini is also a recipient of the Davis Projects for Peace Prize and runs her non-profit organisation, Panthalassa that works in women healthcare, education, and sustainable energy alternatives. 

Matric Year: 2021 – Subject: Msc Law and Finance – Scholarship: Ratanshaw Bomanji Zaiwalla Scholar

Savy is reading for the MSc in Law and Finance offered jointly by the Faculty of Law and the Saïd Business School. He graduated from the National Law University, Delhi in 2015 and previously worked with an international law firm in London. Savy is admitted as a solicitor in England and Wales and as an advocate in India.

Our world today is increasingly introspecting the role of the corporation. While it remains to be seen whether the shift towards stakeholder capitalism by the 2019 Business Roundtable was just empty rhetoric, socio-economic inequalities continue to widen further. I am keen to explore the economic interests underpinning corporate decision-making, the financial tools used to evaluate corporate success and the balancing of legal relations of the corporation with its stakeholders.

The Oxford India Centre and the Zaiwalla scholarship have given me the incredible opportunity to study while at Somerville College for which I am grateful. I am keen to immerse myself in the programme with the hope that I can meaningfully contribute to the above-mentioned issues which I believe will come to define my generation.

Matric Year: 2021 – Subject: BCL – Scholarship: Cornelia Sorabji Scholar

I graduated with the B.A. LL.B. (Hons.) degree from the West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences, Kolkata, India. My interest lies in the fields of corporate law and public law. I have achieved the highest marks in numerous papers pertaining to these subjects during my undergraduate study. I have interned under senior members of the Bar in New Delhi and Kolkata, who specialize in these fields.

During my time at NUJS, I nurtured the skill of interpreting law from an interdisciplinary and comparative perspective, by opting for and excelling in courses such as Corporate Law, Corporate Governance and CSR, and Competition Law. I carried the theoretical understanding of these concepts to my internships and research projects, and gained insights into the practical aspects of insolvency law, law of arbitration, corporate law and competition law. As a researcher working with the Cartel Working Group, instituted by the Competition Commission of India, I researched crisis cartels and its possible incorporation in the Indian competition policy framework in order to enhance public welfare during crises in a developing economy.  

Given the highly contested laws being debated and/or enacted in India pertaining to citizens’ rights, I became interested in the crucial role of the ‘regulatory’ State in shaping individuals’ identity and capabilities. Subjects such as Labour Law, Third World Approaches to International Law and International Human Rights Law, enabled me to gain insights into the emancipatory promise of laws, on the one hand, and the process of ‘othering’ facilitated by laws, on the other hand. My endeavour is to seek out ways to recognise peoples’ struggles, empower them, and re-imagine their interaction with the law, especially in the Indian legal landscape. To this end, my learning experience and training at Parichay (a legal aid clinic to assist in NRC Appeals) and research during my litigation internships on the law of writs and fundamental human rights have made me determined to engage with these issues through litigation and other practical interventions through the legal system.

Upon the completion of my course, my goal is to pursue a career as a legal professional practising before the courts and tribunals in India. The sheer thrill of making an argument, written or oral, motivates me to pursue a career in the profession. I have participated in several debating tournaments and won laurels with my teams. I have been part of various student-run societies and research centres engaged in constitutional law, land and real estate laws, and competition law. During the BCL, I wish to further investigate the fields of corporate governance, regulation, and public law, focusing on issues that raise (or will raise) issues prone to litigation and adjudication. I am confident that the curriculum will help me to refine my analytical skills and skills of argumentation.

When I take a break from understanding the perplexing paradox that law is, I enjoy travelling, listening to music, reading about food, and playing the piano.

I am grateful to OICSD and Somerville College for providing me with the chance to join a cohort of accomplished individuals during my time at Oxford, and to contribute to the intellectually (and practically) challenging endeavor of addressing India’s development. I see this opportunity as a critical moment in my journey towards becoming a scholar-professional during my career as a practitioner.

Matric Year: 2021 – Subject: BCL – Scholarship: HSA Advocates Scholar

I completed the B.A.LL.B. (Hons) Course at NALSAR University of Law in 2021, and have remained at the top of my class for five years. During the BCL, I hope to study private international law with an emphasis on dispute resolution. I am particularly excited to be able to explore the intersection of this field with public policy.  

I have been interested in dispute resolution mechanisms ever since I was introduced to them in my first year of law school. While pursuing this interest through various avenues, I witnessed the influence of gender and race on seemingly neutral standards. This has motivated me to analyse private law structures through an interdisciplinary and critical lens.

I have attempted to evaluate the relationship between dispute resolution and policy through various publications. Recently, I co-authored a book chapter analysing the impact of investment arbitration costs on the pursuit of justice. Due to my manifest inclination towards this subject, I was nominated by the Telangana government to attend a conference in the Hague where I worked with policy students on developing fair responses to cyber-conflicts. Currently, I am serving as the executive-secretary for an international task-force that seeks to expand arbitration norms to meet the representative and decentralised conception of justice held by the global technology sector. These experiences have solidified my interest in building a career in dispute resolution, and contributing to both academic literature and ongoing efforts seeking to make the field more equitable.

The BCL will empower me to pursue this interest to the fullest extent by allowing me to create a unique curriculum out of various specialised course options. I feel privileged to be able to spend this year at Somerville College, and hope to learn from its inspiring history of advocating for equality. I would like to express my gratitude to HSA Advocates and the OICSD for selecting me to be this year’s HSA Advocates Scholar and thereby enabling me to strive towards my objectives.

Matric Year: 2020 – Subject: DPhil Zoology – Scholarship: Indira Gandhi Scholar

Apoorva’s doctoral research explores the inclusion of traditional ecological knowledge alongside scientific ecological knowledge for conserving endemic and threatened avian fauna in the tropical forests of central Western Ghats and its associated coastal landscape.

Her research focuses on two indigenous tribal communities- the Siddis and Halakki Vokkaligas to understand their ethno-ornithological knowledge and its application in conservation planning, policy and management. Her study contributes to the ongoing paradigm shift in conservation, which is, mainstreaming indigenous communities and sustainable livelihoods for biodiversity conservation in such tropical and threatened landscapes.

Her past work has included community-based species conservation, animal movement ecology, bioacoustics studies and human-wildlife interactions including illegal wildlife trade, both in terrestrial as well as marine realms.

Apoorva holds a Masters in Ecology (2013) from Pondicherry University and is the second Indian woman to have received the Global Fellowship in Marine Conservation by Duke University. For her Master’s research, she was funded by the International Otter Survival Fund (IOSF) to study the conflict situation between Smooth-coated otters and fishermen, and associated socio-economics in the Cauvery River, India. After her Masters and stint at Duke, she received a follow-up grant by Oak Foundation to collaborate with Conservation International, Brazil and founded the Marine Conservation without Borders initiative with her colleagues at Bahia, Brazil.

On returning to India, Apoorva worked as a Research Associate at the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) on the India Biodiversity Portal project. She then went on to work as a Research Assistant at the University of Lethbridge, Canada for a year to study the acoustic communication of the endemic Adelaide’s warbler in Puerto Rico. On her return, she found the need to facilitate field research in India, engage local communities and children in field ecology studies, and thus began the Curious Naturalists Initiative in the Western Ghats. She also collaborates as a research affiliate with the Wildlife Information Liaison Development (WILD) Society in India.

Alongside research, Apoorva is also an active participant at policy based global forums such as the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity- Conference of the Parties (UN CBD-COP) and Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) COP representing youth and indigenous communities for wildlife conservation. She is also a trained Natural History Illustrator and sketches the wonders of nature, which inspire her to keep going in the midst of all the socio-ecological crisis.

Matric Year: 2020 – Subject: DPhil Biochemistry – Scholarship: Indira Gandhi

During my DPhil at Oxford Biochemistry, I will work on understanding the evolution of bacteria under antibiotic stress. I strive to answer the questions related to single-cell heterogeneity in stress adaptations which enables bacteria to develop antibiotic resistance by exploring the importance of stochastic noise and fluctuations in these processes.

I completed my undergraduate degree, majoring in Chemical Engineering, from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi (2016-2020). During my undergraduate years, I stepped into the field of synthetic biology through institute iGEM (international Genetically Engineered Machine) team and subsequently, worked on an array of different projects. With the Kusuma School of biology-IIT Delhi, I worked on building computational algorithms for genomic analysis of G-Quaruplexes and Vitamin D receptor elements under Dr V. Perumal.

Outside my institute, I was fortunate to be selected as an undergraduate researcher at Harvard SEAS (Khorana Scholar 2018, summer 2018), Harvard Medical School (summer 2019) and Australian National University (Future Research Talent Travel Award 2019, winter 2019). In these projects, I explored the single-cell and genome studies using image analysis and building computational algorithms. I was fascinated by the link between biology and engineering/mathematics, which made me curious to view the cell regulation behaviour with a quantitative lens which, otherwise, has mostly been analyzed qualitatively.

Antibiotics are continuously being challenged by microorganisms all around the world, potentially overpowering the drugs by developing resistance against them. The advent of super-resolution microscopy and single-cell analysis has brought us a step closer in analyzing the root cause of increasing antibiotic resistance in micro-organisms. It is especially important in India, where the extensive, as well as ill use of antibiotics and lack of Point-Of-Care diagnostics, has led to people losing lives due to septicemia at a larger scale. Developing engineering approaches to study “How cells sense the environment and regulate this antibiotic stress at the single-cell level” would help me address this issue.

I am grateful to be a part of the Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development (OICSD) community. It will provide me with a platform to understand the interdisciplinary links between scientific research advancements and better healthcare, thus touching people’s lives.

Matric Year: 2019 – Subject: DPhil Zoology – Scholarship: Mary De Zouche Graduate Scholar

My doctoral research is about assessing the extent to which climate and land-use land-cover changes have combined effects on the forest birds of Arunachal Pradesh which is the largest state of Northeast India.

The region is part of the eastern Indian Himalaya, a global biodiversity hotspot, and is also home to several hundreds of indigenous tribes. During my stay in the tribal villages, I will be also looking into the hunting patterns and methods used for trapping and selling of wild bird meat.

I completed my masters in Environment Science and Technology with the highest grades from Bharati Vidyapeeth Institute of Environment Education and Research, Pune (India) in 2017 where I studied the effects of urban noise on acoustic communication of Myna species for my dissertation. After my masters, I investigated the effects of land-use change on bird communities in extremely remote tribal villages and tropical forests in Jaintia Hills of Meghalaya, a state in Northeast India which lies in the Indo-Burma biodiversity hotspot. I then worked as a junior researcher for a year under the National Mission for Himalayan Studies scheme with the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of India, where I intensively documented the utilization and consumption of insects by tribes of three Northeast Indian states- Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh.

Large-scale deforestation, conversion of apex forests to agricultural lands, hunting, climate change, unsustainable harvesting of forest resources etc. might trigger newer coping mechanisms in many species. My research interest broadly revolves around understanding which forest birds adapt well to such events and which do not. The idea is to prioritize vulnerable species and formulate a conservation action plan with the villagers according to local issues. Through an international platform and generous support provided by OICSD, I intend to contribute more to both scientific and social research in Northeast India, a region which remains largely unexplored even today.

Matric Year: 2017 – Subject: Jurisprudence – Scholarship: Gopal Subramanium Scholar

I am reading for the Doctor of Philosophy in law (DPhil) at Faculty of Law, University of Oxford. My research focuses on rape adjudication in India; I seek to highlight through my research how culturally dominant notions, underlying preconceptions and prejudices about rape (continue to) percolate through the talk of sexual assault cases in a variety of settings and ultimately shape their outcome.

I completed my MPhil in Law degree in October 2019, and my Bachelor of Civil Law degree in June 2018, with a focus on Comparative Human Rights, Comparative Equality Law, Medical Law and Ethics, and Children, Families and State. Prior to Oxford, I obtained an undergraduate degree in law from National Law University (Delhi) India.

I am interested in bringing legal reforms in the field of criminal law and in analysing the intersections of gender, class and caste as they relate to crime and violence. I am interested in exploring the nature of policing in India and learning about the lives of those who have been caught up in the criminal justice system. My interest in the study of human rights law stems from my research experiences as a researcher on the Death Penalty Research Project (India), which I believe was my first exposure to the harsh realities of the people at the receiving end of the criminal justice system. This interest has been sparked by a conversation I once had with a death row prisoner as part of a research project on Death Penalty. It was his words, “As a law student, your shoulders carry the burden of rendering justice and the hopes of millions who trust you to lead them in the right way”, that influenced me to study criminal law and human rights law in my BCL programme at Oxford.

The OICSD has given me the incredible opportunity to read for the BCL, MPhil and (now) DPhil while at Somerville College. I hope this experience will help me to hone my skills and broaden my perspective and help me contribute to criminal law reform in a meaningful way. It is inspirational to be part of Somerville which has a rich legacy of strong women such as Cornelia Sorabji, Dorothy Hodgins and so many others.

Awards and Previous Qualifications:

BA, LLB (Hons), National Law University Delhi (July 2017)

Bachelor of Civil Law, University of Oxford (July 2018)

Master of Philosophy in Law, University of Oxford (October 2019)

Awarded Archibald Jackson Prize for securing a Distinction on the BCL

Awarded Suresh Shroff Gold Medal for First Rank Holder of Batch of 2012-17, National Law University, Delhi.

Recipient of Cornelia Sorabji Scholarship by Somerville College, University of Oxford and Goa Education Trust (British Council) Scholarship to pursue Bachelor of Civil Law (BCL) at University of Oxford for the year 2017-18.

Recipient of Somerville College Alumni Scholarship and scholarship by Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development (OICSD) to pursue MPhil (Law) at University of Oxford for the year 2018-19.

Recipient of Gopal Subramanium Scholarship by OICSD to pursue DPhil (Law) at University of Oxford starting October 2019.

Matric Year: 2014 – Subject: DPhil International Development – Scholarship: Indira Gandhi Scholar

After finishing an MSc at the School of Interdisciplinary Area Studies, Oxford University, and an MPhil in Development Studies at the Oxford Department of International Development, both with distinctions, I am now pursuing a DPhil in International Development.

I was awarded Somerville’s 2017 Principal’s Prize for academic excellence. My Masters at Oxford was funded by the Louis Dreyfus-Weidenfeld scholarship, while the MPhil-Dphil is supported by the university’s Indira Gandhi scholarship.

Prior to this, I worked for over 7 years as a journalist with a leading national newspaper The Hindu in Bangalore. I reported on topics ranging from higher education, technology and finance to more specialized focus areas such as the state of labour, work and wages of the vast urban working class in India. My occasional stints with reporting in rural areas got me interested in contemporary development theory. After this academic stint, I intend to return to the field of journalism with grounding and expertise in development studies. As a development expert, with the experience and know-how of mainstream journalism, I hope to be able to make vital interventions. My long-term goal is to be able to lead a team that can steer the agenda on development reporting, both in terms of grassroots reportage and incisive commentary.

My DPhil research focusses on the political economy of social protection programmes in India. It interrogates whether social sector schemes can ‘transform’ the social relations of production in village societies, and probes the determinants of such transformation. My research takes a comparative political economy approach to understanding transformative processes in rural India.

Matric Year: 2019 – Subject: DPhil Public Policy – Scholarship: The Rakesh & Ritu Kapoor Scholar in Hygiene & Health

I am interested in the application of insights from behavioural economics to policy-making. My doctoral research at the Blavatnik School of Government seeks to focus on biases in information processing and belief updating in the context of the spread of health-related misinformation in India. Ultimately, my goal is to help governments develop effective policy solutions, which are grounded in theory and supported by evidence.

Prior to starting at Blavatnik, I worked as a Research Assistant to Professor Sir Julian Le Grand at the Marshall Institute, London School of Economics. In this role, I drew upon economic and psychological theory to study and model altruistic behaviour and conducted empirical research to understand the factors underlying ethical consumption choices. My experience of working in the social development sector, at Becoming I Foundation cultivated my interest in policy research. In collaboration with Teach for India, I worked to bring reforms in education for low-income groups in New Delhi and engaged directly with the beneficiaries, which helped me see how policies affect people on the ground.

I received my undergraduate training in economics from Shri Ram College of Commerce, University of Delhi and a Master of Sciences in management and strategy from the London School of Economics and Political Sciences. My master’s thesis focussed on discouraging consumption of single-use plastic bags while grocery shopping online and studied the effects of behavioural interventions on fostering a commitment to reuse carry bags. The paper is now published in the journal Behavioural Public Policy (2020).

Matric Year: 2019 – Subject: DPhil Geography and the Environment – Scholarship: Indira Gandhi Scholar

Gaurav is undertaking a DPhil research at the intersection of electric mobility and climate policy. His work looks at the political economy of transition to electric mobility in India. The research aim is to understand how various factors and entities related to the wider political economy of urban transport have led to the creation and shaping of various policies in respect of electric vehicles in India in the past 10 years.  

Gaurav is an urban and transport planner with over 8 years of experience of working on urban mobility issues in India in a variety of roles ranging from consulting to research and advocacy. Prior to starting his DPhil, he was leading the programme on sustainable mobility for Centre for Science and Environment in New Delhi. He’s earlier also worked with Indian School of Business (ISB) and Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services (IL&FS). 

He holds an undergraduate degree in urban planning from School of Planning and Architecture, Delhi and an MSc in Transport Planning and Environment from Newcastle University, UK, for which he was awarded a Commonwealth Scholarship. 

Matric Year: 2015 – Subject: DPhil Plant Sciences – Scholarship: Indira Gandhi Scholar

My DPhil in Plant Sciences, under the guidance of Professor (Dr.) Renier van der Hoorn, aims to understand the evolution of mechanism of extracellular perception of pathogens in the Solanaceae plant family, including important crops such as, tomato and potato.

Subsequent to perception, plants actively resist infection by most pathogens via deployment of multiple defense pathways. Since plant pathogens pose a huge challenge to crop production, enhanced understanding of how plant disease resistance is achieved will open novel avenues for plant protection methods. This eventually holds the potential of simultaneously addressing the many crises related to agriculture, including, global food security.

I am truly grateful to have received an IGS award, and I hope that OICSD, through inter-disciplinary collaborations, will provide necessary support to translate my research findings into effective solutions to crop losses.

Prior to Oxford, I attended the University of Delhi for my B.Sc. degree in life sciences and M.Sc. in Botany. During my post-graduation, I spent a summer at the Institute of Life Sciences, Odisha, as an Indian Academy of Sciences’ Research Fellow. Over the last few years, I have worked with various Non-governmental organizations in India, working on education and agriculture-related concerns

Matric Year: 2018 – Subject: DPhil Economics – Scholarship: Indira Gandhi Scholar

My research interests are in financial inclusion and sustainable agricultural development. I seek to understand the constraints that hinder the adoption and effective usage of savings and loans amongst smallholder farmers in developing economies.

My academic training is shaped by a Masters in Economics, Delhi School of Economics and a Masters in Public Policy, University of California, Berkeley. Keen to work on the intersectionality of sustainable development and finance, I focus on applied econometrics and development economics.

My tenure at Goldman Sachs cultivated my interest in financial markets, and also motivated me to apply my skills to the developing country context where issues of credit constraints, barriers to savings and missing insurance markets are very pertinent.

My experiences led me to appreciate that development policies do not operate in a vacuum but are fundamentally dependent on the social and institutional contexts in which they are devised. I received the Global Development Fellowship from USAID to undertake research on the “Enterprise Development Program” run by SaveAct in South Africa. I have experience as a researcher in the Economics department at U.C. Berkeley, working on randomized control trials in Kenyan maize markets. As a Project Manager at the Center for Effective Global Action, I worked with USAID in Uganda to design sustainable policies for solar waste management.

Academic Publications

Enterprise Development: A Deeper Understanding – Spring edition, 2018 of the Berkeley Public Policy Journal

Winner of the PBPPJ Prize for Outstanding Editorial Collaboration

Matric Year: 2015 – Subject: DPhil Plant Sciences – Scholarship: Indira Gandhi Scholar

My DPhil in Plant Sciences, under the guidance of Professor (Dr.) Renier van der Hoorn, aims to understand the evolution of mechanism of extracellular perception of pathogens in the Solanaceae plant family, including important crops such as, tomato and potato.

Subsequent to perception, plants actively resist infection by most pathogens via deployment of multiple defense pathways. Since plant pathogens pose a huge challenge to crop production, enhanced understanding of how plant disease resistance is achieved will open novel avenues for plant protection methods. This eventually holds the potential of simultaneously addressing the many crises related to agriculture, including, global food security.

I am truly grateful to have received an IGS award, and I hope that OICSD, through inter-disciplinary collaborations, will provide necessary support to translate my research findings into effective solutions to crop losses.

Prior to Oxford, I attended the University of Delhi for my B.Sc. degree in life sciences and M.Sc. in Botany. During my post-graduation, I spent a summer at the Institute of Life Sciences, Odisha, as an Indian Academy of Sciences’ Research Fellow. Over the last few years, I have worked with various Non-governmental organizations in India, working on education and agriculture-related concerns