Dean, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences Director, Symbiosis School of Economics Head, Symbiosis Centre for Urban Studies (SCUS)
Expertise: Prof Chandiramani is an acclaimed educator, academician, researcher, and social scientist. Her areas of expertise include urban infrastructure, urban mobility, urban poverty, urban economic development, international development cooperation, and India's Development Agenda towards the SDGs.
Prof Jyoti has curated the MSc. Economics Programme with a specialisation in Urban Development in 2016, the first in India.
She teaches Urban Economic Development, Urban Mobility, Urban Policy and Urban Poverty, Urban Finance, Urban Governance, Urban Infrastructure, Migration and Livelihood.
Research Publications and books: Prof Jyoti has a number of research papers touching upon issues such as:
Prof Jyoti has edited a book with Ramanath Jha titled, 'Perspectives in Urban Development: Issues in Infrastructure, Planning, and Governance,' which has served as a valuable textbook for the students.
Several PhD scholars have successfully completed their PhD under her guidance, while some are pursuing their PhD at the University under the guidance of Prof Jyoti.
Research projects: Include funding from the Government of Maharashtra, NABARD, ITDP, NIUA, Sheffield University, Sulochana Thapar Foundation, and even pro-bono projects covering a wide range of research areas:
Associate Professor, Symbiosis School of Economics and Deputy Head, SCUS
EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATION: Postdoc on Urbanization and Innovation in Developing countries from the National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russia. Ph.D. on Urban Agglomeration and Urban Economic Growth in India: An Empirical Study from University of Mysore though Institute for Social and Economic Change (ISEC); M.A. (Economics) from Jadavpur University; B. Sc. Economics from Kharagpur College, Vidyasagr University.
AWARDS AND RECOGNITION: He was awarded the Shri T R Satishchandra Memorial Best Thesis Prize in Economics by the Institute for Social and Economic Change (ISEC), Bangalore, India. He received the Proficiency Award from the Department of Economics, Kharagpur College, Kharagpur, India. He was one of the ICSSR delegates to participants as a Young Economist in the 4th Lindau Meeting of the Winners of the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel, held in the Lindau, Germany. He received financial support from the Dynamics of Institutions and Markets in Europe (DIME) Network of Excellence, Sir Ratan Tata Trust (SRTT), Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI), Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID), Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR), and German Research Foundation (DFG) to deliver lectures in more than 13 countries in the World. He is among top 100 economists in India ranked by the IDEAS/REPEC as of September 2023.
Assistant Professor, Symbiosis School of Economics.
EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATION:He holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Pune. He was also a postdoctoral fellow with the Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR) and Fulbright- Nehru fellow at The New School, New York City. He is a recipient of the Elizabeth Adiseshiah Citation (2021) for contributions to development studies by an Indian national below forty-five years.
Areas of Research Interest:In urban studies, he has worked on issues of gender and informal labor markets, marginalised labor forms, urban sanitation and solid waste management.
EXPEREINCE:Five years of teaching and three years of research experience after Ph.D. Areas of research- Solid waste management, informal labor markets, gender, urban governance
Assistant Professor, Symbiosis School of Economics.
EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATION: PhD in Economics with specialization in Urban Finance at the Symbiosis International (Deemed University) (SIU), Pune; Bachelors and Masters in Economics from Fergusson College, Pune.
EXPEREINCE: 6 years of research experience; worked on several national level projects, like the Smart City Mission Project for Pune City, Refinance of SHG/JLG Project for NABARD and Census Towns in Pune District as a Major Research Project under SIU; keenly studies and follows trends in International Development Cooperation from MDGs to the SDGs.
areas of research interest: Urban Finance, Urban Mobility, Public Policy, Sustainable Development, and Indian Economy
Adjunct Faculty, Symbiosis School of Economics
EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATION: Ph.D. on A Study of Rural Non-Farm Sectors in Maharashtra from Symbiosis International University, Pune; M.A. Economics from M.S. University, Baroda; B.A. (Hons.) from Sophia College, M.D.S. University, Ajmer. Certificate in Social Norms, Social Change I (4 Weeks Course) from University of Pennsylvania and UNICEF offered through Coursera in May 2020.
SUBJECT: Microeconomics, Research Methodology and Rural Development at the Bachelors and Masters level.
EXPEREINCE: 9 years of teaching, training and research experience; Published research papers in journals of repute and presented research work in National and International conferences; Team member in funded research projects; provided administrative support- planning, monitoring project schedules, budgets, resources and communication; Mentored students’ research projects; Organized academic events like trainings, workshops, seminars, guest lectures.
AREAS OF RESEARCH INTEREST: Issues in social sector: labour, employment, education, housing, sanitation etc.
Assistant Professor, Symbiosis School of Economics
EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATION: Dr Nawazuddin has a PhD from the Department of Humanities & Social Sciences, IIT Roorkee (India). The title of his thesis is ‘Intergenerational Occupational Mobility Among Socio-Religious Communities in India: With Special Reference to the Muslims’.
AREAS OF RESEARCH INTEREST: His interests lie in the fields of labour and macroeconomics. His work includes intra-generational and intergenerational mobility issues, stratification in the labour market and employment-unemployment situations with a macro perspective. Further, he is exploring the spatial distribution of wages, skills, and so-called good jobs. In urban studies, he has carried out joint work on the measurement of ‘City Economic Product’. He works with spatiotemporal, satellite and other high-frequency data sets for studying the questions of urban growth.
EXPEREINCE: He has three years of post-PhD teaching and research experience.
Currently, as a faculty member at the Symbiosis School of Economics, he teaches Advanced Econometrics, Macro Growth Models, and Exploratory Data Analytics. In addition to his teaching responsibilities, he serves as the in-charge of the MSc (Economics) with Data Analytics and leads the Centre for Quantitative Learning and Applications.
Assistant Professor, Symbiosis School of Economics
EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATION: Ph.D. in International Relations from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; M.Phil. on Climate Change. M.A. in Environmental Studies from the University of Delhi, B.A. (Hons.) Geography from Miranda House, University of Delhi. Certificate on Global Compact for Migration (6 months) organized by the Cross-Regional Centre for Refugees and Migrants (CCRM), Global Research Forum on Diaspora and Transnationalism (GRFDT), International Institute of Migration and Development (IIMAD), Migrant Forum in Asia (MFA), and Metropolis Asia-Pacific.
SUBJECTS:Sustainability, International Political Economy (IPE), International Relations (IR), International Organisation, and Regional Cooperation in Trade (IORC) at the Bachelor’ and Master’s levels.
EXPEREINCE: 5 years of teaching, research, training, and editorial experience; Published several research papers in journals of repute and presented papers at National and International conferences; Mentored students’ research projects and dissertations; Organized academic events like seminars, and conferences, workshops & guest lectures. The program director for Heinrich Boll Foundations (HBF) funded projects; provided administrative support- planning, monitoring project schedules, budgets, resources, and communication;
areas of research interest: Climate Change, Sustainability, Urban Spaces, Area Studies, Diaspora Studies, Migration, International Relations, International Political Economy, etc.
AWARDS AND RECOGNITION:ICSSR National ‘Doctoral Fellowship’ (2017-2019), UGC NET (2014), Awarded as the ‘Best Student’: Humanities (2006), Scholarship for Outstanding Performance in Co-Curricular Activities (2005), Certificate of Appreciation for Securing Highest CGPA in the Class of M.Phil., Certificate of Distinction for Securing 94% in Remote Sensing Computer & GIS (Practical), Certificate of Distinction for Securing 89% in Thematic Mapping & Cartographic Techniques.
Dr. Ashvini Pradeep Shende is an accomplished academician and researcher specializing in Business Analytics, Software Engineering, and Data Science. With a Ph.D. in Management from Tilak Maharashtra Vidyapeeth, Pune, she has an extensive teaching experience spanning over 22 years at prestigious institutions like Symbiosis International University and D.Y. Patil International University. Her research contributions include 8 Scopus-indexed papers, multiple book chapters, and several copyrights granted by the Government of India for her innovative work in AI-driven systems and software development. She has actively participated in national and international conferences, presenting research on software project management, AI applications, and IT governance. Dr. Shende is a recognized research guide at Symbiosis International University and has led major research projects on urban governance, climate change, and livability in Pune. She has also been an invited speaker at academic forums and has published a reference book on software development processes.
Research Assistant, Symbiosis School of Economics
EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATION:M.SC Geoinformatics from TERI school of advance studies, Delhi; M.SC Geography from Kurukshetra University, Haryana; B.A (Hons.) Geography from Delhi University (Shaheed Bhagat Singh College), Delhi.
EXPEREINCE: Worked with THE ENERGY and RESOURCE INSTITUTE; DELHI as Intern, Accenture as Associate, Work in Research projects.
areas of research interest: Sustainable Development, Urban planning and Management, Urban development, Digital Mapping, Data handling, GIS & Remote Sensing, Geospatial analysis.
Amey Khare is a Research Assistant at the Symbiosis School of Economics, specializing in urban economics, sustainable development, and infrastructure policy. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Pune University and an MSc in Economics specializing in Urban Development from Symbiosis School of Economics. He is pursuing a PhD in Economics, focusing on Infrastructure Accessibility for the Elderly People: A Study of Pune City, integrating urban mobility and policy assessment.
His research expertise includes Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), urban governance, and spatial planning, strongly emphasizing infrastructure accessibility, economic geography, and regional development. He has worked on projects analyzing SDG localization in rural and urban Maharashtra, impact assessments of Geographic Indications (GIs) funded by NABARD, and regional economic transformations in the Pune Metropolitan Region under NIUA and the World Bank. His contributions to urban policy research extend to governance frameworks for census towns, climate resilience strategies, and urban-rural connectivity in the context of smart and sustainable cities.
Distinguished Senior Fellow
EXPEREINCE: Dr. Ramanath Jha works on urbanization — urban sustainability, urban governance, and urban planning. Dr. Jha belongs to the 1977 batch of the Indian Administrative Service. He was an Administrator at Pandharpur Municipal Council; Administrator and Municipal Commissioner, at Solapur; Collector and Deputy Director of Municipal Administration, at Ahmednagar; Municipal Commissioner at Pune; and Metropolitan Commissioner MMRDA during his tenure as an IAS officer. His subsequent postings were as Regional Advisor in South Asia for the Urban Management Programme of the UNDP/UN-Habitat; Vice Chairman and Managing Director at MSRDC; and Principal Secretary, Transport, Ports and State Excise, Government of Maharashtra. Dr. Jha has co-authored the books — Towards People Friendly Cities — published by UNICEF; Urban Essays, published by YASHADA, and co-edited Perspectives in Urban Development, published by Capital Publishing Company. He has published several papers on various urban subjects and has widely lectured on urban issues. He holds positions as:
Professor and Director (Additional Charge) at the National Institute of Urban Affairs, India
EXPERIENCE: Dr. Debolina Kundu is a Professor and Director (Additional Charge) at the National Institute of Urban Affairs, India. She has over 20 years of professional experience in the field of development studies. She was a doctoral fellow with the ICSSR and has a Ph.D from Jawaharlal Nehru University on urban governance. She has worked as consultant with, ADB, LSE, IIDS, UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF, UNESCAP, KfW, GIZ, Urban Institute, Washington and East-West Centre Honolulu on issues of urbanization, migration, urban development policies, municipal finance, governance and exclusion. She is currently the HUDCO Chair and editor of journals Environment and Urbanisation, Asia (SAGE) and Urban India (NIUA).
She is the Country Investigator - India for the Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) Centre for Sustainable Healthy and Learning Cities and Neighbourhoods (SHLC), which is supported by UK Research and Innovation. SHLC is an international, interdisciplinary and collaborative project, which aims to increase understanding of sustainable neighbourhoods and address urban, health and education challenges in cities across Africa and Asia. A member of the Fifth Delhi Finance Commission and various other committees of the Government of India, she has several articles published in books and journals. Currently, she is editing books on internal migration and national urban policies.
Senior Research Fellow
EXPERIENCE: Former Director of the National Institute of Urban Affairs. He has over 20 years of experience in the field of urban management, urban governance and capacity building. He has been involved in providing technical assistance and capacity building support to several urban local bodies and instituting significant urban reforms at local level.
He brings on board strong demonstrative experience of improving institutional capacities including developing strategies to support in delivering the program results. He has been associated in areas of urban development, urban governance and urban Infrastructure management with UN, World Bank, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) assignments.
Poverty Alleviation has been an integral component in all his assignments. Prior to joining NIUA, he was the Country Representative of UN-Habitat in India. He was intensely involved in supporting an eco-system to design and roll-out urban programs including localizing Sustainable Development Goals. His strength lies in developing institutional arrangements and project implementation strategies through facilitating effective liaison and coordination with various stakeholders. Mr. Vaidya holds a Master’s degree in Business Development and Post-Graduate Diploma in Urban Development & Planning and specialization in Urban Management from Institute of Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS), Rotterdam, Netherlands.
Senior Research Fellow
EXPEREINCE: Possess experience in managing finances of an Urban Local Body (Municipal Body) of a million-plus city. For the last twenty years, after taking voluntary retirement from Vadodara Municipal Corporation, working for CRISIL Risk and Infrastructure Solutions Ltd. Mumbai as an adviser for their Urban Practices.
Worked as a short-term consultant for various multilateral agencies like the World Bank, USAID, ADB, DFID, Asia Foundation, and various state governments in India in urban management, finance, and urban governance reforms.
Prakash Rao is Head and Professor, Symbiosis Centre for Climate Change and Sustainability, Symbiosis International University, Pune. He started his career as an ornithologist with the Bombay Natural History Society and has diverse interests in climate change, energy and natural resource management research and policy advocacy. He has worked on several interdisciplinary conservation-oriented projects combining natural resources, biodiversity and climate change across key ecosystems like the Himalayas, Sundarbans and other vulnerable ecosystems. He has contributed to the Academic discourse and published around 90 research papers, notes and book chapters in peer reviewed international journals and books and undertaken consultancies on environmental resource management. He is also the Deputy Editor of the International Journal of Agricultural Resources, Governance and Ecology. Dr Rao has published four books with a recent publication on ‘Environmental Impacts of Tourism in Developing Nations’ with IGI Global Publishers, USA.
He is passionate in driving environmental sustainability in higher education with a special focus on climate education. Under his guidance four doctoral candidates have received their doctoral degrees in energy, environment and sustainability related domain areas. His current research interest include interdisciplinary research at the intersection of climate change, ecosystems, and health. He is also involved in research centered around climate and urbanisation, sustainable urban mobility, climate risk assessments for industry, ESG reporting, climate finance, campus carbon neutrality etc. He recently coordinated a sustainability certification project for the Symbiosis International University to operationalise campus driven sustainability efforts through the 2000Watt Smart Cities Label, Switzerland.
Dean, Faculty of Engineering & Director, Symbiosis Institute of Technology Head, Symbiosis Centre for Applied Artificial Intelligence (SCAAI)
Profile Summary: Dr. Ketan Kotecha is a distinguished researcher and educator in Artificial Intelligence, Deep Learning, and Machine Learning. An alumnus of IIT Bombay, he is recognized among the top 2% scientists worldwide by Stanford University. His contributions to AI research are globally celebrated with over 200 SCI-indexed publications, 22 patents, and 12,000+ citations.
As a dedicated mentor, Dr. Kotecha has guided 25 Ph.D. scholars and secured over INR 15 crores in research funding from prestigious national and international organizations. He actively collaborates with global universities, including Arizona State University, Brunel University, and Swinburne University.
Dr. Kotecha has delivered lectures at esteemed institutions such as Imperial College London and Cambridge University. He has also held visiting professorships at Aston University, Swinburne University, and UCSI Malaysia.
In addition to academia, Dr. Kotecha served as Vice-Chancellor of Gujarat’s largest university and Dean of Engineering at Nirma University. He established transformative projects like the INR 30 crore Bajaj Engineering Skills Training Centre, an INR 50 lakh 5G use-case lab in AI telemedicine, and innovative Maker and IDEA labs at Symbiosis Institute of Technology.
His extensive consultancy experience includes projects with organizations like Philips, Avegen UK, and Dassault Systems, reinforcing his expertise in bridging academia and industry.
Director and Professor, Symbiosis Institute of Geoinformatics
Profile Summary: Prof. (Dr.) Tarun Pratap Singh is an eminent expert in Remote Sensing, Geoinformatics, and Environmental Science with over 25 years of experience. He holds a Ph.D. from IIRS, Dehradun, specializing in satellite image classification in hilly terrains for biodiversity conservation. He also holds an M.S. in Remote Sensing from Pierre & Marie Curie University, Paris.
Dr. Singh has led over 20 national and international projects in diverse fields like natural resource management, climate change, and disaster risk management. His work is backed by collaborations with agencies such as ISRO, DST, and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
Dr. Singh is a prominent member of various geospatial organizations, serving as Chairman of the Indian Society of Geomatics (Pune Chapter) and Secretary of the Indian Society of Remote Sensing (Pune Chapter). He is an Advisory Board Member for the UN-GGIM Academic Network and a Consultant for key projects such as the Sikkim Biodiversity Conservation and Forest Management Project and the Tamil Nadu Biodiversity Conservation and Greening Project.
His extensive academic contribution includes over 100 peer-reviewed papers, multiple book chapters, and mentorship for numerous Ph.D. and postgraduate students. His leadership has significantly enhanced the research capacity at Symbiosis Institute of Geoinformatics, where he continues to inspire and drive advancements in geospatial science and technology.
Faculty and HOD for Infrastructure Development & Management
Dr Kedar Bhagwat is Faculty and HOD for Infrastructure Development & Management (IDM) programme at Symbiosis Centre for Management and Human Resource Development, (SCMHRD). He has undertaken research in economic analysis of the passenger car industry in India. His research interests include Sustainable Transport & transportation Economics, infrastructure, and infrastructure project finance.
Senior Fellow, Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi.
Partho Mukhopadhyay has been with CPR since 2006, bringing extensive experience in urbanization, infrastructure, and the development paths of India and China. Previously, he was part of the founding team at the Infrastructure Development Finance Company (IDFC) and has held positions at the Export-Import Bank of India and the World Bank in Washington. Partho has also served on numerous government committees, including the Working Group on Migration, the Prime Minister’s Task Force on Infrastructure, and the High-Level Railway Restructuring Committee. A prolific writer and academic, he holds a PhD in economics from New York University and an MA and M.Phil from the Delhi School of Economics.
Program Manager for CITIIS at NIUA
Naim Keruwala is an urban management professional with over a decade of experience in the development sector. Currently the Program Manager for CITIIS (City Investments to Innovate, Integrate, and Sustain) at NIUA, he previously led governance and advocacy initiatives at the Sulochana Thapar Foundation and the Urban Governance department of Janwani. Naim played a key role in designing the postgraduate program on Urban Economic Development at Symbiosis School of Economics in 2014 and continues as visiting faculty. His research is widely published, including by UNESCO and Business Standard. A recipient of prestigious scholarships and fellowships, Naim is a World Economic Forum Global Shaper and an Associate Fellow of The Royal Commonwealth Society.
Professor of Urban Sustainability, University of Sheffield
Vanesa Castán Broto is a distinguished academic and recipient of multiple honors, including the Philip Leverhulme Prize for contributions to Geography and a United Nations Award for Lighthouse Activities combating climate change with a focus on the urban poor. Her research on urban sustainability and resilience has been funded by leading institutions such as the British Academy and the Leverhulme Trust. As a Professorial Fellow at the Urban Institute, Vanesa continues to influence global discussions on sustainability and equity in urban development.
Senior IAS Officer, Government of Maharashtra
Nitin Kareer is a seasoned IAS officer with extensive experience in urban development, infrastructure, and governance. Over his illustrious career, he has held pivotal positions in the Government of Maharashtra, including Principal Secretary of the Urban Development Department, where he spearheaded key initiatives in urban planning and policy implementation. His expertise has been instrumental in driving the state’s focus on sustainable urbanization and equitable infrastructure development.
Known for his deep understanding of urban challenges, Nitin Kareer has played a critical role in shaping state policies related to housing, urban infrastructure, and regional planning. His leadership has contributed to significant advancements in Maharashtra's urban landscape, fostering inclusive growth and innovation in public administration.This diverse advisory board brings together expertise in urban policy, social inclusion, and sustainability, enriching the research with multidimensional perspectives. Additional members will be added to strengthen the board's capabilities further.
