Our Team

The team consists of a core group, a project manager, lead researchers, research staff, and an advisory team.

Project Leads

Madhura Swaminathan

Madhura Swaminathan is Professor and Head, Economic Analysis Unit, Indian Statistical Institute Bangalore Centre. She is one the Trustees of the Foundation.

Gaurav Datt

Sandipan Baksi

Sandipan is the Director of the Foundation for Agrarian Studies. He holds a Ph.D. from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai. His research explores the relationship between science, technology, and society, with a particular focus on the development of agricultural science in post-independence India. He is currently building an oral history archive on the history of agriculture in India.

Emilia Tjernström

Sherry Jacob

Research Team

Tapas Modak

Joint Director

Tapas is a Joint Director of the Foundation. He has a Ph.D. in Social Science from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai. His research interests include the irrigation economy of India, water policies and institutions, agricultural policy, economics of farming, and rural incomes.

Ajil Mankunnummal

Research Officer

Ajil holds an M.Phil. in Applied Economics from the Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram, Jawaharlal Nehru University, and is in the final stages of his doctoral research. His doctoral study focuses on the impact of government regulation on the technological developments in, and performance of, the chemical fertiliser manufacturing industry in India.

Kristy Saikia

Research Officer

Kristy is a Research Officer at the Foundation. She holds a Master’s degree in Development Studies from IIT Guwahati and has previously worked with various civil society organisations. Her research interests include women and gender, rural development, and WaSH (water, sanitation, and hygiene).

Sai Chandan Kotu

Senior Research Assistant

Sai Chandan Kotu is a Senior Research Assistant at the Foundation. He holds a Master's degree in Economic Growth, Population & Development from Lund University, Sweden, and an Integrated Master's in Development Studies from Indian Institute of Technology Madras. He has previously worked with FAS as an intern and is currently working on the entry and processing of data collected through our recently concluded survey in two Uttar Pradesh villages.

Harshan T. P.

Associate Research Fellow

Harshan is an Associate Research Fellow at the Foundation. He holds a Ph.D. in Social Science from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai, specialising in climate change and disaster studies. His research focuses on the socio-economic impacts of environmental shocks and disasters.

Daya Susan Thomas

Research Assistant

Daya is a Research Assistant at the Foundation. She holds a Master's degree in Applied Economics from CHRIST (Deemed to be University), Bengaluru. Her research interests include Gender and Development in Rural India.

Advisory Team

V. K. Ramachandran

V. K. Ramachandran is retired Professor and former Head, Economic Analysis Unit, Indian Statistical Institute Bangalore Centre. He currently serves as the Vice Chairperson, Kerala State Planning Board. He is one among the Trustees of the Foundation. He is also the Editor of Review of Agrarian Studies.