Vol 4, Issue 1, 2024

COMMUNIQUÉ

Welcome to the latest issue of Communique! The second quarter of the year was packed with events, workshops, and engagements that kept our stakeholders and team members actively involved. At the Bharti Institute, we successfully organised the Second Governance Summit at the ISB Mohali campus and launched the second book in our public policy series in New Delhi. These events inspire us to strive for greater achievements. Read on to learn about our key accomplishments, initiatives, collaborations, events, and more.

Highlights

Second Governance Summit on Food Systems: Balancing Equity and Sustainability

The second annual Governance Summit of the Bharti Institute of Public Policy was held on the theme of “Food Systems: Balancing Equity and Sustainability,” at the ISB Mohali campus. The Summit brought together over 120 delegates, including policymakers, industry experts, thought leaders from the corporate sector, non-profit organisations, academia, and research institutions. The event focused on fostering dialogue and sharing ideas on critical issues and emerging trends in food systems. Dr Aarushi Jain, Policy Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy, welcomed the delegates and participants of the Advanced Management Programme in Public Policy.

Prof. Ashwini Chhatre, Executive Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy, set the Summit’s context and highlighted the Institute's food system projects. Addressing the gathering, he said, “We believe that while India is self-sufficient in food production, self-sufficient in calories, it is not self-sufficient in nutrition. Food is much more than a mechanism to reduce hunger. We must fill the large nutrition gap that exists in India especially among children and women of the economically weaker sections of the society. We need to find market actors who can make profits on a sufficiently small scale that requires us to use technology intelligently so we can support the poor. What we need is cultural and behavioural change”.

At the inaugural plenary on ‘Agriculture - Sustainability and Equity,’ K.A.P. Sinha, IAS, Special Chief Secretary, Agriculture, Government of Punjab, emphasised the challenge of balancing equity and sustainability when individual interests overshadow the common good.

The summit featured the launch of the Food Systems Visualisation Engine (FSVE), a tool which combines data from agriculture, rural development, nutrition, public distribution systems, livelihood programmes, and other related aspects to serve as a collaborative decision-making tool, for users from across domains. The FSVE addresses the lack of visibility in food systems, enabling intuitive data use by all stakeholders.

Highlighting the factors in sustainable agriculture and nutrition, including incentives, behavioural economics, health systems, Arti Ahuja, IAS (Retd), Former Secretary, Government of India, advocated for aligning farmers' and consumers' incentives. She emphasised adopting a multifaceted approach with both nutrition-sensitive and nutrition-specific interventions to achieve equity and sustainability in food systems.

Dr Karan Avtar Singh, IAS (Retd), Chairperson, Punjab Water Regulation and Development Authority, Government of Punjab, discussed India’s nutrition history, including the Great Indian Hedge’s role in malnutrition. He addressed food security challenges and called for green food revolution.

Prof. Chhatre, in his closing remarks, addressed the crucial link between equity and sustainability. He explained, “Sustainability alone can't address equity issues without ensuring future accessibility. Learning from past mistakes and acknowledging the food system's visibility is key to deriving lessons for future interventions.”

The Summit also featured panel discussion on “Sustainable Harvests: Advancing Climate Smart Agriculture in India”. The panel was moderated by Dr Aarushi Jain, Policy Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy, and the panellists included Dr Surinder Singh Kukal, Member, Punjab Water Regulation and Development Authority, Chandigarh; Ajay Vir Jakhar, Chairman, Bharat Krishak Samaj, New Delhi; Professor Anjal Prakash, Clinical Associate Professor (Research) and Research Director Bharti Institute of Public Policy. A second panel discussion on “Agriculture-Nutrition Convergence” was moderated by Saubhagya Samal Head of PMU, Bharti Institute of Public Policy, and the panellists included Prashant Bhide, Manager, Research, Haqdarshak; Ganesh Neelam, Executive Director, Collectives for Integrated Livelihood Initiatives (CInI); and Tara Tripathy, Team Coordinator, PRADAN.

BOOK LAUNCH

Launch of the Book- Technology, Policy, and Inclusion: An Intersection of Ideas for Public Policy

The Bharti Institute of Public Policy launched a book, "Technology, Policy, and Inclusion: An Intersection of Ideas for Public Policy," at a glittering ceremony in New Delhi. The second book under the ISB-Routledge public policy book series, "Innovations, Practice and Future of Public Policy in India”, the book explores the intersection of public policy and technology in India, highlighting strategies for inclusive governance and development through technological innovations.

The book was launched by eminent members of the Advisory Council of the Bharti Institute including Vinod Kumar Duggal, IAS (Retd.) and former Governor of Manipur; Nanda Kumar T, IAS (Retd.) and former Secretary to Govt. of India; and R.P Singh, IAS (Retd.), former Chairman, National Highways Authority of India and member of Board Maruti Suzuki India Ltd., Bharti Infratel, and Lodha Developers.

Dr Aarushi Jain, Policy Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy, Indian School of Business, introduced the latest title in the book series she co-edited. Addressing the gathering, she said, “This book marks a pivotal milestone in the discourse on how technological advancements can be harnessed to promote inclusive and equitable policies. It provides a comprehensive exploration of the critical intersections between technology and public policy, offering valuable insights and practical frameworks for policymakers, practitioners and researchers alike. As we navigate the complexities of the digital age, this work will undoubtedly serve as an essential resource for ensuring that innovation benefits all members of society, leaving no one behind."

Prof. Anjal Prakash, Research Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy, and co-editor of the book, said, “The book is significant for those dedicated to crafting informed and equitable public policies. It rigorously examines the dynamic relationship between technological innovation and societal inclusion, offering an array of perspectives and solutions that are both timely and impactful.”

Amarjeet Sinha, IAS (Retd.), Member, Public Selection Enterprises Board and a visiting faculty at the Indian School of Business, who authored the first book, “The Last Mile: Turning Public Policy Upside Down”, in the series, said, “This publication is an indispensable tool for researchers, policymakers, and practitioners committed to ensuring that technology serves as a force for good in creating a more inclusive society.”

Ankit Anand, an alumnus of the AMPPP, currently serving as Assistant Vice President at CoinDCX, and one of the authors of the book highlighted the author’s contributions to research and policy, emphasising its relevance and utility in promoting inclusive public policies.

Published by Routledge Publishers, the book had a soft launch in the UK last year and is now available in India. The series aims to bring together diverse perspectives of academics and practitioners in the field of public policy and records innovative ideas and best practices to facilitate knowledge sharing. The book is available as a free downloadable PDF.

Education

Advanced Management Programme in Public Policy (AMPPP)

The fourth and final residency of the eighth batch of the flagship programme of the Bharti Institute was held from June 14-June 23 at the ISB Mohali campus. The residency had the following courses and faculty:

Course	Faculty Name
Rural Development	Amarjeet Sinha, Former Secretary, Department of Rural Development, Govt of India; and Member, Public Enterprises Selection Board, India
Urban Governance	Prof. OP Aggarwal, Indian School of Public Policy and Visiting Faculty, Indian School of Business)
Agriculture and Food Policy	Prof. Sukhpal Singh, IIM A
Social Policy - Design, Implementation and Effectiveness	Prof. AK Shiva Kumar, Economist and Policy Advisor; Visiting Faculty, Indian School of Business)
Theory and Practice of Negotiations	Prof. Saumya Sindhwani, Assistant Professor (Practice) & Associate Dean, Indian School of Business
Environmental Policy	Dr Rohini Chaturvedi, Independent Consultant

Three expert guest sessions were also conducted during the residency by:

Nilimesh Baruah, IRS, Former Senior Advisor Tax and Crime OECD, OECD Tax.
Madhukar Gupta, IAS, Commissioner, State Election Commission, Rajasthan on elections and electoral reforms in India.
Ajay Vir Jakhar, Chairman, Bharat Krishak Samaj on 'Policy – The Art of Consultation for Policy Formation.'
An online guest speaker session was held with Charlie Tulloch, Secretary, Tennis Seniors Australia and Director, Policy Performance Pty Ltd. and Board Member, Australian Evaluation Society, on Evaluation Training Policy, Monitoring and Evaluation.

Capstone Presentation

The eighth batch of the Advanced Management Programme in Public Policy showcased their capstone projects during their final residency. The projects were adjudged by Amarjeet Sinha, IAS (Retd), Member, Public Enterprises Selection Board, Professor Saumya Sindhwani, Assistant Professor of Organisational Behaviour (Practice), Associate Dean–Advanced Management Programmes (RCI-AMP’s), Indian School of Business, Gurpreet Kaur Sapra, IAS, Secretary, Finance, Government of Punjab and Divisional Commissioner, Jalandhar, and Sudhanshu Shekhar Srivastava, IPS, Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Security, Punjab. Vishwesh Shastri, IPS, Aide De Camp to Governor of Tamil Nadu, Syed Wasim, Manager, Mantra Social Services, Guneet Kaur, Deputy Chief Operations Manager, Indian Railways and Adityavikram More, Director, Morex Lanka Private Limited, were adjudged the winners.

A gala dinner was organised for the outgoing cohort's participants, providing them an opportunity to interact and network outside the classroom setting.

Policy Walk

As part of the residency, participants of the AMPPP embarked on a three-day Policy Walk to gain firsthand experience in policy design and implementation in New Delhi. During the visit, the students, led by Dr Aarushi Jain, Policy Director; Prof. Anjal Prakash, Clinical Associate Professor (Research) & Research Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy; Kumara Guru, Senior Director, External Relations, Alumni Engagement, Advancement, Indian School of Business, participated in interactive sessions with Steven De Wilde, Deputy Head of Mission and Consul Mika Camps of the Embassy of Belgium; Union Minister for Civil Aviation and Member of Parliament Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu; BVR Subrahmanyam, CEO, NITI Aayog; Dr Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, Election Commissioner of India; Dr Santhosh Mathew, Country Lead, Public Policy and Finance, Bill and Mellinda Gates Foundation (BMGF); Archana Vyas, Director, Program Advocacy and Communication, Growth, Opportunity, and Empowerment, BMGF; Dr R Balasubramanian, HR, Capacity Building Commission; Vini Mahajan, Secretary, Department of Water and Sanitation; Jaya Varma Sinha, Chairperson and CEO of Railway Board.

The cohort engaged in insightful interactions on a broad array of policy subjects including social impact and sustainable investment; transformation of the civil services in India; challenges and progress made in rural sanitation and portable water supply across the country; bilateral ties between India and Belgium; intricacies and the scale of elections in India; and best practices for effective governance.

Updates on Government Engagements

Government of Goa

Dr. Aarushi Jain, Policy Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy, held a meeting with the Chief Minister of Goa, Dr. Pramod Sawant in Panaji, to discuss the expansion of the existing knowledge partnership between the Bharti Institute of Public Policy and the state government of Goa. The Institute is collaborating with the state government on multiple fronts including co-developing the Goa Open-Data Portal, Legislative Support Programme, and improving the quality of education via effective leadership training modules to name a few.

Government of Himachal Pradesh

Concerted efforts by a team of Bharti Institute of Public Policy working in collaboration with the Department of Digital Technologies, Himachal Pradesh, led to a significant jump in digital transformation in the hill state. Consequently, the State recorded 100% saturation of mandatory services and a record 40.89 % improvement within six months under the NeSDA Framework. The was reflected in an impact evaluation report conducted by the Institute’s team according to the NeSDA framework parameters. The top three departments in the State that have performed well in the last few months are Jal Shakti Vibhag, the Department of Education, and the Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board (HPSEBL).

Under the Initiative on the Forest Economy, the team of Bharti Institute working in Bhattiyat’s Sihunta and Chowari forest ranges filed for 25 CFR claims with the Sub-Divisional Level Committee (SDLC). The team in Bhattiyat is working in collaboration with Himalaya Bachalo Samiti, a local civil society organisation, for filing CFR claims.

Government of Jharkhand

Under the Initiative on the Forest Economy, the team facilitated the sale of sal seeds measuring 10 MT between AAK and five Farmers Producers Companies (FPCs) from Simdega, Gumla, East Singhbhum, West Singhbhum, and Burmu. The sale also turned out to be an exercise in overcoming challenges faced by FPCs and fostering mutual trust between all parties involved.
A state level workshop was held on the Forest Rights Act involving representatives from FRA Cell and the Department of Social Welfare. The representatives also held a meeting with the Chief Secretary of the state to strategise on generating awareness of FRA through workshops at the Administrative Training Institute, Ranchi.
Marking a significant milestone in the efforts to secure community forest rights, the team of Initiative on the Forest Economy in Simdega, Jharkhand, successfully handed over six Community Forest Resource Rights (CFRR) titles. Constructive feedback from the state FRA cell of the Abua Bir Abua Dishyom campaign was communicated to the District Collector of Simdega, who acknowledged the suggestions and committed to integrating them, ensuring adherence to the standard format outlined in the Forest Rights Act.

On World Environment Day, the Initiative on the Forest Economy (IoFE) team celebrated the collaborative efforts toward forest conservation in Tetlapora Panchayat, Potka Block, East Singhbhum, Jharkhand. The programme was facilitated in partnership with Paryawaran Chetna Kendra in Sona Gada village.

Government of Meghalaya

A team of Bharti Institute of Public Policy, led by Dr. Aarushi Jain, Policy Director alongwith Amrita Chakraborty, Project Lead, India Data Portal, and others held a meeting with the Speaker of the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly, Thomas A Sangma. The team apprised Sangma on the ongoing collaborations between the Government of Meghalaya and the Institute including the Meghalaya Legislative Research Fellowship (MLRF), Meghalaya Data Portal (MDP) and Meghalaya Legislative Support Programme. The team also had an opportunity to meet with the Minister of Power and Taxation Abu Taher Mondal and Minister of Education Rakkam A Sangma, government of Meghalaya as well as other members of the Legislative Assembly including Subir Marak, Ian Botham K Sangma and Arbinstone B Marak.

A team of the Bharti Institute of Public Policy, led by Prof. Anjal Prakash, Clinical Associate Professor (Research), Bharti Institute of Public Policy, ISB and Dr. Motika Sinha Rymbai, Teaching Assistant-cum-Analyst conducted a three-day workshop in Shillong on ‘Unlocking Research Insights: An Introduction to Methodology and Analytics Workshop’. The workshop was conducted as part of the Meghalaya Legislative Research Fellowship in partnership with the Meghalaya Institute of Governance. The workshop included sessions on Research Methodology and Analytics; Navigating the Policy Landscape; Understanding the Policy Cycle; Understanding Research Methodology Essentials by Prof. Anjal Prakash. Through her session on 'Tackling Real-World Legislative Scenarios, Dr Rymbai focussed on empowering Meghalaya Legislative Research fellows to provide research support to the legislators during Assembly sessions. The workshop also had interactive sessions with Sampath Kumar, IAS, Principal Secretary and Development Commissioner, government of Meghalaya and Aiban Swer, Director, Meghalaya Institute of Governance (MIG). The three-day workshop concluded with a reflective dialogue by Prof. Anjal Prakash highlighting the pivotal role of fellows in advancing evidence-based policymaking for inclusive development in Meghalaya.

On World Environment Day, the Meghalaya Institute of Governance (MIG) and the Meghalaya Legislative Research Fellows (MLRF), Dorbar Shnong Mawlyndep, villagers around Umiam Lake, and Operation Clean Up came together for the second Clean Umiam Campaign at Mawlyndep Village in Meghalaya. The MLRF cohort actively participated in the cleaning drive, alongside volunteers from surrounding villages, UCC college students, and team Jiva.

Government of Odisha

Capacity building is crucial for sustainable forest management. Consequently, under the Initiative on the Forest Economy, a training session on using the nCount technology, was conducted for the volunteers and officials of the Department of Forests, government of Odisha.
Mayurbhanj Jungle Monch (MJM), a public trust organisation, working in Mayurbhanj district, and forests around Simlipal National Park joined the Initiative on the Forest Economy. The collaboration between IoFE and MJM is to explore marketing opportunities for the Seasonal Forest Products (SFPs), and better understanding of CFRR claims through title holding. IoFE’s team based in Baripada, Mayurbhanj, is facilitating the implementation of a district-specific programme in collaboration with the Department of Mission Shakti, Government of Odisha. The team in Baripada led an interactive session ‘Bichar Charcha’ with MJM for a community-level intervention to enhance the volume of tenure security rights in Mayurbhanj, besides seeking community-level volunteer support for IoFE’s technology platform nCount.

Government of Punjab

Bharti Institute of Public Policy is working in collaboration with the department of Governance Reforms and Public Grievances, government of Punjab to develop the Punjab State Open Data Portal. Currently, all the existing datasets are being subset for the portal, and the frontend integration is in progress.

UPDATES ON EXISTING PROJECTS

India Data Portal

India Data Portal’s nation-wide student ambassador programme is in its final stages of completion. The nationwide outreach with Cohort – I, comprising students from Goa Institute of Management, Goa, covered around 45 institutions, while the outreach with Cohort – II, comprising students from IIT Kanpur, will conclude soon. The team has been able to touch base with 50 top tier institutions in India. With this, the India Data Portal is now available as an e-Library resources at the 18 top tier institutions, including 8 IIMs (Bangalore, Kozhikode, Lucknow, Udaipur, Ranchi, Raipur, Nagpur, Amritsar), XLRI, JNU, IIT Hyderabad, IIT Mandi, NIT Meghalaya, NIT Silchar, NMIMS, SPJMIR, GIM, and Mumbai University, TERI SAS, BITS (Pilani, Hyderabad, Goa), Dibrugarh University, Shiv Nadar University.
The team successfully conducted workshops on IDP 2.0 for senior faculties, researchers, students from across top tier universities including the University of Hyderabad, Visva-Bharati University, Kannaur University, Dr. Y S Parmar Institute of Horticulture and Forestry, besides others.
Similarly, introductory workshops on the ease of navigation and functionalities of the Meghalaya Data Portal and HIM Data Portal, were organised for the senior officials from across departments, of both Government of Himachal Pradesh and Government of Meghalaya in Shimla.
On the expansion of the Portal front, India map feature is now enabled in the visualisation engine on the India Data Portal.

Initiative on the Forest Economy (IoFE)

The Initiative on the Forest Economy (IoFE) launched its Summer Fellowship programme with five Ph.D. scholars from the University of Michigan, Cornell University, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, and Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics. A week-long inception workshop was held to prepare fellows for implementing their proposed research through fieldwork. The cohort is engaged in research spanning a broad range of themes, including place-making, mobility, security of tenure, SFP value chains, sustainable forest management, and forest-based livelihoods across West Bengal, Karnataka, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, and Odisha. Training workshops were conducted by Prof. Ashwini Chhatre, Executive Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy, Prof. Anjal Prakash, Research Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy, and Dhanapal G, postgraduate researcher at the Global Development Institute, University of Manchester, on key conceptual topics surrounding forest governance in India, community ownership, forest livelihoods, and methodology in qualitative research. In addition to a rigorous peer-review process facilitated within the cohort, an expert feedback workshop was conducted by Prof. Asmita Kabra, School of Human Ecology, Ambedkar University Delhi, Prof. Ajit Menon, Madras Institute of Development Studies, Chennai, and Dr. Rohini Chaturvedi, independent consultant, and technical advisor, to help fellows refine their fieldwork plans and research proposals.

The Initiative on the Forest Economy is embarking on a significant milestone by entering into a tripartite MoU with the Indian Institute of Information Technology, Delhi (IIITD), the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA), and the Bharti Institute of Public Policy, to formalise the establishment of the CoE-AWRDS. The Centre of Excellence on Aerial and Water Robotics for Development and Sustainability (CoE-AWRDS) is proposed to drive innovation in technologies aimed at addressing critical social development and sustainability challenges. This initiative represents a pioneering effort, uniquely focused on advancing technology accessibility and application for SDGs and large-scale public benefit, encapsulating the ethos of technology for all.
The IoFE Team and officials from the Department of Forests, Himachal Pradesh, gathered at the Bharti Institute of Public Policy, to share on-ground experiences and learnings on adopting nCount. The first phase of the nCount training was implemented across six divisions in Himachal Pradesh including Ani, Dehra, Nachan, Nurpur, Palampur, and Paonta. Over two months, the forest department successfully collected approximately 40,000 data points on various forest species. Key resource persons for the meet included Prof. Ashwini Chhatre, Executive Director, BIPP, Dr. Pushpendra Rana, Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (APCCF), HP and Abhijeet K., Lead, Technology & Research Partnership, Bharti Institute, along with Divisional Forest Officials (DFO) and Deputy Conservator of Forests (DCF) from all six divisions. The meeting served as a platform for the forest officials to clarify their queries on technology, empowering them as ambassadors of nCount. The second phase of nCount will be rolled out to capture at least 40 species and 5000 data points per species. nCount 2.0 will be available for Apple (iOS) users, integrating species-wise data collected by foresters. Data Validation will be enabled through ground truthing. To ensure the nCount technology is beneficial to all foresters, capacity-building training and workshops will be facilitated by the IoFE team on nCount technology and drone mapping.

The team of IoFE has revived its operations in the Gadchiroli district of Maharashtra. Consequently, the CEO of the District Council sought cooperation for Boundary and Inventory Mapping of the Community Forest Right Area and Carbon Sequestration in the district. The mapping process will begin soon in the Dhanora block.

Enabling Nutrition and Agriculture Convergence through Technical Support (ENACTS)

A team of ENACTS comprising Saubhagya Samal, PMU Lead, Pranabandhu Nayak, Project Specialist, and Nutan Satpathy, Project Associate, held a meeting with the district administration officials, Keonjhar. The team visited the Chief Development Officer (CDO) to discuss the ENACTS initiative and the intervention at Harichandanpur. During the meeting, the CDO was briefed on the overall concept of the initiative, focusing on making nutrient-dense foods (NDFs) available, affordable, and accessible to marginalised communities. The team also briefed the officials about the selection of 7 Gram Panchayats of Harichandanpur as a pilot geography for agri-nutrition intervention implementation in association with implementation partner CinI.
The ENACTS teams from Odisha PMU—Susmita Kanungo, Nutan Satpathy and Pranabandhu Nayak —revisited Gajapati to gather additional information on the case studies initially identified. The team focused on examining the detailed processes of millet procurement at the local mandis. Additionally, the team explored the marketplace established by multiple Self-Help Groups (SHGs) and observed the entrepreneurial ventures of SHGs supplying Ragi ladoos and millet-based snacks to ashram schools. The team also visited the first solar-powered processing unit managed by the Farmer Producer Company (FPC) in Govindpur village, Mohana.

The Food System Visualisation Engine was introduced at the Governance Summit held at the Indian School of Business Campus in Mohali. During the launch, Prof. Ashwini Chhatre, highlighted that the Engine tackles the issue of limited transparency in food systems, enabling all stakeholders to intuitively utilise the data. He underscored the importance of technology in revealing small but crucial details within food systems.

INFUSION (Indian Food Systems for Improved Nutrition – Policy Support Research Facility for advancing India’s agriculture-nutrition convergence agenda)

As part of the intervention, the team facilitated setting up of a community owned and women led ‘JEEViKA Didi Haat’ as a market oriented, self-sustainable model of nutrition dense food supply systems. Another intervention involves convergence of JEEViKA’s food security fund into a nutrition security fund to empower women by providing better access to nutrient dense foods for improved health and growth outcomes. Initial scoping research and intervention planning has already been completed with active participation of JEEViKA cadres and support of staff members who have been well oriented towards the research design, methodology and expected impact through several meetings and workshops conducted in the past.
To take the INFUSION project ahead, as part of the pre-pilot activities, more than 30 enumerators were hired and trained, both on and off the field for high frequency data collection besides conducting field trials of the specially designed research tools. This was taken up in two pilot districts of Bihar: Bhojpur and Samstipur, to recalibrate the tools for desired efficiency and effectiveness. This entire activity was held under the co-leadership of Prof. Bhavani Shankar, Head, Institute of Sustainable Food, London School of Health & Tropical Medicine, UK, along with senior researchers Dr. Anjali Purushottam and Dr. Gregory Cooper from TUoS, Dr. Shanthi Bhogadi from NIN, Pratyush Gaurav from MSC, and Mr. Allen Francis from DAI.

Platform for Development Research and Communications

As part of the initiative, six workshops corresponding to the six volumes of books under the broad theme of human development were held across both ISB campuses. A dynamic knowledge café model was utilised for these workshops wherein authors presented concise overviews of their themes, methodologies, and findings. This facilitated discussions on strengths, weaknesses, and areas for improvement.
The draft chapters on almost all the volumes including Climate Action and Justice; Improving Learning Outcomes in Schools; Healthcare for All; Improved Nutritional Outcomes; Institutional Challenges in Social Development; Livelihood Diversification and Skills; and Livelihood Diversification and Skills, have been received with post-peer review. For all these volumes, weekly updates are being provided to the editors, with research support and regular follow-ups with authors. The process of copy-editing is also in progress for three of the six volumes.

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

The team from Bharti Institute of Public Policy, ISB (BIPP) consisting of Anjal Prakash, Clinical Associate Professor (Research) & Research Director; Dr. Aarushi Jain, Policy Director and Deepti Soni, Associate Director, met with Dr Rajesh Gokhale, Secretary, Department of Biotechnology, Government of India (DBT), in Delhi to discuss opportunities for probable collaborations between the Institute and DBT.

A team of the Indian School of Business (ISB) comprising Prasanna Tantri, Associate Professor, ISB and Deepti Soni, Associate Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy, ISB participated in the National Conference on Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (NCMEL 2024), organised by the Development Monitoring & Evaluation Office, NITI Aayog in New Delhi.

Events

Bharti Institute of Public Policy, ISB (BIPP) and Lifelong Learning Services, ISB’s Department of Alumni Engagement at the Indian School of Business hosted a panel discussion on 'Sustainable Horizons: Navigating ESG and Policy in India' in Mumbai. The panellists were Pradeep Panigrahi, Ph. D., Head, Corporate Sustainability, Larsen & Toubro, CA Puneeta Puri, Executive Director, Indian ESG Network, Rajinder Kumar, Director, Competition Commission Of India, and Vishnu Sudarsan, Partner, JSA. The discussion was moderated by Dr. Aarushi Jain, Policy Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy. The panellists discussed how businesses are being impacted by environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors. The panellists discussed challenges such as measuring ESG impact, integrating climate change, and artificial intelligence (AI). They discussed how companies were considering both short-term and long-term sustainability goals, with current efforts focussed on meeting basic compliance. The discussion was followed by a Q&A session with the audience.

Research Publication & Blogs

Anjal Prakash, Clinical Associate Professor (Research), Bharti Institute of Public Policy, ISB co-authored a research paper titled ‘Intersecting pathways: Eco-feminist perspectives on intersectionality, water management, and responsible tourism for gender-inclusive community development’, published in the journal Current Research in Environmental Sustainability.
Ashwini Chhatre, Associate Professor and Executive Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy, ISB published an article titled, Indian farmers look for hardy alternatives to climate-change impacted wheat. The article was published in the Research Perspectives of the ISB’s Executive Perspectives.
Bharti Institute has published over 12 blogs contributed by researchers, public policy practitioners, alumni, and academicians on various policy matters on its website. The research team of the Institute is also contributing write-ups and blogs for the HIM Data portal.

Outreach Activities

Policy Talks, an initiative of ISB Studios in association with the Bharti Institute, is a unique videocast series, aimed at enabling viewers to gain perspective on the nuances of policymaking in India. After receiving positive response for the first two seasons, five episodes of Season 3 were launched.

Policy Talks S3E1: features Purnamita Dasgupta, Head, Environmental & Resource Economics Unit, Institute of Economic Growth and Co-negotiator, India Delegation at IPCC in conversation with Anjal Prakash, Clinical Associate Professor (Research) & Research Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy.

Policy Talks S3E2: features Poonam Muttreja, Executive Director, Population Foundation of India in conversation with Dr Aarushi Jain, Policy Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy.

Policy Talks S3E3: features Dr Radhakrishnan Pillai, Director Chanakya International Institute of Leadership Studies, University of Mumbai in conversation with Anjal Prakash, Clinical Associate Professor (Research) & Research Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy.

Policy Talks S3E4: features Padma Bhushan Dr K Srinath Reddy, honorary distinguished Professor of Public Health, Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI) in conversation with Dr Aarushi Jain, Policy Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy.

Policy Talks S3E5: features Jayanta Basu, Professor, Calcutta University, Kolkata and Environment Journalist in conversation with Anjal Prakash, Clinical Assoicate Professor (Research) & Research Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy. Business.

BHARTI INSTITUTE IN NEWS

To gain firsthand experience in policy design and implementation, students of the Advanced Management Programme in Public Policy (AMPPP) went on a three-day annual ‘Policy Walk’ in New Delhi. Read the news in The Hindu.
Bharti Institute of Public Policy launched its second book, ‘Technology, Policy, and Inclusion: An Intersection of Ideas for Public Policy’. Read the news in the Deccan Chronicle| Authors and Books | Business News This Week | Biznewsdesk | Smartbusinessnews | Telangana Today | BizzBuzz | UNI |
Bharti Institute of Public Policy conducted a workshop for government officials in Meghalaya. Read the news in The Times of India.
Bharti Institute of Public Policy held a meeting with the speaker of Meghalaya Legislative assembly on the progress of the state data portal and the ongoing engagements between the state and the Institute. Read in The Times of India | Highland Post | Syllad | Hub News | The Sentinel | Janta Se Rishta.
Bharti Institute hosted the second edition of the Governance Summit on 'Food Systems: Balancing Equity and Sustainability. Read the news in the Newstap.

Team in News

The team of Bharti Institute of Public Policy publishes articles and features in newspapers and other media outlets regularly. An indicative list is provided below.

In an article titled 'India braced for heatwaves as nearly 1bn head for marathon summer elections,' Anjal Prakash, Clinical Associate Professor (Research), Bharti Institute of Public Policy, ISB speaks with Benjamin Parkin of Financial Times.

Anjal Prakash, Clinical Associate Professor (Research) & Research Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy published an article titled, 'Traversing through Delhi's Water Crisis Towards a Sustainable Future. Read in The Quint.

Anjal Prakash, Clinical Associate Professor (Research) & Research Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy, participated in a debate on the water crisis in New Delhi. Watch the debate on NDTV.

Anjal Prakash, Clinical Associate Professor (Research) and Ritwick George, Research Assistant, Bharti Institute of Public Policy, published an article titled 'Climate Equity: Prioritising Vulnerable Regions for Resilience and Adaptation', to explore the link between climate vulnerability and poverty in India. Read in The Quint.

Anjal Prakash, Clinical Associate Professor (Research) & Research Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy, ISB published an article titled 'Community Mobilisation Key To Land Revival Efforts', in the special edition of Outlook Business.

Anjal Prakash, Clinical Associate Professor (Research) & Research Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy, published an article titled 'Tackling Punjab's Rice Predicament: Balancing Tradition with Sustainability'. Read in Hindustan Times.

On the occasion of World Population Day, Nimisha Jain, Research Manager, Bharti Institute of Public Policy, participated in a discussion on the impact of India's growing population on the economy. Watch the discussion on Zee News-PHH.

About Bharti Institute of Public Policy

The Bharti Institute of Public Policy is an integral part of the Indian School of Business. Functioning as an independent think-tank, the institute engages with policy makers by providing them with critical, evidence-based analysis of public policy rooted in data. The institute works on policy challenges across diverse domains, the main ones being Agriculture and Food, Environment, Education, Financial Policy, Governance and Digital identity.

Call for Working Papers & Research Blogs

It is for the relentless dedication of our amazing team that Bharti Institute keeps on scaling new heights and flourishing even when times get pandemically tough. We thank our researchers, associates, managers, writers, and coordinators for their contribution and noteworthy effort to Bharti Institute’s innovative programmes, change oriented collaborations, and dynamic pursuits. Miles to go, together!