People Page

Dr. Subhashree Patra is a Post-Doctoral Associate at the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), Bengaluru. Her research focuses on forest ecology, biodiversity conservation, restoration biology, invasion biology, and the application of remote sensing and GIS to understand ecosystem dynamics. Currently,  she is involved in a project based on examining natural resource availability and utilization patterns through an integrative, interdisciplinary approach.

Her Ph.D. research work focuses on the ecological impacts of disturbances on vegetation dynamics, with field-based studies combined with geospatial techniques. She has examined floristic composition, forest regeneration potential, invasive species spread, and long-term forest cover change, with particular attention to conservation priorities and sustainable management of forest landscapes. Broadly, her work aims to support evidence-based strategies for biodiversity conservation and ecosystem restoration.

Sandipta is currently working as a Post-Doctoral Associate in the Heritage Science and Society Programme, School of Humanities, at the National Institute of Advanced Studies under the project titled “Towards a National Cultural Landscape Information System: Mapping Heritage Sites for Inclusive Planning”. Her contribution to the project involves site-specific archaeological and historical landscape documentation, mapping, and analysis using geospatial techniques. The documented outputs and spatial datasets are being integrated into the Kasturi Geospatial portal of Bhuvan in collaboration with the National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC). Her research focuses on cultural landscape studies through the integration of geospatial technologies and historical evidence-based analysis, with special emphasis on Historical GIS (H-GIS) applications for heritage documentation, mapping, and inclusive planning. Her specialization in Urban Studies, particularly examining the impact of urban growth and urban threats on heritage landscape environments. She works on understanding the transformation of cultural landscapes over time and developing geospatial frameworks for heritage conservation and sustainable urban planning.

Dr. Narayan Kayet is currently serving as an Assistant Professor in the Energy, Environment, and Climate Change Programme at National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS) since 15 May 2026. Prior to joining NIAS, he worked as a research scientist and principal investigator (PI) at Environmental Management & Policy Research Institute (EMPRI), Government of Karnataka, from January 2023 to May 2026. Dr. Kayet earned his Ph.D. in Remote Sensing and GIS from Vidyasagar University in collaboration with Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur. Before joining NIAS, he served as a Postdoctoral Fellow at Birla Institute of Technology and Science Pilani, Goa Campus and as a Postdoctoral Research Associate (RA-I) in the Department of Mining Engineering at Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur. His research focuses on innovative applications of Remote Sensing, GIS, and environmental sustainability, particularly in the fields of air quality monitoring, climate  change, mining, forestry, and environmental policymaking. To date, Dr. Kayet has published 25 research articles in high-impact SCI Q1 international  journals, along with 5 book chapters and 7 papers in international conference proceedings. He has successfully led several high-value research projects as Principal Investigator, including: Short-Lived Climate Pollutants for Karnataka (Vasudha Foundation), Development of HighResolution District-Level Emission Inventories and Mitigation Strategies for Major Air Pollutants in Karnataka (CiSTUP, Indian Institute of Science), Mainstreaming Non-CO₂ Action within Karnataka’s Climate Action Framework (Vasudha Foundation) and Evaluation and Inspection of Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations in Karnataka (KSPCB).  Dr. Kayet has also been selected as a Lead Author for the upcoming Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Methodology Report on Short-Lived Climate Forcers (SLCFs). In recognition of his contributions, he has received several prestigious awards, including the Gandhian Young Technological Innovation Award (DST), the Sustainability Global Changemaker Award by the ESG Research Foundation, and the Excellence Award in Air Quality Management by ELCITA. Dr. Kayet has a strong interest in remote sensing and GIS applications in air quality, mining, and forestry, with a focus on sustainable resource management and environmental monitoring.

J.S. Kharakwal did his masters from Kumaun University, Nainital and Ph. D form Deccan College, Pune in the year 1994, on the Archaeology of Central Himalayan Region. He spearheaded archaeological excavations at Kanmer, a Harappan site in Kachchh, Gujarat (2005 to 2016), Chandravati, near Abu Road (2013-16) and at Zawar (2019). He has published widely on Uttarakhand, Rajasthan and Gujarat which include 6 books, 4 monographs and 80 research papers in various journals like Antiquity, Archaeological Science, Radiocarbon, Man and Environment, and others.

He was awarded a post doctoral fellowship of Japan Society for Promotion of Science (JSPS) at the International Research Center for Japanese Studies, Kyoto, Japan for 15 months (2001-2002) and subsequently invited as a Visiting Professor at the Research Institute for Humanity and Nature, Kyoto, Japan for one year (2004-2005).

He is a member of various national and international academic societies. He has participated in various national and international seminars in several countries such as France, Austria, Italy, Japan, Turkmenistan, China, Vietnam and Iran. He has organized national and international seminars, symposia, workshops and has participated in seminars in various countries in Europe and Asia. He also enjoyed an opportunity to deliver presidential address in the year 2021 in Haryana History Congress, Kurukshetra.

He is a member of LOCF Committee of UGC for Archaeology and Traditional Knowledge Committee of CSIR, New Delhi. He is a member of BoS of a few universities. He is currently working as Director of Sahitya Sansthan, JRN Rajasthan Vidyapeeth, (Deemed University), Udaipur, Rajasthan.

Dr. Rekha is a Post-Doctoral Associate at the National Institute of Advanced Studies working in the domain of atmospheric science and air quality research. Her work focuses on understanding the dynamics of air pollution, its interaction with meteorological parameters and large-scale climatic phenomena. She holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Sciences from Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, where her research focused on multivariate analysis of ambient air quality and winter fog, incorporating wind dynamics and air mass trajectory analysis. Prior joining NIAS, she has worked at CSIR–National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (CSIR-NEERI), Delhi Zonal Centre in air quality resource management group gaining valuable experience in several R&D projects involving air pollution that included data analysis, source apportionment, receptor modeling and emission inventory-based studies. With several years of research experience, she has contributed to projects related to air quality-based studies, climate variability and regional atmospheric processes across leading institutions. She is a Life Member of Indian Aerosol Science and technology Association (IASTA). Dr. Rekha has presented her work on national and international platforms and has published in reputed journals.

Dr. Y. Deepthi is an Environmental Professional with 5 years of experience, having a strong focus on grassroots-level, multidisciplinary rural studies. Her work primarily emphasizes indoor air pollution and its overarching impacts on the environment and public health, integrating science, policy, and environmental management perspectives.

She completed her PhD from IIT Madras, where her research focused on human exposure to indoor air pollution in rural South India and the evaluation of clean cooking interventions. Her work involved extensive field-based monitoring, exposure assessment studies, and evaluation of interventions such as clean fuels and improved cookstoves. She holds an interdisciplinary Master’s degree in Technology and Development from CTARA, IIT Bombay, and a Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from Osmania University.

Her current research focuses on air pollution assessment, health risk assessment, HFC emission quantification, low-cost sensor evaluation, and air quality impacts of emerging energy and transport transitions. She has authored peer-reviewed journal publications, book chapters, and several national and international conference presentations. Her research aims to support evidence-based environmental policymaking and sustainable strategies for improving air quality and reducing pollution-related health impacts.

Samayita Banerjee is a Postdoctoral Associate in the Heritage Science and Society Programme at the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), Bengaluru. Her work at NIAS focuses on the spatial documentation and GIS analysis of cultural heritage landscapes across India as part of the project Towards a National Cultural Landscape Information System, which is developing the KASTURI Portal, India's first curated geospatial heritage platform hosted on ISRO-Bhuvan. Her contributions include landscape mapping, dataset validation, and the development of spatial narratives for understudied archaeological sites. Her broader research specialisation lies in the landscape archaeology and geoarchaeology of South Asia, with a particular focus on human-environment interactions in the deltaic and coastal zones of Bengal and the forested uplands of central India.

Dr Dipak Mandal is a Post-Doctoral Associate at the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), Bengaluru. His research focuses on environmental governance, sustainability, and development studies, with particular attention to how socio-ecological systems respond to change in urban and coastal regions. His current work examines climate change, livelihood transitions, and ecosystem dynamics in the Indian Sundarbans. Through field-based research and stakeholder engagement, he explores how environmental vulnerability shapes everyday life, mobility, and adaptation in vulnerable coastal communities.

His doctoral research on urban environmental movements in Bengaluru examined the role of civic engagement in issues such as waste management and the conservation of urban commons. Broadly, his work is driven by an interest in understanding how community-led initiatives can contribute to more sustainable and inclusive forms of environmental governance.

Jithin Jose is an environmental engineer and researcher specialising in air quality assessment, emission inventory development, and particulate matter characterisation. He is currently working as a Postdoctoral Associate at the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), Bengaluru, where he contributes to research on atmospheric pollution, emission hotspots, and policy-relevant air quality studies.

He completed his Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering from Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), where his research focused on road dust characterisation, source apportionment, and associated health risks. He also holds an M.Tech in Energy and Environmental Engineering from VIT and a B.Tech in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Kerala.

Jithin has diverse professional experience spanning academia, research, and industry. He has served as a Teaching and Research Associate and Assistant Professor at VIT, and later as a Senior Research Fellow on a Department of Science and Technology-funded project. He has also worked as a Project Manager on large-scale source apportionment and emission inventory projects at IIT Madras, and as Chief Technology Officer at an IIT-Madras-based startup developing air pollution control technologies.

His research expertise includes air pollution monitoring, dispersion modelling, receptor modelling, and health risk assessment, supported by hands-on experience with advanced analytical instruments and modelling tools. He has authored multiple peer-reviewed publications in reputed international journals and has received several awards for best paper presentations at national and international conferences.

Dr. Vani Kulkarni is a researcher at the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), 
Bangalore, working at the interface of behavioural ecology and microbiome science. Her 
research examines how animals make foraging decisions in changing environments and how 
these behaviours are linked to gut microbial communities.

Using primates as model systems, her work integrates behavioural experiments, ecological 
analysis, and microbial genomics to understand how anthropogenic environments reshape diet, 
perception, and host–microbiome interactions. Her research aims to address broader questions 
on ecological flexibility, adaptation, and the consequences of human-modified landscapes for 
animal behaviour and physiology