Resource Persons / Associates

Dr. S. P. Pal

Ph.D. (Economics) · Senior Advisor and Member, DESI

Dr. Pal served as an Adviser in the Programme Evaluation Organisation (PEO), Planning Commission, Government of India, from 1995 to 2006. Following his tenure with the Planning Commission, he worked as a Consultant and Adviser to several leading national and international organisations, including the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER), the Independent Evaluation Office (IEO), the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (IIMA), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Centre for Development and Human Rights (CDHR) during 2006–2014. He has also served as a consultant to DANIDA, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), UNDP (Human Development), the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and IIM Ahmedabad.

With over four decades of professional experience, Dr. Pal has led, guided and directed applied economic research in the areas of:

• Impact evaluation of national development programmes and public policy interventions
• Rights-based approaches to development
• Development planning, policy analysis and socio-economic research

He has held several senior leadership positions, including Head of the Human Development Research Unit at NCAER for eight years and Head of the Programme Evaluation Organisation (PEO), Planning Commission, for eleven years. He has published around 30 research papers, four books (including one edited volume) and more than 50 research reports on development policy, programme evaluation and socio-economic issues.

Mr. K. N. Pathak

Retired Joint Adviser, NITI Aayog (formerly Planning Commission of India)

Academic qualifications: M.A. and M.Phil. — Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi; M.Sc. in Social Policy and Planning — London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), University of London.

Mr. Pathak is a distinguished public policy and development professional with over 30 years of experience in planning, policy formulation, project appraisal, monitoring and evaluation. He served in various capacities at NITI Aayog, Government of India, contributing to the formulation and implementation of development policies across a wide range of sectors. During 2008–2009 he served as an Adviser to the Government of Afghanistan under the tripartite partnership of the Government of India, the Government of Afghanistan and UNDP. After retirement he served as a Consultant with the Ministry of Minority Affairs (2017–2021), contributing to the planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of programmes for minority communities.

Areas of expertise: education policy, planning and development; monitoring and evaluation; project appraisal and project management; labour, employment, manpower planning and skill development; water resources, river development and Ganga rejuvenation; minority affairs and welfare.

He has participated extensively in national and international seminars, conferences and workshops, and has authored papers published in national and international journals. Countries visited: U.S.A., United Kingdom, France, Switzerland, Italy, Japan, Turkey, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan.

Dr. Tarujyoti Buragohain

Ph.D. (Economics) · Governing Body Member, DESI

Dr. Buragohain is an accomplished development economist with extensive experience in socio-economic research, policy analysis and programme evaluation. Prior to joining DESI, she served as an Associate Fellow at NCAER, New Delhi, and earlier as a Senior Technical Assistant at the National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration (NIEPA), New Delhi.

She has served on several advisory and technical committees of the Government of India, including the Research Advisory Committee (RAC) on Tribal Development Research, Ministry of Tribal Affairs; the Advisory Committee, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE); and the Steering Committee and Technical Committee, Ministry of Small-Scale Industries.

Her work spans agriculture, rural development, education, public health, renewable energy, poverty alleviation, tribal development, infrastructure and the Indian economy. She has authored more than 50 research publications, and was conferred the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Society of Tropical Agriculture, New Delhi.

Er. Shish Pal Bansal

B.Tech. (Agricultural Engineering), MBA (Marketing) · Senior Consultant and Member, DESI

Er. Bansal has over 35 years of professional experience in agricultural engineering, farm mechanisation, monitoring and evaluation, impact assessment and agricultural technology management. As a freelance consultant he has undertaken numerous monitoring, performance evaluation, impact assessment and technology validation studies, including the evaluation of combine harvesters and other agricultural machinery.

Major assignments: Management of the Central Farm Machinery Workshop (1993–2016); Additional Director (Farm) (2001–2002); Additional Director (Farm Marketing) (2005–2009); earlier assignments with Eicher Tractors Limited and the Haryana Land Reclamation Corporation (1980–1993).

• Performance Evaluation and Impact Assessment of the Sub-Mission on Agricultural Mechanization (SMAM) and Integrated Water Management Projects, with WAPCOS Limited.
• Senior Adviser (Farm Mechanization), NCAER, for the Mahindra & Mahindra sponsored “White Paper on Making Indian Farm Machinery a Global Powerhouse”.
• Consultant, NCAER, for the NITI Aayog sponsored Pan-India Evaluation of the Price Stabilization Fund (PSF) and Price Support Scheme (PSS).
• Senior Adviser, NCAER, for the NITI Aayog sponsored Pan-India Study on Improving the Economic Viability of Gaushalas for the Production and Promotion of Bio-fertilisers.

Mr. Samir Kumar Mondal

M.A. (Economics), PG Diploma in Journalism · Senior Consultant, DESI

Mr. Mondal has over 40 years of research experience and has authored 14 research papers in national and international journals. He served for 30 years at NCAER as an Associate Fellow until 2006, and subsequently as a project-based consultant on major studies, including the Handloom Study commissioned by the Development Commissioner (Handlooms), Ministry of Textiles. During 2018–2019 he worked as an Economist with Sutra Consulting on the World Bank sponsored Horticulture Development Project (HP-HDP), and from July to October 2025 as a Consultant at the National Institute of Labour Economics Research and Development (NILERD), New Delhi.

Areas of expertise: planning and managing large-scale field surveys (recruitment, training and supervision of investigators); field coordination and monitoring across India; questionnaire and survey instrument design; research proposal development; data validation and cleaning; statistical and economic data analysis; report writing and policy analysis.