Dr. Kingshuk S. is Professor and Area Chair of General Management and Economics at the Goa Institute of Management. He has over two decades of experience as a Labour Administrator in the Government of West Bengal. His core expertise lies in labour economics, with research interests spanning plantation economics, industrial relations, law and economics, labour administration, and the informal labour sector. He has also served as Fellow at the V.V. Giri National Labour Institute, Assistant Professor at the National Institute of Rural Development, and Guest Faculty at Jamia Millia Islamia. He has contributed widely to reputed journals and newspapers, participated in numerous research projects, conferences, and seminars in India and abroad, and represented India at global forums.He holds a PhD in Economics from Jawaharlal Nehru University, an M.A. in Economics from the University of Calcutta, and an M.Phil. from Jadavpur University. He can be reached at kingshuk71@hotmail.com

Dr. Swapnoneel R. is a computer scientist and academic whose work focuses on computer security, energy-aware computing, computational biology, cybersecurity, blockchain security, green computing, multi-robot systems, and secure algorithms. He is Professor in the School of Computing at the University of North Florida, USA, where he has also served as Associate Professor and Assistant Professor. He is also Co-Director of the UNF Center for Cybersecurity and has formerly worked as Senior Level Fellow at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, Research Assistant at the University at Buffalo, SUNY, and Software Engineer at IBM India Software Lab, Bangalore. His scholarly work includes extensive publications in refereed journals, book chapters, and international conference proceedings, with research appearing in outlets such as IEEE Access, ACM Computing Surveys, Sensors, Electronics, Internet of Things, IEEE Transactions on Network and Service Management, and other leading platforms. He has received several honours, including the Outstanding Faculty Scholarship Award at the University of North Florida, the FIS Distinguished Professor recognition, the Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Award, and a Best Paper Award at ICACNI. He has also led and contributed to major funded projects supported by institutions including the National Security Agency, National Science Foundation, Cyber Florida, Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, and the University of North Florida. He holds a PhD in Computer Science and Engineering from the University at Buffalo, SUNY; an M.S. in Computer Science and Engineering from IIT Madras; and a B.Tech. in Computer Science and Engineering from the University of Kalyani. He can be reached at s.roy@unf.edu 

Dr. Ayanendu S. is an economist and public policy researcher. His academic and professional work focuses on public finance, fiscal federalism, labour markets, the digital economy, development policy, state finances, and applied policy analysis. He has contributed to major research and policy assignments relating to state finance, local government finance, fiscal analysis, public expenditure, labour policy, and social protection. His writings and policy commentaries have appeared, among others, in Economic and Political Weekly, The Hindu Business Line, The Wire, and The Indian Express. His doctoral thesis, “Civil Service Pension Reforms in India,” submitted in January 2013, critically examined India’s shift towards contribution-based pension reform and predicted that such a model would face serious challenges in ensuring adequate and secure old-age income. It further argued that India would eventually require a hybrid pension framework that could balance the fiscal concerns of the government with the income-security concerns of civil servants. The later introduction of the Unified Pension Scheme in April, 2025, with an assured pension component alongside contributory features, closely echoed this early argument for combining defined benefit and defined contribution principles. His research interests span pensions, labour markets, digital work, education, social protection, fiscal governance, and development economics. He holds a PhD in Economics from the Institute for Social and Economic Change, Bangalore / University of Mysore, an M.A. in Economics from Visva-Bharati University, and a B.A. in Economics from Visva-Bharati University. He can be reached at ayanendu1@gmail.com 

Shri Debasis D. is an inventor, chemist, and genetics researcher, currently serving as Associate Professor at Brainware University, Barasat, West Bengal. He has around seventeen years of experience across academia, scientific research, pharmaceutical industry, molecular diagnostics, medical writing, and testing laboratories. His academic and research interests span pharmaceutical chemistry, molecular biology, clinical research, translational pharmaceutics, infectious disease diagnostics, oral cancer epigenomics, biomaterials, biocidal films, and drug delivery systems. He has published in peer-reviewed journals including the Indian Journal of Natural Sciences, Journal of Medical and Allied Sciences, Epigenomics, and Bioresource Technology, and has also contributed book chapters on pharmacogenomics, herbal medicine and pregnancy, and male infertility in assisted reproductive techniques. He has formerly served as Research Assistant at VRDL, Diamond Harbour Government Medical College and Hospital, Medical Writer at Molecular Connections, Molecular Biologist at an RT-PCR Laboratory, Project Research Fellow at the Indian Statistical Institute, Analytical Chemist at S.H. Laboratory, Senior Research Fellow at the University of Calcutta, Junior Scientist at Zydus Cadila, and Lecturer in pharmacy institutions. He holds an M.Pharm in Pharmaceutical Chemistry and a B.Pharm, and has received research fellowships and scholarships from institutions including the Indian Statistical Institute, Department of Biotechnology, and MHRD/GATE. He can be reached at sayan57@gmail.com.

Dr. Kanchan B. is Assistant Professor at the Centre for Culture and Development, Vadodara, Gujarat. Her academic and research interests lie in sociology, social gerontology, ageing, widowhood, elderly care, suicide studies, urban daily labour markets, marriage and divorce, social change, and development studies. She has been associated with the Centre for Culture and Development since July 2013 and formerly served as Academic Associate at the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, Research Project Assistant at the National Institute of Rural Development, and Project Fellow at NCERT, New Delhi. Her scholarly work includes journal articles, books, book chapters, project reports, working papers, and public writings, with publications in Economic and Political Weekly, Indian Journal of Gerontology, Urban India, Jharkhand Journal of Development and Management Studies, Routledge, Manohar Publishers, and other academic platforms. She has coordinated and contributed to several research projects on daily labour markets, suicide, urban transformation, social security, ageing, marriage and divorce, and elderly care. She holds a PhD in Sociology from the Institute for Social and Economic Change, University of Mysore; an M.Phil. in Sociology from the University of Hyderabad; a Master’s degree in Sociology from Jawaharlal Nehru University; and a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology from the University of Delhi. She can be reached at kbharati82@gmail.com 

Dr. Mukesh K. is an economist whose research interests lie in applied development and health economics, child nutrition and human capital, socioeconomic inequality, and WASH. Formerly, he served as Research Associate at the VII State Finance Commission, Haryana. His academic work focuses on nutrition, health, education, sanitation, digital ability, inequality, and human development, with publications in journals such as the Indian Journal of Human Development, Journal of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for Development, Journal of Nutritional Science, PLoS ONE, and Economic and Political Weekly. He has also contributed to policy and public writings in The Daily Pioneer, The New Indian Express, and the Sanitation Learning Hub, IDS-UK, and has presented his work at academic forums in India and abroad. He has received research and travel support from institutions including ICSSR, IIT Roorkee, the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, the European Association for Population Studies, and the Menstrual Research Network UK. He holds a PhD in Economics from the Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, a Master’s degree in Economics from Choudhary Devi Lal University, Sirsa, and a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Kurukshetra University. He can be reached at mkumar@hs.iitr.ac.in 

Shrimati Manisha P. N. is an economist and academic whose work focuses on informal labour economy, urban economic issues, sustainable development, digital transformation, financial inclusion, governance, and evidence-based policymaking. She is Assistant Professor and Head, Department of Economics, at National Education Society’s Ratnam College of Arts, Science and Commerce, Mumbai, and has over a decade of teaching experience in Economics at the undergraduate level. She has also served as Lecturer at V.G. Vaze College, Mulund, and as Visiting Faculty at SIES College, Nerul, ICL Jhunjhunwala College, Vashi, and Shree Narayan Guru College, Chembur. She has contributed to SWAYAM MOOC courses under the Ministry of Education as Content Developer and Presenter, and her writings have appeared in national, international, and policy-oriented academic platforms, including the London School of Economics Impact Blog. She has received First Rank at the University of Mumbai Aavishkar Research Convention and at the Maharashtra State Inter-University Aavishkar Research Convention in 2025–26. Her publications and presentations cover themes such as informal labour, gendered economies, Industry 4.0, skills gaps, khadi and rural inclusion, AI in higher education, women’s economic contribution, financial inclusion, cloud computing, and sustainable development. She holds an M.A. in Economics and a B.A. in Economics from the University of Mumbai, and is UGC-NET qualified in Economics. She can be reached at manisha.prashant.navale@gmail.com 

Dr. Harsha T. is an economist and academic whose work focuses on development economics, rural employment, MGNREGP, labour, public policy, sustainability, waste management, and applied economic analysis. She is Assistant Professor Grade-II at the Amity School of Economics, Amity University Kolkata, and has over thirteen years of teaching, research, coordination, and project experience. She has formerly taught at St. Teresa School, Bolpur, served as Guest Lecturer at B.P. Poddar Institute of Management & Technology and Savitri Girls’ College, Kolkata, worked as Research Assistant for Prof. Tirthankar Roy of the London School of Economics, and served as Project Coordinator at Mahila Udyog Kendra, Patna. Her publications include journal articles and book chapters on MGNREGP, rural labour, sustainable tourism, waste management, child labour, infrastructure, COVID-19 vulnerability, and Indian economic development. She has presented papers in several national and international conferences and has also served as reviewer for academic journals. She holds a PhD in Economics from Visva-Bharati University, Santiniketan, with the thesis “Evaluating MGNREGP of India: Performance across Indian States and Districts,” an M.Phil. in Economics from Visva-Bharati University, an M.A. in Economics from Rabindra Bharati University, and a B.Sc. Honours in Economics from the University of Calcutta. She can be reached at harshatiwary08@gmail.com 

Dr. Chandrikkumar R. is a social work academic, trainer, and development practitioner whose work focuses on training and development, life skill education, CSR evaluation and impact assessment, documentation, social audits, community development, paralegal education, social justice, and grassroots institution-building. He is currently associated with the Department of Extension and Communication, The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, as Assistant Professor, and has formerly served at the Programme of Fashion Communication, MSU Baroda; Department of Social Work, Sardar Patel University; Mahatma Gandhi Labour Institute, Ahmedabad; Anand Institute of Social Work; Indian Institute of Paralegal Studies; and Centre for Social Justice, Ahmedabad. His academic and professional work spans teaching, training, monitoring and evaluation, proposal development, MIS, social media-based communication, CSR projects, field-based educational programmes, and networking with government, industry, and civil society organisations. He has published papers, books, book chapters, edited training materials and manuals, and contributed to projects on CSR, life skills, sustainable livelihoods, migrant labour, women prisoners, juvenile girls, adult education, non-formal education, and community development. He holds a PhD from Sardar Patel University, V.V. Nagar, a Master of Social Work and Bachelor of Social Work from Sardar Patel University, and has qualified NET and GSET in Social Work. He can be reached at chandrikrajdeep@gmail.com