Sarthak is an Associate Professor in Economics area. His research and teaching interests are in the areas of development economics, applied econometrics, insurance markets, behavioural economics, and entrepreneurship. He has published research articles in journals such as Journal of Marketing Research, World Development, Oxford Development Studies, and Economic and Political Weekly. Prior to joining SJMSOM, he worked as a post-doctoral researcher at the Asia Research Centre of London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) and the Centre de Sciences Humaines (CSH), New Delhi in the well-known ‘Palanpur Study’. He has a Ph.D. in Economics from the Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research (IGIDR) and was a Visiting Doctoral Scholar at Wharton School, the University of Pennsylvania in 2011.
He was also a Young Scientist at the International Institute of Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), Laxenburg, Austria in 2010. He has won two ILO Research Grants, a USAID Visiting Doctoral Fellowship, and was selected by the Reserve Bank of India for participation in the 4th Lindau Meeting of Nobel Laureates in Economic Sciences. Prior to joining IGIDR for his Ph.D., he worked as a Development Consultant at the Centre for Insurance and Risk Management at IFMR, Chennai.
Topic A: Experts, Expertise, and Policy
Both PhD/MPP
Research Area: Markets and Governance Processes
Description: Policies and policymaking depend on experts as well as their expertise in myriad forms, and at different stages. As we grapple with uncertainty in policies ranging from the New Farm Laws to management of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a need for examination of the following questions. What is the knowledge regime in Indian policy making? Who is an expert? What is the role of experts in policy making? How is expertise legitimised and delegitimised in the policy making process? How is expertise signalled? Can the expert and expertise be separated? How does knowledge weigh on the policy making process (historical as well as contemporary)? Can we develop appropriate and accountable ‘expert consultation’ criteria/mechanisms given specific policy questions?
Research Area: Markets and Governance Processes
Description: Uncertainty is central to policy problems as well as policy making. However, policy makers and policy making often rely on knowledge based on models and frameworks that neither incorporate nor acknowledge uncertainty. What is the nature of uncertainty in policy making? How is uncertainty perceived and valued by policy makers vis-a-vis experts (e.g. scientists, experts, advisors)? Can a comprehensive typology of uncertainty in policy making be developed? How can uncertainty be effectively communicated to policy makers? Can we design frameworks to draw causal inference about addressing uncertainty in policy making?
Peer Reviewed Publications
Book Chapters
Book Reviews
Policy Research
Conferences and Invited Talks
Pre‐ 2016:
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