Team

As Chief Executive Officer, Srikanth steers the strategy of Janaagraha while also overseeing its operations. 

He is an associate member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India and has previously worked with Standard Chartered Bank and KPMG. 

Sapna has been a part of Janaagraha right from its inception in 2001. She has worked on various citizen campaigns as well as on technology-related interventions with the government. She also anchored the HR and volunteer management functions of the organisation for ten years. 

Anand is an architect by qualification and has studied Critical Theory. Over the last 22 years he has worked across: State & Central Govt. in Urban Development; Private sector & Consulting in Land, Infrastructure and Building; Academics and Professional Practice in Architecture & Design.

Anand joins JCCD from JUST, where he has been Director-Projects for a year. At Janaagraha, he looks after core Policy aspects in Urban Governance (as per new strategy 2023), including Policy & Advocacy and Research & Insights teams, and teams in newer areas of Climate, Health and Equity (Gender and Poor).
He was earlier Chief Project Manager at the National Institute of Urban Affairs, New Delhi (Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs); AGM, Strategy & Planning at Aspen Infrastructures, Pune (Suzlon Family Group), and Associate Director, Vastu Shilpa Foundation, among other positions.

Anand’s core work areas are Urban Governance, Land & Building Development and Climate Action. He loves History and the Humanities, and inquires into the Social, Political & Ideological perspectives that inform Development.

Amit Gupta joined Janaagraha in March 2024 as Head of Branding and Communications in Bengaluru.
He has over 18 years of work experience in the field of branding and communication. He was earlier working with Graphical House Ltd. in Glasgow, Scotland, where he served as the Director of Brand Strategy & Communication.
His academic credentials include a BA (Hons) in Business and Management, Marketing from the University of Wales, Cardiff. Outside the office, Amit is a man of varied interests. He enjoys traveling, reading, cooking, playing badminton, and spending quality time with his family.

Katie joined Janaagraha in May 2014 and currently serves as the Head of the Research & Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) team.

The team supports Janaagraha’s programs aimed at improving urban governance in India and possesses deep research expertise in urban Indian contexts. Their work encompasses monitoring and evaluating internal programs, thought leadership (including publications), and research into urban issues such as civic learning, civic participation, basic services and infrastructure, crime and safety, affordable housing, and municipal finance. This work has included conducting large-scale ground surveys, Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviewing (CATI) surveys, focus groups, in-depth interviews, and more, engaging a range of stakeholders in over 60 cities across 22 states of India. Additionally, it has involved various forms of secondary research.

Katie previously worked at the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) in the UK, where she also served as an operations manager in NFER’s Randomised Controlled Trials unit. She holds a First-Class BSc (Hons) in Psychology from the University of Warwick, England, and an MSc with Distinction in Applied Sport and Exercise Psychology from the University of Wales, Bangor. Katie is passionate about sports, being a state-level swimmer and holding two black belts in martial arts.

Krishnan joined Janaagraha in September 2023 as the Head of Strategy in Bengaluru. He brings a decade of experience in public education reform, along with a brief stint in corporate banking prior to that. For over eight years, he was a key member of the leadership team at the Central Square Foundation, where he collaborated with governments, non-profits, funders, and other diverse actors to drive system-led reform in India’s school education sector.
His dedication to the development sector was ignited through his participation in the Teach for India fellowship, where he taught 4th and 5th grades for two years at a corporation school in Chennai.
Krishnan holds an MBA in Finance and Economics from XLRI, Jamshedpur, and an undergraduate degree in engineering from NIT, Trichy. In his spare time, he enjoys quizzing, solving cryptic crosswords and word games, and planning his next vacation.

Namita Aggarwal joined Janaagraha in 2018 and currently serves as the Head of the Municipal Revenues vertical. She oversees work on municipal borrowings and municipal own-source revenues. In her role, Namita works closely with senior leadership in the union government, constitutional bodies, and market regulators, as well as with multilateral institutions and several state governments, to drive systemic reforms to municipal borrowings and municipal own-source revenues.
She also runs www.cityfinance.in, India’s national municipal finance portal. Namita has actively contributed to driving property tax revenue growth in the country through her policy design and implementation support to both the union and state governments.
She authored the ‘Property Tax Toolkit,’ published by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs in 2020, which serves as a template for property tax reforms for several states and cities across the country. She co-authored a paper for the World Bank Group on ‘Gender-based Discounts on Taxes Related to Property.’
An MBA graduate from IIM Kozhikode, Namita has prior experience in managing sales at Hindustan Unilever. Outside of work, she enjoys reading fiction, watching movies, and stargazing with her telescope.

Prabhat Kumar joined Janaagraha in March 2020 and serves as the Head of the Public Finance Management (PFM) vertical at Janaagraha.

In his role, Prabhat leads the advocacy, program design, and implementation efforts focused on improving inter-governmental transfers, financial planning, efficiency, and accountability in municipal spending. He works closely with union, state, and urban local bodies to enhance overall financial management and address financial inefficiencies. Prabhat spearheads initiatives at the intersection of policy, technology, and process improvement with various state governments, such as Odisha, UP, and Assam, to enhance PFM systems in urban local bodies.

Prior to joining Janaagraha, Prabhat was part of the strategy & transactions team at EY, focusing on economic development advisory and urban infrastructure financing projects. He graduated from IIT Roorkee and completed an in-person certification course on PFM from Duke University.

Outside of work, Prabhat enjoys running, travelling, trekking, and watching movies.

Prarthana Ramesh joined Janaagraha in August 2013 and is the Head of the Environment City-Systems vertical. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Mount Carmel College and a Postgraduate Diploma in Environmental Law (PGDEL) from the National Law School of India University. She has held various positions at Janaagraha over the past decade, including heading the Civic Learning initiative.

Her current role requires her to work at the intersection of environment and urban governance to identify reforms for implementation. She has previously led strategy, operations, and technology innovations (Our City, Our Challenge) for the Civic Learning program.

Prior to joining Janaagraha, she worked with Dream a Dream on experiential camps for children and drafting curriculum content. She also worked with UNI for underprivileged children and the Centre for Legislative Research and Advocacy on drafting bills and policy briefs. In her leisure time, Prarthana enjoys traveling and spending time with her dogs. She is currently engaged in attempting to build a mud house to understand what sustainability in action could look like.

Sajith Sukumaran joined Janaagraha in April 2024 as Director – State Programmes. He leads our efforts in Assam and Uttar Pradesh, and is based out of Guwahati, Assam.

Sajith comes with close to thirty years of experience across livelihoods, cooperatives, rural and urban local governments, and water and sanitation. Prior to joining us, he served as the Chief Operating Officer of Kudumbashree National Resource Organisation under the National Rural Livelihoods Mission, Government of India, where he managed a team of 500+ across 25 states.

Sajith is an engineer with a Master’s in Rural Management from the Institute of Rural Management Anand. Outside of work, his interests include art, theatre, and literature. He is married to Ruchi Prasad, a development professional working with Reliance Foundation. Their daughter is studying to be a doctor.

Santosh Nargund joined Janaagraha in February 2022 and is currently the Head – Participatory Governance. With over two decades of experience in the civic space, he has led various advocacy and citizen campaigns aimed at promoting good governance through transparency, accountability, and citizen participation. He has effectively utilised tools such as the Right to Information Act, the Karnataka Guarantee of Services to Citizens Act (Sakala), and public interest litigations (PILs) to enact positive change.

Santosh has conducted several social audits on significant topics, including the Beggary Relief System, Smart Cities Mission, Swachh Bharat Mission, and Urban Transport. Moreover, he has contributed his expertise to the Board of Studies at various institutions and provided his knowledge to several institutes and universities, including the National Law School of India University (NLSIU), Bengaluru; Karnataka Evaluation Authority (KEA), Bengaluru; and Karnataka State Law University (KSLU), Hubballi.

In May 2018, Santosh ventured into politics by contesting the elections to the Karnataka legislature from the Hubballi -Dharwad Central – 73 Assembly Constituency and has since served as a National Council Member of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

As an Aerospace Scientist, Santosh brings a wealth of experience in leading global teams on aerospace projects. He is an alumnus of the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore (IIM-B), and holds an M.Tech degree from Visvesvaraya Technological University and a B.E. degree from Karnatak University. Santosh leads an eco-friendly life and practises natural farming, growing food without the use of harmful chemicals.

Shivkumar Shadananan Menon joined Janaagraha in December 2014 and is the Head of the Civic Learning Program. He is sharply focused on mainstreaming 21st-century skills and active citizenship values in children and youth nationwide.

He believes that Janaagraha’s mission to improve the quality of life in our cities and towns can only be sustainably achieved by harnessing the immense potential of children and youth. During his decade at Janaagraha, he has worn multiple hats — fundraising, partnerships, and overseeing finance operations at an institutional level. He now collaborates with a skilled multi-disciplinary team of professionals in the Civic Learning program.

With over 25 years of experience in business development, new product development, and implementing go-to-market strategies, Shivkumar brings a wealth of expertise to his role. Prior to joining Janaagraha, he held diverse senior leadership roles in the Risk Management Solutions Business at Dun and Bradstreet for over a decade.

Shivkumar is a commerce graduate from Mumbai University and holds a postgraduate degree in Business Management from XLRI, Jamshedpur. In his leisure time, he enjoys cooking, reading, and travelling.

Shoumik Guha joined Janaagraha in 2021 and is the Head of the Development team.
Shoumik leads Fundraising and plays a pivotal role in shaping and executing the fundraising and development strategy at Janaagraha. He is responsible for driving the organisation’s overall fundraising efforts to support its mission and long-term sustainability. Before this role, Shoumik spearheaded Janaagraha’s foray into Public Health by leading the urban health project in Bihar.
He brings diverse experience spread across more than two decades, adept at leading Strategy & Business Operations, Business Development, Business Strategy/Planning, and forging strategic alliances in the healthcare sector.

He has previously been associated with IPE Global Limited and the WISH Foundation in the social impact sector, leading business advisory, access to capital, markets, and strategic alliances in helping scale innovations in Primary Healthcare within the ecosystem. Prior to the social impact sector, he has held senior leadership positions at Max Healthcare, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, UFlex Limited, and Bilcare Limited, leading and managing business development, strategy, and operations in the Indian subcontinent. Shoumik holds a degree in Chemical Engineering from MIT, Manipal, and is an MBA from Management Development Institute (MDI), Gurgaon.

In his leisure time, Shoumik is an automobile enthusiast and is passionate about off-roading and adventure.

Sudheendra joined Janaagraha in May 2024 as Head – State Program (Uttar Pradesh). Prior to joining Janaagraha, he was with Ernst & Young as Director in the Strategy and Transaction Practice.

Sudheendra is a management graduate from the Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad. He comes with 20+ years of experience in transport infrastructure development at India’s leading consulting firms and infrastructure developers. He has worked with the public sector on policy formulation, project preparation, on-ground implementation, and PPP transactions in the transport sector. He has also advised leading private infrastructure developers on investments in PPP infrastructure concessions. Some of his prominent clients have included global institutions such as the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, alongside key Indian public sector enterprises like the National Highway Authority of India, Indian Ports Association, and Delhi Metro Rail. In the private sector, he has worked with leading companies such as L&T, Reliance Infra, IRB Infra, and Adani. He also brings significant experience from advising the state governments of Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Punjab, among others.

Sudheendra is from Lucknow. He currently lives in Delhi with his mother, wife, and daughter who is studying in Class X. In his spare time, he unwinds with reading and travelling.

Vachana joined Janaagraha in 2015 and currently serves as the Head of the Municipal Law and Policy vertical, with a particular focus on policy research and advocacy around decentralised urban governance.

In her role, she leads the development and creation of India’s flagship report on urban governance, titled the ‘Annual Survey of India’s City-Systems (ASICS)’, and spearheads associated reform engagements with governments. Vachana was instrumental in the CITIIS 2.0 consortium under the Smart Cities Mission of the Government of India and contributed to the landscape study on India’s municipal finance commissioned by the 15th Finance Commission of India. She has also contributed to the Urban Vision Document 2030 developed by NITI Aayog and the Economic Survey of the Government of India in 2016-17.

Having worked with institutions such as the office of Comptroller and Auditor General of India and legislators like Dr. Shashi Tharoor, Vachana is a member of Future Leaders Connect (FLC) by the British Council and represented India in the 2021 FLC programme. Additionally, she frequently contributes articles to journals and popular media, focusing largely on institutions and their interaction with governance and decentralisation.

Vachana holds a Master’s degree in Development (specializing in Public Policy) from Azim Premji University, Bengaluru, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from St. Teresa’s College, Ernakulam (Mahatma Gandhi University).

In her leisure time, Vachana enjoys reading, stargazing, taking leisurely strolls, and listening to melodies, Hindustani, and Sufi music.