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B.A. (Hons.) Economics; Delhi College of Arts & Commerce, University of Delhi

M.A.; M.Phil. Economics; University of Hyderabad

PhD Economics; Institute for Social and Economic Change, Bangalore

Prof. (Dr.) Tarun Arora

Associate Professor and Associate Dean, Placement and Internships

Email tarun.arora@jgu.edu.in
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ORCID ID 0000-0002-1274-6518
Key Expertise Urban Governance, Public Policy, Research Design and Survey Analysis, Monitoring and Evaluation, Microeconomics.

B.A. (Hons.) Economics; Delhi College of Arts & Commerce, University of Delhi

M.A.; M.Phil. Economics; University of Hyderabad

PhD Economics; Institute for Social and Economic Change, Bangalore

Biography

Dr. Tarun Arora is an Associate Professor at the Jindal School of Government and Public Policy. His research focuses on development economics, particularly urban governance, and public policy. Before joining JGU, he was at Christ University in Bangalore, where he established and led the M.A. (Public Policy) program. Prior to that, he worked at Janaagraha Centre for Citizenship and Democracy, Bangalore, where he led one of India’s largest urban governance projects in collaboration with Brown University, USA.

Dr. Arora earned his PhD in Economics from the Institute for Social and Economic Change, Bangalore, focusing on international trade and the competitiveness of India’s Textile Industry. He has over six years of experience in field-based survey research in urban India, examining urban segregation and citizen participation from both the supply and demand perspectives.

While at Christ University, Dr. Arora mentored numerous doctoral and graduate students. He also taught courses at various institutions, including Mount Carmel College in Bangalore. He completed his B.A. (H) in Economics from Delhi College of Arts & Commerce, University of Delhi in 2007, his M.A. in Economics in 2009 from the University of Hyderabad, and his M.Phil. in Economics in 2011 from the University of Hyderabad.

Theories of Public Policy (MAPP Online- Coursera)

Understanding Public Service Delivery in India (Undergraduate Elective)

Research Design and Survey Analysis (MAPP – Core)

Urban Governance from a Practitioner’s Perspective (PG – Cross Elective)
 

Awarded the ICSSR Fellowship for the PhD at the Institute for Social and Economic Change in 2011

Awarded Dr. D.M. Nanjundappah endowment prize at the Institute for Social and Economic Change in 2012

UGC NET in Economics in 2012
 

Co-Leader for the Research Project titled – JEAI Political Work (2025 Onwards)- Collaboration between JGU and IFP Pondicherry, funded by The French National Institute for Sustainable Development (IRD)

Principal Collaborator for the Citizenship, Inequality and Urban Governance (CIUG) Project since 2017 – a collaborative project of researchers in India and Brown University. 
 

Arora, T., Choudhary, P. K., & Syal, R. (2025). Access to clean cooking fuel and discrimination between scheduled and non-scheduled groups across urban and rural India. Journal of Social and Economic Development. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40847-025-00478-1

Arora, T., & Syal, R. (2025, March 6). Traditional metrics fall short — India needs to redefine “urban.” Https://Www.Downtoearth.Org.in/Governance/Traditional-Metrics-Fall-Short-India-Needs-to-Redefine-Urban.

Arora, T., & Syal, R. (2025). India needs to redefine urban. Https://360info.Org/India-Needs-to-Redefine-Urban/.

Arora, T., & Syal, R. (2025, July 2). Rethinking Urban Governance — districts, not cities, must be the focus. Https://Telanganatoday.Com/Opinion-Rethinking-Urban-Governance-Districts-Not-Cities-Must-Be-the-Focus.

Arora, T., Choudhary, P. K., & Killemsetty, N. (2025). Health insurance uptake in Urban India: a socio-demographic analysis using NFHS-V. Journal of Social and Economic Development. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40847-025-00479-0

Arora, T., & Syal, R. (2025, September 3). Public Policy — the new MBA in VUCA world. Https://Telanganatoday.Com/Opinion-Public-Policy-the-New-Mba-in-Vuca-World.

Arora, T., & Syal, R. (2025, October 25). When the air turns against us — Why Delhi’s pollution crisis is a public policy wicked problem. Https://Telanganatoday.Com/Opinion-When-the-Air-Turns-against-Us-Why-Delhis-Pollution-Crisis-Is-a-Wicked-Problem.

Arora, T., & Syal, R. (2025, November 10). Reimagining slums for effective policy interventions . Https://360info.Org/Reimagining-Slums-for-Effective-Policy-Interventions/.

Heller, Patrick, Siddharth Swaminathan, Ashutosh Varshney, Tarun Arora, Bhanu Joshi, Aditi Priya and Connor Staggs. “Citizenship, Inequality, and Urban Governance in India: Findings from 14 Cities,” The Citizenship, Inequality and Urban Governance Project (CIUG), Saxena Center for Contemporary South Asia, Brown University, 2025. https://saxena.watson.brown.edu/research/urban-india/reports

Arora, T. and Choudhary, P. K. (2024). Discrimination between scheduled and non-scheduled groups in access to basic services in urban India. Journal of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for Development, 14(3), 161-172. https://doi.org/10.2166/washdev.2024.138

Puthur, L., Karakunnel, M., Miranda, D., & Arora, T. (2023). Building a Data Ethical Future: Data Policies and Frameworks. Journal of Dharma, 48(2), 231-248.

Arora, T., & Pyle, K. (2022). Sampling and Categorization of Households for Research in Urban India. Studies in Indian Politics, 10(2), 254 -274. https://doi.org/10.1177/23210230221137633

Arora, T., & Pyle, K. (2021). Need for Local Access Points for Central Administration of Identity Cards. Economic and Political Weekly, 56(7), 24–27.

Pyle, K., & Arora, T. (2020, December 14). Hyderabad municipal polls showed booth-level officers not doing their job properly. Https://Theprint.in/Opinion/Hyderabad-Municipal-Polls-Showed-Booth-Level-Officers-Not-Doing-Their-Job-Properly/565859/.

Pyle, K., & Arora, T. (2020, December 17). City municipalities are poor in fixing problems. People are turning to MLAs middlemen, NGOs. Https://Theprint.in/Opinion/City-Municipalities-Are-Poor-in-Fixing-Problems-People-Are-Turning-to-Mlas-Middlemen-Ngos/567428/.

Choudhary, P. K., Syal, R., & Arora, T. (2020). Do Issues Matter in Indian Elections?. Indian Politics & Policy, 3(1). https://doi.org/10.18278/inpp.3.1.4

Pyle, K., Arora, T., Mansoor A, M., & K, S. (2020). MEASURING WOMEN’S SAFETY PERCEPTIONS & STRENGTHENING COMMUNITY POLICING - MYSORE. http://www.janaagraha.org/files/publications/Womens-safety-and-CP-Mysore-March-2020.pdf

Pyle, K., Arora, T., Mansoor A, M., & K, S. (2020). MEASURING WOMEN’S SAFETY PERCEPTIONS & STRENGTHENING COMMUNITY POLICING - HUBLI-DHARWAD. https://www.janaagraha.org/files/publications/Womens-safety-and-CP-Hubli-Dharwad-March-2020.pdf

Pyle, K., Anandan Nair, V., & Arora, T. (2017). Voter List Management - Booth Level Officer & Landscaping Study in 21 Indian Cities. https://www.janaagraha.org/files/Janaagraha_BLO_Study_2017.pdf

Pyle, K., Anandan Nair, V., & Arora, T. (2016). THE STATE OF BOOTH LEVEL OFFICERS (BLOs) IN BANGALORE; A LOOK AT WHAT’S GOING RIGHT & WHAT’S NOT. https://www.janaagraha.org/files/publications/State-of-Bangalore-Booth-Level-Officers.pdf

Arora, T. (2015). Employment-Export Elasticities for the Indian Textile Industry. ISEC Working Paper Series, 349. https://www.isec.ac.in/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/WP-349-Tarun-Arora.pdf

Arora, T. (2015). Assessing Export Competitiveness at the Commodity Level: Indian Textile Industry as a Case Study. ISEC Working Paper Series, 338. https://www.isec.ac.in/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/WP-338-Tarun-Arora.pdf

Thomas, A., Kumar, N., Sethi, T., & Arora, T. (2012). Heterodox Economics. Economic and Political Weekly, 47(5).
Email tarun.arora@jgu.edu.in
ORCID ID 0000-0002-1274-6518
Key Expertise Urban Governance, Public Policy, Research Design and Survey Analysis, Monitoring and Evaluation, Microeconomics.