Faculty profile:
Dr Awadhesh Kumar Jha
Awadhesh Kumar Jha is an Assistant Professor-cum Junior scientist and Head (I/c) of the Dairy Business Management & Agricultural Research and Information (ARIS) Cell at Snajay Gandhi Institute of Dairy science and Technology, Patna. He is conferred with the award of the best teacher of the institute for year 2016 by Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour. He has more than 17 years experience of work with reputed national and international institutes. He has worked at National Centre for Agricultural Economics and Policy Research (NCAP), New Delhi now renamed as National Institute for Agricultural Economics and Policy Research as Senior Research Associate and has been actively involved in research priority setting, monitoring, evaluation and net-working of social scientists in Indian NAARs. He has also served International Crops Research Institute for Semi-Arid and Tropics (ICRISAT) as Visiting Scientist under Comprehensive Assessment of Impact of Watershed Programs (Global theme -Agro-ecosystems).
He has been associated with a number of national and international studies like Assessment of Impact of Watersheds in India (ICRISAT, ADB and Comprehensive Assessment), Livestock Production and Poverty (CALPI-SDC), Contract Farming in Milk Production ( IFPRI), Assessment of Research Needs in India (ICRISAT-APPARI), Combating Desertification in South Asia: The Agriculture-Environment Nexus. (ICRISAT), Mitigating livestock feed scarcity in India (ILRI).
He has closely worked with a number of eminent economists in various innovative research areas like ‘Research Productivity and Efficiency in ICAR Institutes’, ‘Meta Analysis’ to assess impact of watershed, ‘Economic Surplus Analysis for measuring impact of technologies’, Aggregate level Prioritization of NRM issues; Setting Agenda for Livestock Research in India, Returns to Livestock R&D, ‘Analysis of Production Potential and Constraints’, Understanding Feed and Fodder Markets”, Characterization and Mapping of Dairy Value Chains in Bihar, etc. Many of these studies were widely acclaimed and used for making relevant policies. Presently, he is engaged in a two externally funded project and one university funded project in the capacity of PI and Co-PI. He has also been nominated by the World Bank as one of the experts/ consultant to the Govt. of Bihar to prepare the Worldbank aided project for the development of Kosi Basin (KBDP).
He has been awarded R T Doshi Foundation Award (First prize) twice for the best paper presentation in the IXth and XIIth by the Agricultural Economics Research Association, New Delhi. He also got assistantship position under RAU-IFPRI collaborative research project during his Masters degree programme. He has to his credit about 60 publications which include research papers (18 in peer reviewed journals), Book Chapters (National & International), Research Reports (National & International), Policy Paper, Policy Briefs (National & International), etc.