Who we are
IWMI SoLAR Project Implementation Team
IWMI SoLAR Project Implementation Team Bio
Darshini Ravindranath has over 15 years of experience in climate change adaptation/mitigation, energy markets, climate finance, sustainable resource use and international development. She worked as a Principal Policy Advisor and Programme Lead (International Climate Finance) at the UK Government’s Department for Energy Security and Net Zero where she led on projects in Asia, Africa and LATAM. She holds a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Sustainable Resources and Climate Change from University College London, Institute for Sustainable Resources; MSc in Environment and Development from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), and BA (Hons) in Economics from The University of Manchester, UK.
Alok Sikka supports the groundwater component for India and Bangladesh. He is the Country Representative, of India, at IWMI. He has more than 40 years of experience in varied water-related fields. He has a PhD from Utah State University, USA.
Mohsin Hafeez Pakistan Country Representative IWMI is the Country Representative, of Pakistan at IWMI. He has over 20 years of experience in hydrology and academia across Germany, Australia, the UK, China and Pakistan. He holds a PhD in Engineering (Hydrology) from the University of Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
Manohara Khadka Nepal Country Representative IWMI is the overall lead for the Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) component and brings over 2 decades of experience in varied portfolios across agriculture, water resources and climate change. At IWMI, she is the Nepal Country Representative. She has a PhD in Development Studies from the International Institute of Social Studies of Erasmus University, the Netherlands.
Deepak Varshney is the country lead for India. He joined IWMI Office in New Delhi effective 01 July 2022 as a Researcher – Impact Assessment. He is an Economist and has over 9 years of experience in academia and national and international research organizations. He holds a PhD in Economics from the Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi, India. At IWMI, Deepak will be responsible for providing implementation assistance and research support to the SDC-SoLAR project and will closely work with the Regional Project Leader, for ensuring rigorous evidence generation from large-scale producers and demonstration pilots in India and Nepal.
Azeem Ali Shah is the Country Lead for Pakistan. He is the Principal Researcher for the Governance of Water Institutions at IWMI. He has more than 15 years of research and policy-related experience in varied themes of water. He holds a PhD in Management Sciences from the Lahore University of Management Sciences, Pakistan.
Shisher Shrestha is the Country lead for Nepal and has over 10 years of hands-on experience in Nepal’s renewable energy sector, with expertise in Solar Irrigation and Project Management. He is an Electronics Engineer and holds an M.Sc. degree focused on Renewable Energy from the Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences in Germany.
Archisman Mitra is the Country Lead for Bangladesh. He is working as a Water Resource Economist with the International Water Management Institute (IWMI), on issues related to sustainable management of natural resources and the evaluation of water policy instruments. He is based in New Delhi, India. Prior to joining IWMI, he was working at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT).
Marie-Charlotte Buisson leads the impact assessment component in Bangladesh. She has more than 10 years research experience in Africa, South East Asia, and Central Asia. She obtained her PhD from the Central Extension Resources Development Institute (CERDI) in France.
Paul Pavelic is a groundwater specialist with over 2 decades of research experience. He supports the groundwater component for India and Bangladesh and holds a PhD in Groundwater Hydrology from the Flinders University of South Australia.
Muhammad Zain Bin Akbar plays a supportive role in a variety of components of the project in Pakistan. At IWMI he is Research Officer for Policy and Water Governance. He has almost 2 years of experience coordinating research, assessments and evaluation studies for projects in Pakistan. He holds an M.Sc. in Economics from Heidelberg University in Germany.
Mohammed Faiz Alam is a groundwater specialist and supports the groundwater component in India and Bangladesh. He has 5 years of experience and holds a Master’s Degree in Environmental Engineering and Sustainable Infrastructure from the KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden.
Novaira Junaid joined the IWMI Pakistan Office as a National Researcher and economist. She is a macroeconomic and public policy expert, with a focus on sustainable growth, inequality, and poverty. Her professional experience spans 17 years in various public and development sector roles and teaching. Before IWMI, she was heading the Chief Minister (CM) Punjab’s Special Monitoring Unit (SMU), Government of Punjab, Pakistan and facilitated reforms in governance, streamlined departmental functioning, and brought about a paradigm shift in the way the Government of Punjab works through the Chief Minister’s Office. She holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Lahore, an MS in Public Policy from Beaconhouse National University, Pakistan, and a BSc (Hons) in Economics from Kinnaird College for Women University, Pakistan.
Manikanta Radhakrishna as a Research Officer focuses on Economics of Water Policy and Climate Change. With an MSc in Water Science and Policy, he contributes to research on groundwater markets and impact assessments, employing both qualitative and quantitative research techniques.
Smaranika Mahapatra works as a Research Officer-Water Resources Management at IWMI Delhi. She holds a master’s degree in Land and Water Resources Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur (IIT-Kharagpur) and has more than 5 years of research experience. She supports the groundwater component under the SoLAR-SA project in Bangladesh.
Gaurav Tripathi is a data analyst consultant working on survey data from Bangladesh under the SoLAR project. He has over 15 years of experience in research in agricultural economics. He has worked on secondary data from various sources and primary data, including empirical analysis. His areas of work include technology adoption and diffusion in agriculture, contract farming, prioritizing public expenditure in agriculture for inclusive development, and the impact of COVID-19 on agriculture in India. He holds an MBA from the University of Lucknow.
Kriti Sharma works as a research consultant for the SoLAR-SA Project (India) at IWMI Delhi and holds an MSc in Economics, specializing in Environment and Resource Economics from The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) School of Advanced Studies, New Delhi. She has prior research experience with the Sustainable Cities Program at the World Resources Institute (WRI) India.
Amrita Rauniyar works as a consultant in the SoLAR-SA project (Nepal) and is a water research enthusiast with over 2 years of experience. She holds a BSc degree in Forestry from Tribhuvan University and is pursuing an MSc in Interdisciplinary Water Resource Management (iWRM) her work focuses on water management in connection with agriculture, climate change, and energy with an emphasis on viewing these dynamics through an gender lens.
Shibani Chattopadhyay, a Communications Consultant supporting the SoLAR-SA project, has more than 15 years of experience in communications strategy, design and implementation. She has a bachelor’s in Journalism from Lady Shri Ram College for Women and a masters in International Relations from Jawaharlal Nehru University.
Aariz Raza is a creative designer with three years of professional experience in designing the content of brands and businesses. A graduate of the University of Manchester, he has a firm grip on global visual conceptualization. Aariz had created content for the print and online editions of a UK-based art and culture magazine, aah-magazine.co.uk, and had worked with the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) to develop a sustainable design for the Pomona island in Manchester, UK.
Swati Jain is a finance postgraduate from Delhi University having more than 5-years of working experience. Previously, she worked with the International Rice Research Institute, a UN Privilege Organization. She has almost 4 years’ experience, working as an accounts & admin team member.
Gaurav Tripathi 
Shibani Chattopadhyay
Aariz Raza
Swati Jain