Debmalya Nandi

Areas of Interest & Expertise

  • Rural development
  • MGNREGA
  • Local democracy and panchayati raj (Decentralisation in rural governance)
  • Welfare rights and social protection
  • Digital governance and exclusion
  • Small and marginal farmer livelihoods
  • Civil society and public action
  • Grant making and philanthropy
  • State – civil society partnerships
  • Civil society networks

Biography

Debmalya is a faculty member at School of Continuing Education University Resource Centre, Azim Premji University.

He is a development practitioner with over 17 years of experience working on rural development, local democracy, welfare rights, and social  policy implementation in India. He has also been writing quite frequently in different media platforms.

His earlier work lies at the intersection of grassroots practice and social policies. He has worked extensively on MGNREGA, decentralised governance, welfare programmes. He also worked on small and marginal farmer livelihoods related issues. He was previously associated with various Civil society networks and public campaigns in Jharkhand and national level. 

He has primarily worked in three states i.e., Jharkhand, Odisha and Karnataka, with a wide exposure of the civil society developmental work across the country. 

Across his career, he has been closely associated with grassroots community development programmes,  various civil society networks and initiatives, grassroots governance initiatives, particularly on MGNREGA, pensions, decentralisation, and welfare rights. He has been involved in public hearings, campaigns, policy consultations, and engaged with government systems very closely from lower tiers to upper level bureaucracies.  He has been associated with organisations like Pradhan and Collectives for Integrated Livelihoods Initiatives ( CInI)- an associate organisation of the TATA Trusts. 

Professional Development Courses

Details

Publications

Newspaper, magazine and web articles

  • An attack on grassroots democracy? Down To Earth.
  • Chinks in the NREGA armour. The Telegraph.
  • Continued fund shortage, wage payment delays have put MGNREGA in peril. The Wire.
  • COVID-19: Centre’s relief package an eyewash for NREGA workers. Down To Earth.
  • COVID-19: Strengthen workers’ rights to boost MGNREGA. Down To Earth.
  • Does Centre’s move to hike MGNREGA wages hold any value? Down To Earth.
  • Farewell to welfare. Down To Earth.
  • Five ways to overhaul the rural jobs scheme. Business Standard.
  • Flawed claims about NREGA implementation. Down To Earth.
  • Jharkhand’s MGNREGA sahayata kendras show the way. Down To Earth.
  • Jharkhand’s success story of fruit plantation under MGNREGA. Down To Earth.
  • Lockdown woes: How successful have the Centre’s efforts to boost NREGA been? The Wire.
  • May Day: Strengthen NREGA to compensate for rural losses due to COVID-19. Down To Earth.
  • MGNREGA is failing: 10 reasons why. Down To Earth.
  • MGNREGA: A case for rural regeneration. The Telegraph.
  • MGNREGA: Rural welfare on crutches. The Telegraph.
  • MGNREGA’s information system flawed, misguiding. Down To Earth.
  • Poor remuneration and late payments: The NREGA payments trap. The Wire.
  • The solution is universal. The Hindu.
  • Tackling rural economic distress. The Hindu.
  • Underfunding, misleading claims: The story of MGNREGA in New India. Down To Earth.
  • What it will take to rejuvenate NREGS. Deccan Herald.
  • Why linking MGNREGA payments to Aadhaar is a mistake. Down To Earth.
  • Why MGNREGS workers sought police complaints against the PM. Down To Earth.
  • Yojna Banao Abhiyan – then a hit, now a miss. Down To Earth.
  • A shift in focus in NREGA. The Telegraph.
  • “Culture of random, centralised monitoring is killing the spirit of MGNREGA.” Down To Earth.
  • “Despite being eligible, 1.7 million people in Jharkhand do not get pension.” Down To Earth.
  • “Bhima-Koregaon case: Crackdown on Jharkhand tribal rights activist shameful.” Down To Earth.