About Prof. Sigamani Panneer
Professor of Public Policy and Management, and Chairperson, Special Centre for the Study of Law and Governance, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.
Research, teaching and public policy in conversation
Prof. Sigamani Panneer is Professor of Public Policy and Management, and Chairperson of the Special Centre for the Study of Law and Governance at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi.
At the Central University of Tamil Nadu (CUTN) he served as Dean of the School of Behavioural Sciences, Head of the Department of Social Work, Coordinator of the Centre for Happiness and Coordinator of the Department of Applied Psychology. He has also been Mentor Professor at the Department of Social Work, Bharathiar University, Coimbatore.
His international assignments include Visiting Research Professor at the School of Public Health, University of Minnesota (USA); Visiting Professor at Jishou University (China); Guest Professor at Tianjin University of Finance and Economics (China); and Honorary Visiting Research Fellow at INTI International University (Malaysia).
Education across economics, administration, social work and public health
He holds a Bachelor's degree in Economics and Master's degrees in Public Administration and Social Work from the University of Madras, and a Postgraduate Diploma in Business Administration from Pondicherry University. He earned his M.Phil. and Ph.D. in Public Health from the Centre of Social Medicine and Community Health, JNU, completed postdoctoral research training at the Division of Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota, and was awarded the D.Litt. by Assam University in 2025.
His research spans new public health management, drug delivery systems, public-private partnerships in healthcare, occupational health and women's health. He has authored more than 150 high-impact publications, including books and journal articles with publishers such as Palgrave Macmillan, Sage, Springer Nature, Wiley, Elsevier, Taylor & Francis, Emerald and Bloomsbury.
What he brings to institutions
- Teaching, research and academic administration
- Designing and conducting Faculty, Capacity and Management Development Programmes (FDP, CDP, MDP)
- Outreach, field-based extension activities and evidence-based interventions
- Establishing and nurturing new academic departments and centres
- Designing and managing innovative academic programmes
- Designing and managing minor and major research projects
- National and international institutional networking and collaboration
- Team building, handling complex workplace situations and promoting happiness at work
- Community engagement, advocacy and multi-stakeholder management
- Designing and organising national and international conferences and workshops
Life member of leading professional bodies
- Indian Public Health Association (IPHA)
- Indian Association of Preventive and Social Medicine (IAPSM)
- Indian Association for Social Sciences and Health (IASSH)
- Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA)
- Delhi Management Association (DMA)
- National Human Resource Development Network (NHRD), New Delhi chapter
- National Association of Professional Social Workers in India
- All India Association of Medical Social Worker Professionals
- Indian Society of Professional Social Work
- International Consortium for Social Development (member)
Connect for academic engagement.
For academic engagement, collaboration and networking; public policy review and analysis; and happiness and well-being programmes.