Alumni Feature | Abhishek Krishnamurthy, Master’s in Public Policy ‘22

Growing up, Abhishek Krishnamurthy had always wanted to be of service to the neediest in his country in a professional capacity. It was only when he discovered the discipline of Public Policy that he found an avenue to combine his fierce work ethic with his underlying honesty, and turn this dream into a reality. Abhishek, 22, excelled academically and extracurricularly in his school years, and did his Bachelor’s in Arts from St. Xavier’s College (Autonomous), Mumbai. He majored in Political Science and studied the impact of conservation policies on the livelihood of traditional communities in Niti Valley, Uttarakhand for his Final-Year Dissertation. In addition to this, Abhishek was also Chairperson of the Political Science Student Body and held positions of responsibility across his college days. Knowing that he would be pursuing his Master’s in Public Policy Degree immediately after his Undergraduate years, Abhishek decided to accrue as much professional experience as possible through Summer Internships between semesters. His first brush with Public Policy took place through an Internship with The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI). The youngest at the office, he got an opportunity to work on policy issues pertaining to food and nutrition, sustainability and environmental regulations. Abhishek has also interned with The Peninsula Foundation – a Chennai-based Think Tank -where he worked on EdTech policy briefs by studying public-private partnership models.

As part of the Seventh MPP Cohort, Abhishek has tried to integrate the various facets of his Courseby striking a balance between its theoretical and practical components. The rich insights offered by his professors as well as his peers have found their way into his academic and professional pursuits. As part of the Programme-mandated Client-Led Project, Abhishek interned with the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), where he studied the public health service delivery system in Mizoram through a research review. His work is part of a larger study on health systems and health policy by the State Government, in collaboration with PHFI. The satisfactory nature of his deliverables saw him continue his Internship beyond the Programme requirements, and he currently is assisting his principal investigator with a research paper on cancer. Abhishek also took part in the Atlas-CPPR South Asia Public Policy Challenge, where his policy brief was deemed as one of the Top Ten entries. In keeping with the overarching theme of minimum government – maximum governance, he suggested ways to improve food sustainability and security in India through stakeholder-led food policy councils. While Abhishek’s interests are scattered across the Policy domain, his vision is clear – he wishes to drive home positive change through effective consultation and empathetic collaboration, and test the waters for a Utopian India.