SPRFDriving evidence-based policy change. We deliver impactful, non-partisan research across economics, governance, environment & climate change, foreign & defense policy, and human rights & law, focusing on monitoring and evaluating policy progress in crucial areas impacting society. We bridge the gap between research and public policy.
Project Periodica is SPRF India’s school- and community-based intervention aimed at rethinking how menstrual health and hygiene (MHH) is communicated to young adolescents in India. While menstrual health policies and schemes have expanded over the past decade, conversations around menstruation remain limited by stigma, uneven implementation, and an over-reliance on didactic, classroom-based approaches. At its […]
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This project seeks to explore the nuances of the Indian welfare state, and draw comparisons between the welfare approaches taken by different governments at the state and centre. Particularly, the project will involve exploring the political environment during which major welfare regimes and institutions were created, the management of these institutions by the central and state governments and the political economy of welfare in Indian public life.
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Introduction Crimes against women have always been and remain a pressing societal and policy concern in India, cutting across domestic, public, and digital spaces. Despite legislative reforms and institutional mechanisms, women continue to face violence in multiple forms—domestic abuse, sexual assault, trafficking, cyber harassment, and workplace exploitation—shaped by structural inequalities and gaps in enforcement. Recent […]
Introduction In criminal justice systems around the world, the question of “How dangerous is this person?” often shapes the outcome of sentencing and parole decisions. While several countries have turned to structured psychological tools such as the Historical-Clinical-Risk-20 (HCR-20) and Static-99 to bring transparency and consistency to these high-stakes judgments, India continues to rely almost […]
Introduction As India grapples with leveraging its manufacturing prowess to fuel its growth story with challenges emerging on the fronts of international trade, a closing demographic window, concerns of premature deindustrialization, etc., an analysis of what has been called as her de facto Industrial Policy—Production Linked Incentives, announced in 2020—becomes imperative (Dhar, 2024). Launched to […]
Authored by: Anhad Hundal In India, the last decade has seen major legal battles being held in the fight for LGBTQIA rights, ones that have brought these issues to the forefront of public discourse. The fight for self-determination and equality goes beyond framing the legal definitions of inclusiveness and dignity, as it goes on to […]
Introduction The greatest challenge that we face in dealing with the juvenile justice system is to strike a balance by being both fair and just to the child in conflict with the law and the victim. The term ‘child’ is universally defined as any person under 18 years, as established by International law. As per […]
World Health Day is observed every year on April 7, to bring awareness about global health, sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO) and other relevant institutions. This year, the theme is “Together for health. Stand with science”, launching a year‑long campaign to uphold the power of scientific collaboration to protect the health of people, animals, plants, and the planet. In India, healthcare is driven by both the public and the private sector. Medical institutions and hospitals face issues concerning affordability, consistency in quality, and universal access. This month, at SPRF, we take a look at how healthcare programmes and policies impact the country at a grassroot level.
The Indian healthcare system faces persistent challenges and has limited government health spending. Healthcare services are primarily delivered by the private sector, leading to high out-of-pocket expenditures and overcrowding in public health facilities, particularly in urban areas. The establishment of Mahila Mohalla Clinics in Delhi, an offshoot of the Aam Aadmi Mohalla Clinics, represents a […]
India has witnessed a major policy and social shift in its approach to menstrual health since the 2011 launch of the Menstrual Hygiene Scheme (MHS) by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. This initiative marked a landmark attempt to destigmatise menstruation at a national level, by targeting adolescent girls aged 10–19 with subsidised sanitary […]
ABSTRACT The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the underlying conditions surrounding India’s healthcare system today. With a population of over 1.33 billion people, India spends 3.66% of its total GDP on healthcare, out of which the total government expenditure is only 1.28%. In light of this unprecedented health crisis, this paper seeks to highlight the […]
Authored by : SPRF Research Team EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Ayushman Bharat Yojana is the latest health insurance scheme funded by the Government of India. This scheme has been designed to be more comprehensive in terms of the beneficiaries covered and services delivered, especially compared with past schemes such as Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana. In fact, Ayushman […]
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The term Shershabadi (original Shershabadia) has direct reference to the community’s place of origin, i.e., the former Jawar-e-Sarsabad, which comprised parts of Murshidabad, Malda in West Bengal, and Sahibganj district in Jharkhand.
Owing to various social, political, and environmental reasons, they migrated from their place of origin, and are now settled in Kishanganj and its neighbouring districts, in Bihar. Originally a community of settled agriculturists, they slowly dispersed along the river banks and tried to make a living through cultivation.
arrow_outwardThe photo story captures the neighbourhood which falls under the administration of Tiruchirappalli City Municipal Corporation and is navigating complex ecological, geographical, and governance problems.
arrow_outwardMalihabad, tehsil and Nagar panchayat in Lucknow district, Uttar Pradesh is famous for its mangoes. The Malihabadi Dussehra, a variety of mango, got its Geographical Indicator [GI] tag in 2009[1]. Even though Mangoes are widely consumed across the subcontinent, a common narrative of all the mango cultivators of the region is: “Everybody loves mangoes, but no one wants to make the lives of mango farmers any better.”
arrow_outwardn the east of Delhi lies Ghazipur. Over the years, Ghazipur has become an essential route and a stop for people looking to purchase flowers for special occasions.
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