Urban Social Inequality in Infrastructure and Well-being: Insights from India, USA & S. Africa

Anu Ramaswami

Sanjay Swani ’87 Professor of India Studies, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies, and the High Meadows Environmental Institute

Princeton University

Kirti Vardhan Das

Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Researcher, Sustainable Healthy Cities Network

Princeton University

Dr. Kirti Vardhan Das is a Postdoctoral Research Associate at Princeton University’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. He is also a researcher in the Sustainable Healthy Cities Network.



Das’s research interests include the impacts of urban planning practices and policy on public heath, urban sustainability, and equity. His research investigates the influence of neighborhood infrastructure and the built-environment on the subjective well-being of residents. His specific areas of focus are: 1) modeling infrastructure determinants of subjective well-being at multiple levels of spatial disaggregation; 2) exploring the equity implications of current infrastructure provision services and policies; 3) identifying context sensitive practices and policies to improve subjective well-being; and 4) working with city/regional level policymakers to establish systems to effectively track subjective well-being of residents and its determinants over time.



Das has an interdisciplinary education background. He holds a Bachelor of Architecture degree, a Master of Urban and Regional Planning degree, and a Ph.D. degree in Public Affairs. His past work experience includes working as an architect in India and as a research fellow at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs.

Bhartendu Pandey

Postdoctoral Researcher (Lead Urban Data Scientist) at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering

Princeton University

Dr. Bhartendu Pandey is a Postdoctoral Researcher (Lead Urban Data Scientist) at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Broadly, his research examines urban areas using multiple lenses (including land use, infrastructure, economic activity, and human mobility) to understand their equity and sustainability implications. He uses big data (satellite remote sensing, GIS, national surveys, and social media)—complemented with ground knowledge and fieldwork—to ask and answer compelling questions facing urban science.  Specifically, he is interested in the inequality, human health, and sustainability implications of urban infrastructure. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Life Sciences from the University of Delhi, a Master of Science in Geoinformatics from the TERI School of Advanced Studies, and a Doctorate from the Yale School of the Environment.