Research Interns

Haritha Balakrishnan Alayil is a Research Intern at the Institute of Chinese Studies (ICS). She is currently pursuing an M.A. in International Studies at the Symbiosis School of International Studies, Symbiosis International University. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Political Science from SIES College of Arts, Science and Commerce, Mumbai. She is passionate about international political economy, technology, and regional security, focusing on how global trends shape governance, strategy, and development. She is particularly interested in China’s foreign policy and its strategic and diplomatic engagements in South Asia. Previously, she interned at the Vivekananda International Foundation, where she contributed to research on China’s domestic policies and regional dynamics. She is also learning Mandarin as part of her broader academic interest in China studies.

Rahul Sharma is currently pursuing his postgraduate studies in East Asian Studies from the Department of East Asian Studies, University of Delhi. He is also learning Mandarin as part of his academic training. He completed his Bachelor’s degree in Defence and Strategic Studies from DS College, Aligarh. His academic interests lie at the intersection of strategic affairs and emerging security challenges, with a particular focus on India–China relations, border security, and the impact of digital technologies on warfare and regional security dynamics.

Saumya Soni is a Research Intern at the Institute of Chinese Studies and a doctoral candidate at the Centre for East Asian Studies (CEAS), School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, where her research focuses on China’s foreign policy, conflict management, and party-to-party diplomacy with Vietnam. She also aims to examine the role of historical memory in shaping the relationship between these two communist states. She also holds a Master’s in Politics with a specialisation in International Studies from Jawaharlal Nehru University, and an undergraduate degree in Political Science and English from Kirori Mal College, University of Delhi.

Kangkana Hazarika is a Research Intern at the Institute of Chinese Studies and is a researcher specializing in international relations, diplomacy and water security. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Political Science, Economics, and Journalism and a postgraduate degree in MA Diplomacy, Law and Business from Jindal School of International Affairs.

Manjushree Panda is a Research Intern at Institute of Chinese Studies. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Zoology from Gangadhar Meher College (Autonomous) and a Master’s in Sociology from Sambalpur University, Odisha. After which she successfully completed the much-acclaimed Research Training Programme (RTP) from Centre for Studies in Social Sciences (CSSSC) Kolkata. She also acquires a Master of Science degree in Disaster Mitigation from Sikkim Manipal University through correspondence. Her current research interest delves into taking an ethnographic and phenomenological account of everyday realities associated with indigenous Risk Society residing on contested India-China frontiers attributed by dual precarity of fragile ecosystem and self-manufactured risk of hyper-militarization. Her research interests skew towards examining how borderland conflict for capitalist expansion reshapes the social behaviour, order and practices of a community thereby foster them to take on collective movement for a change. She is also interested in learning Chinese Ink brush painting and other languages of South East Asia

Supradip Das has completed his Master’s in Chinese language and China Studies from the Department of Chinese Language and Culture (Cheena-
Bhavana), Visva-Bharati University. Recently he joined the ICS as a Virtual Research Intern. He also graduated from Cheena-Bhavana and pursued a one-year advanced training in the Chinese language from Beijing Language and Culture University China, under the bilateral scholarship program of MHRD, Govt. of India, and China Scholarship Council Govt. of PRC.

Khan Farah is a virtual Research Intern at the Institute of Chinese Studies, New Delhi. She is pursuing her second Masters in MA China Studies from Somaiya Vidyavihar University, Mumbai and holds her first Masters in Chemistry from Mumbai University. For her thesis, she is working on “China’s Hydrogen Energy System” under the supervision of Saheli Chattaraj. Her interests include Environment regulation, Energy Security, Technologies associated with China’s energy development, Bilateral trade, China’s Market entry, Language and Culture.