Vice Chancellor
Prof. Aldas Janaiah, Hon’ble Vice -Chancellor
Professor Aldas Janaiah, Hon’ble Vice-Chancellor, is a distinguished agricultural economist with over three decades of exemplary service in agricultural research, education, policy analysis, and international development. He currently serves as the 14th Vice-Chancellor of Professor Jayashankar Telangana Agricultural University (PJTAU), having assumed office in October 2024. Professor Janaiah holds a Bachelor’s degree in Agriculture and a Master’s degree in Agricultural Economics with First Class from the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh Agricultural University, Rajendranagar. He earned his Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics from Banaras Hindu University (BHU) in 1995 and later completed a prestigious Post-Doctoral Fellowship in Social Sciences at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), Philippines, in 2002.
With 34 years of rich professional experience, Professor Janaiah has held several impactful positions, including Economist at IRRI (Philippines) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) – Vietnam Resident Mission, Hanoi, for six years. He also served the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) as Scientist and Senior Scientist for 16 years. His academic engagements include a two-year tenure as Visiting Professor at the Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, an institute of the Reserve Bank of India in Mumbai.
He has held several key academic and administrative roles over 16 years at ANGRAU and PJTAU, serving as Professor, Head of Department, Associate Dean, and University Board Member. From 2022 to 2024, he worked as a Food Loss and Waste Management Specialist with ADB (Bangkok) and as India Program Coordinator for the International Commodity Institute, California.
Professor Janaiah is widely recognized for his policy research that led to the landmark Bt Cotton Seed Pricing Reform (2005–06), which reduced the seed price from ₹1850 to ₹750 per packet in Andhra Pradesh, an achievement that greatly benefited millions of farmers across India. He also played a key role in securing a special grant of ₹100 crore for Acharya N.G. Ranga Agricultural University under the Union Budget of 2012–13. With professional exposure in 36 countries, he has contributed extensively to agricultural policy development and impact assessment across Asia and Africa.
His exceptional contributions have earned him numerous accolades, including the Outstanding Academic Leadership Award (2012) from the Government of Maryland, USA, for promoting US–India academic collaboration; the Best State Level Scientist Award (2012) from the Government of Andhra Pradesh; and the Best Scientist Award (2002) from IRRI for outstanding research on the rice economy.
A dedicated academician, Professor Janaiah has supervised over 70 postgraduate and doctoral students in Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness Management. He has authored 65 peer-reviewed research papers, contributed more than 100 editorial articles in both Telugu and English, and presented over 100 conference papers. He has also led 17 major research projects focused on technology impact assessment, irrigation economics, and agricultural policy analysis.