Uttara Purandare

PhD Candidate, Centre for Policy Studies (CPS), IIT Bombay-Monash Research Academy

Uttara Purandare is pursuing her PhD in Public Policy under a joint programme offered by IIT Bombay and Monash University. Her area of research is smart cities. Looking specifically at the intersection of technology, gender, and governance, Uttara’s research focuses on how safety and surveillance are constructed by the smart city rhetoric and the role of private sector firms in governing the smart city. The COVID-19 pandemic and the technologies that have been introduced by national governments and smart cities purportedly to curb the spread of the virus have raised interesting questions about privacy and citizens’ rights during a crisis. Uttara is presently exploring some of these questions within the Indian context. 
Uttara has a BA in Economics and Sociology from St. Xavier’s College, Mumbai and an MA in Public Policy (Governance and Development) from the International Institute of Social Studies (ISS), The Hague and the University of York, UK.