V P S Arora

Biography:

Professor Emeritus (Dr). V.P.S. Arora, AERA (Agricultural Economics Research Association) Fellow, is a distinguished academician renowned for his extensive contributions to agricultural economics, agribusiness management, and project management. An alumnus of G B Pant University of Agriculture and Technology in Pantnagar, he dedicated over three decades to the institution as a faculty member and academic administrator, playing a pivotal role in its academic growth. Dr. Arora made history as the founding Dean of the College of Agribusiness Management—the first of its kind under the ICAR-SAU system—marking a significant milestone in agricultural education. Over a career spanning 49 years, he has enriched both national and international academic institutions. His leadership as Vice Chancellor at Kumaun University and Shri Venkateshwara University in Uttar Pradesh was instrumental in fostering academic innovation and enhancing university governance. On the international stage, Dr. Arora has been a key figure in agriculture, project management, and consulting. He has lent his expertise to prestigious international organizations such as APO, IRRI, OECD, FAO, and ADB. As a dedicated mentor, he has supervised 24 PhD scholars and contributed significantly to research through numerous projects and publications. His leadership in various professional societies further cements his legacy in the fields of agricultural economics, agricultural marketing, project management, and agribusiness management. Dr. Arora’s remarkable achievements have been recognized with numerous awards and honours, including Dr. Rajendra Prasad Award, Lifetime Achievement Awards (2009 and 2020), the Uttarakhand Ratan Award (2011), the Higher Education Leadership Award (2016), and Outstanding Alumnus Awards from both Pantnagar University (2020) and the College of Agriculture (2019), in addition to several Best Paper Awards. He has also served as Conference President of the Indian Society of Agricultural Marketing (2010) and the Agricultural Economics Research Association (2013).