Girija Shankar, a development sector professional, is currently working as a Young Professional on sustainable livelihoods with the Bihar Rural Livelihood Promotion Society (BRLPS), a joint initiative between the Government of Bihar and the World Bank. He graduated from Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda University in Agriculture, Rural, and Tribal Development in the year 2016. He went on to do his Masters in Development Policy Planning and Practices with Rural Planning as a Special interest at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Tuljapur. As a Public Policy Scholar with The Hindu Centre for Politics and Public Policy, he studied the working of Farmer Producer Companies in Osmanabad and Solapur districts of Maharashtra.