Mayilvaganan, M., PhD is an Independent Analyst and Director of Center for Human Security and International Affairs (CHSIA). His research interests focus on political, strategic and security issues concerning South and Southeast Asia, Indo-Pacific region, Borderlands and the Non-Traditional Security Issues.
Prior to this, Dr. Mayil was an Associate Professor at the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), Bengaluru, India, where he oversaw research projects on the Indo-Pacific, Borderland studies, Non-Traditional Security Challenges (such as Migration, Refugees, Climate Change, & Public Health, etc.), Human Rights & Humanitarian Issues, and World Politics in general. He was also a Visiting Senior Lecturer at the University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, India, where he taught South Asia in International Relations, Modern Warfare, and International Politics. Other positions he held included Associate Fellow at the Institute of Defence Studies and Analysis (IDSA), New Delhi, India, with a focus on Sri Lanka, and Research Associate at the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies (IPCS), New Delhi, India, with an emphasis on Kashmir. Additionally, he spent sometime as a researcher in Canada and the U.S..
He holds a PhD degree from the School of International Studies in the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi in India.
Caste discrimination or persecution, Climate-related issues, Ethnic discrimination or persecution, Ex-combatant reintegration, Gang-related violence/non-state actors, Gender-based violence/domestic violence, Healthcare access/health systems capacity, Military/police service, Political persecution, Religious discrimination or persecution, Risk of retaliation, Trafficking
I have worked on issues related to refugees and asylum in South Asia for more than ten years. I have focused mainly on refugees from Myanmar, Southern Bhutanese of Nepali origin, Chakma refugees of Bangladesh, and Tamil refugees from Sri Lanka. I might have produced around twenty reports on the aforementioned topics.