Research student
My research explores caste, surveillance and resistance among sanitation workers in South Asia. It is an interdisciplinary study: a combination of social sciences, and science and technology. I am interested in exploring the role of surveillance in the creation and reproduction of sanitation labour in pre-colonial, colonial and post-colonial South Asia.
MPhil in Development Studies from Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai (2020-23)
Master’s in Social Work, Specialization Dalit and Tribal Studies and Action from Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai (2015-17)
Bachelor’s in Art, Major in Political Science from Wilson College, Mumbai (2012-15)
Motor Loader (sanitation worker) in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, Mumbai (2010-23)
Research Assistant in the UK Aid funded Project “Getting on Grid: The Politics of Public Service Formalization in Urban India” (2017-19)
Research Assistant in The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) South Asia on the Project Studying Whatsapp and Electoral Politics (2019-20)
Media coverage:
Short Documentary link: https://www.thequint.com/neon/sanitation-worker-to-phd-scholar-how-mayur-helia-rewrote-his-life-hope-video
Podcast link: https://podcasts.apple.com/dk/podcast/66-from-sanitation-worker-to-phd-scholar-the/id1525737983?i=1000615500607 (Also available on other platforms like spotify, prime music, google)