Dr. Kajal

Dr. Kajal is a physician-executive and global health leader, currently serving as Joint Secretary at DPIIT, Government of India, where she oversees governance and multilateral investment frameworks for multi-billion-dollar national programs. With a career spanning medicine, public health, and civil service, she has consistently bridged policy and practice to deliver measurable outcomes at scale.

As Additional Mission Director of the National Health Mission in Uttar Pradesh, she directed a US$700 million statewide health program serving approximately 230 million people. Her leadership raised institutional delivery rates from 62% to 85% across 200 facilities, scaled the Gates Foundation–supported Mobile Kunji platform to 100,000 community health workers, and recruited over 2,500 physicians. She has collaborated extensively with the World Bank, WHO, UNICEF, UNDP, and the Gates Foundation, shaping maternal and child health, health data systems, and workforce-strengthening initiatives.

Beyond health, Dr. Kajal has held senior executive roles in India’s largest public systems — energy, urban development, and industrial programs — managing budgets exceeding US$35 billion and workforces of more than 150,000. She built national data governance systems, directed CSR portfolios, and delivered emergency relief to nearly 1 million people during COVID-19.

Her academic credentials include a Doctor of Public Health (Maternal & Child Health/Epidemiology) from the University of Arizona, an MS in Global Health Sciences from UCSF, and an MD in Obstetrics & Gynecology. She is also affiliated with the University of Memphis School of Public Health and the University of Arizona as a visiting scholar and research associate.

An accomplished researcher, Dr. Kajal has authored 18 publications, including a first-author paper in PLOS Global Public Health and a WHO-commissioned evidence summary. Recognized with multiple awards — from silver medals to international conference prizes — she continues to champion global health strategy, maternal & child health, health-systems strengthening, and applied research.