PRASANT KUMAR PANDA is currently working as Economic adviser, Sixteenth Finance Commission, Ministry of Finance, Government of India, being on deputation from Pondicherry University. He has worked as Professor and Head in the Department of Economics, School of Management, and Dean (I/C), College Development Council, Pondicherry University ( A Central University). Prior to joining Pondicherry University, he has worked as Professor and Head, Department of Economics, Professor In-charge (Academics) Central University of Tamil Nadu.. He has a Ph. D in Economics from Pondicherry University. He has undergone training in public economics and policy at National Institute of Public Finance Policy (NIPFP), New Delhi and completed MDP on Nurturing Future Leadership Programme from IIM Rohtak. He was a K.N. Raj Fellow at Centre for Development Studies (CDS), Trivandrum in 2019. His area of interest in teaching, research and consultancy includes Public Economics and Public policy, Fiscal Policy, Decentralization and fiscal transfers, State fiscal management, Applied Statistics and Econometrics, Health Care financing, Health Economics and modelling of growth and development indicators. He has also taught at Central University of Tamil Nadu in various capacities like Assistant Professor and Associate professor. Previously, being selected by the Union Public Service Commission, he had worked in UG and PG colleges of Government Puducherry, affiliated to Pondicherry University. He has also taught as visiting/Guest faculty at Orissa University of Agricultural and Technology, Biju Patnaik University of Technology, Central University of Orissa and Regional Medical Research Centre (ICMR), Bhubaneswar. Being recognized as an Inspired Teacher, he was invited and participated in the prestigious "Inspired Teachers' In-Residence Programme at Rashtrapati Bhavan" in 2015. He got first prize for his paper in a programme for South Asian Region Participants at NIPFP, New Delhi in 2008.

He has rich administrative experience. He has worked as founder Coordinator for Dept of economics, Dept of Education and Dept of History at Central university of Tamil Nadu. He has served as Head of the Department of Economics at Central University of Tamil Nadu for two terms. Besides, he has worked as Professor In-Charge (Academics) and academic coordinator of the Central University of Tamil Nadu. He has also served as member of the Academic council, Executive council, and the Court of Central University of Tamil Nadu. At Pondicherry University he has worked as Dean in-charge, College development council, Head, department of Economics, members of the Court and the Executive council, He was the chairperson of Board of studies of Economics, Dept of Economics at Central University of Tamil Nadu and at Pondicherry  University for several years and he is the member of BOS and school Board of several Universities and Autonomous colleges . He has worked as selection committee member of NIT (Puducherry), Delhi University, and several Central Universities.

He has published his work both in national and international journals by reputed publishers. To his credit he has published 52 research papers and he is the editor/co-editor of five books in the area of Public finance, Health and human development. He was the chief editor of Vision: Journal of Indian Taxation for 10 years and he is the Associate Editor of SN Business and Economics, Springer and Executive Editor of Odisha Economic Journal ,a prestigious journal of Odisha Economics Association . He has presented 54 research papers in national international conferences and delivered invited talks/chaired sessions in 69 occasions. He has completed seven Extramural Research/ consultancy projects funded By UGC, NCRI, MGNCRE (MHRD), ICSSR, NITI Aayog and Ministry of Finance (CTRPFP) on Public finance and Health and one collaborative research project funded by ICSSR is going on with Central University of Odisha. He is a life member of the Indian Econometric Society (TIES), Odisha Economics Association and Indian Association for Research in National Income and Wealth (IARNIW).