Selvaraju Venkatachalam holds Ph.D. in Economics and engaged in research and consultancy primarily in the area of Health Economics. Began career as an academic researcher and moved on to focus on research for policy purposes in addition to project monitoring and implementation relating to health care services. Held positions in institutions such as National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, World Health Organisation, the World Bank, Abt Associates (USA), Imperial College (London), etc. Selvaraju was engaged as a consultant by USAID, DFID, World Bank, WHO, Royal Government of Bhutan, CordAid (Netherlands), PwC, KPMG and other organisations to prepare policy documents, preparation and implementation of projects relating to health sector in India, Afghanistan, Bhutan and Indonesia.
He has contributed to important policy documents of Government of India such as National Health Policy, India Health Report, National Commission on Macroeconomics and Health, etc. He has published research papers on health policy issues in national and international journals and books. Served as a peer reviewer for journals such as Artha Vijnana, Journal of Social and Economic Development, PlosOne, among others.Selvaraju is one of the founders of the Indian Health Economics and Policy Association, and served as its founder Secretary for six years. Currently, he is the Vice-President of the Indian Association for Social Sciences and Health.