S. Irudaya Rajan, is a Professor at the Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram. Prof. Rajan has coordinated seven major migration surveys in Kerala since 1998 (with Professor K C Zachariah), Goa migration survey 2008 and Tamil Nadu migration survey 2015. He played an instrumental role in conducting the Punjab migration survey 2009 and also the Gujarat Migration Survey 2011. He has published extensively in national and international journals on social, economic and demographic implications of international migration. Recognizing migration related research done at the CDS, Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs established a research unit on international migration (RUIM) during 2006-2016 where Prof. Rajan acted as Chair Professor.
He has undertaken projects on international migration with the European Union, International Labour Organization, International Development Research Centre, Canadian Institute of Health Research, World Bank, International Organization of Migration, South Asian Network of Economic Institutes (SANEI), Rockefeller Foundation, United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organizations (UNESCO) among others. He is the editor of the Annual Series India migration report and also Editor-in-chief of the International journal of migration and development brought out by Taylor and Francis.