Samar Singh is the son of the Late Maharaj Virbhadra Singh, younger brother of Maharawal Lakshman Singh of Dungarpur and the last Dewan (Prime Minister) of erstwhile Dungarpur State from 1932 to 1948. From childhood, he has had a deep interest in history. After schooling at the Daly College, Indore, he joined St Stephen’s College in Delhi and earned the BA (Honours) and master’s degrees in History with distinction from the Delhi University.

In 1962, he joined the Indian Administrative Service and, in due course, went on to hold several responsible and senior positions in Madhya Pradesh, his cadre state, and with the Government of India, where he worked first in the Ministry of Agriculture and then in the Ministry of Environment & Forests. He also served, for seven years, as the Secretary General & Chief Executive of the World Wide Fund for Nature – India (WWF-India), a leading national NGO in the field of conservation. Recipient of the Order of the Golden Ark – an international award for exceptional work done in the field of nature conservation – he is the author of Conserving India’s Natural Heritage, World Charter for Nature, Religion and Conservation, Ecological Security as the foundation of Sustainable Development, Garden Birds of Delhi, Agra & Jaipur and Maintenance of Public Order – A Source Book. He has also compiled and co-edited Raj Singh Dungarpur – A Tribute.