[2] He was born in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, in a Telugu Brahmin family to the High Court judge Mr. Bhimsankaram Kanda and Mrs. Papayamma, a prominent social reformer.

His nephew was the former Communist Party of India (Marxist) General Secretary, Sitaram Yechury, who died on 12 September 2024.

Mohan Kanda started his career with State Bank of India as an Probationary Officer.

He was also Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India and served as Member, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).

[5][6] He was made head of a committee that would look into the problems faced by the Coastal Andhra riots in declaring a Crop Holiday.