Arjun Malhotra

A pioneer of the Indian IT industry, Mr. Malhotra served as Chairman of Headstrong’s Board of Directors before its acquisition by Genpact in May 2011. Prior to Headstrong he was Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of TechSpan, which merged with Headstrong in October 2003. Mr. Malhotra has a long string of entrepreneurial successes. He co-founded the HCL group in 1975, taking it from a six-person “garage operation” to one of India’s largest Information Technology corporations. The first leading Indian entrepreneur to relocate to USA, Mr Malhotra took over HCL’s US operation in 1989 and grew it to nearly $100 million annual revenues. In 1992 he ran the HCL-HP joint venture in India, and in 1996 he set up and ran the joint venture with Deluxe Corporation. Mr Malhotra is on the Board of Governors of ISB, Hyderabad and IIT (Kharagpur) Foundation. He is a past Co-Chair of the Global Pan-IIT Alumni Association. He is also a Member of IPSS and was on the Board of Governors of The Doon School. A Life Fellow of IIT Kharagpur, he has been awarded Doctor of Science (Honoris Causa) in September 2012. Punjab Technical University conferred an Honorary PhD on him in 2013. He is a Charter Member of TiE, having previously served as the Chairman of their Global Board. Mr. Malhotra studied at The Doon School, Dehradun, graduated from IIT Kharagpur with B.Tech. (Hons.) in Electronics & Electrical Communication Engineering and received the Dr. B.C. Roy Gold Medal. In 1985, he attended the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School. He was awarded the Albert Einstein Technology Medal for 2001. The Institution of Engineers (India) has named Mr. Malhotra an Eminent Engineering Personality. For his contributions to the Indian IT Industry, he got the DQ LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT Award. He is presently an Advisor in a number of start-ups in Education and healthcare space..

Neelima Khetan

Neelima Khetan is a senior CSR and Social Sector expert. She has over 3 decades of experience in this space, having worked with leading for-profit and non-profit organizations in the country. Her current affiliations include Visiting Fellow with Centre for Social and Economic Progress (earlier called Brookings India) and Partner, Nous Consultants.

Earlier, Neelima has been the Group CSR Head for Vedanta Group, where she provided oversight and guidance to the CSR efforts of 11 business units of the Group, located across India and Africa. She was also (concurrently) Vice President, CSR at Hindustan Zinc. Prior to joining Vedanta, Neelima was the Director, CSR and Sustainability for Coca Cola India and South West Asia – where she led the company’s CSR/Sustainability programs across 6 countries in South Asia.

Neelima has long experience of the social sector, having held leadership positions like – India Country Director of the American India Foundation and Chief Executive of Seva Mandir in Udaipur. In between, she was also the Acting Director of the Institute of Rural Management, Anand (IRMA). Neelima has served on the Boards of many NGOs and Academic Institutions. She has also served on many Central and State Government Committees, including the Land Reforms Committee of the Government of India and the Task Force to suggest Decentralized Funding Mechanisms to the Planning Commission. Neelima holds a Master’s in Rural Management from IRMA and a Bachelor’s in Commerce from Shri Ram College of Commerce, Delhi University.

Pankaj Ballabh

A seasoned professional with 30 years of experience, Mr. Ballabh has a distinguished background in Sustainability, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), and Rural Development. His diverse experience encompasses collaboration with both grassroots development organizations and multinational corporations.

Mr. Ballabh holds a Master's Degree in Rural Management from the esteemed Institute of Rural Management, Anand, Gujarat. He has a proven track record of leadership, having served as Director of Ashoka University's Centre for Social Impact and Philanthropy. Additionally, Mr. Ballabh spearheaded the Sustainable Development function at BP India, led the Social Performance function at BG (formerly British Gas, now part of Shell), and established the CSR team at the Bajaj Group. His impactful work includes designing and leading the Hazira Mangrove Project with Shell India, and collaborating with grassroots NGOs in Rajasthan to empower tribal communities through education, ecological initiatives, and sustainable livelihood programs.

Dr Amir Ullah Khan

Dr Amir Ullah Khan is a professional economist and professor specializing in development issues in health, education, and agriculture. He has served with the Ministry of Finance, Government of India, UNDP (Project LARGE), and as Deputy Director and Policy Advisor at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

He writes columns for Livemint and Etemaad Daily, and teaches at institutions including the Indian School of Business, NALSAR, NMIMS Hyderabad, Manipal Institute of Technology, FORE School of Management, and IIFT Delhi. He also edits SAGE’s Journal of Development Policy and Practice.

Prof. Khan has been Founder Vice-Chancellor of Glocal University, Executive Director at Encyclopædia Britannica, and Senior Fellow at the India Development Foundation. He has advised NITI Aayog, the World Bank, European Commission, CII, and Planning Commission.

He is on the Boards of the Digital Empowerment Foundation, GyanShaala, and Welham Girls’ School, and is a Founder Trustee of the E&H Foundation, focused on education and health for the underprivileged. He also directs Policy Talks (Poledu Learning Foundation), promoting public policy education for students.

An alumnus of Hyderabad Public School, Osmania University, and IRMA, he earned his PhD from Jamia Millia Islamia. He has lectured at Harvard, US-India Policy Institute, and other global forums.

Dr. Monica Banerjee

Project Empathy

She holds a Ph.D. in Gender and Governance from IIT Delhi, along with a postgraduate degree in Agricultural Sciences, and has contributed to research on civil society, inclusion, gender, and governance

Project Empathy

Additionally, she served as a visiting fellow at the Centre for Civil Society, affiliated with the London School of Economics (LSE)

Project Empathy

Dr. Banerjee is connected with Project Empathy as an advisor, where she applies her expertise to shape inclusive leadership and emotional resilience education in the school curriculum—supporting empathetic responses in disaster-affected and vulnerable communities

Project Empathy

On LinkedIn, she is recognized for her roles in philanthropy, CSR, social leadership, and civil society development within the broader social sector and development arena