Shri Rao Inderjit Singh is currently Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation; Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Ministry of Planning and Union Minister of State, Ministry of Corporate Affairs. He is currently serving as the Member of Parliament representing the Gurgaon constituency, since 2009. He elected 5th time MP loksabha.His father Late Rao Birendar Singh was Ex. Chief Minister of Haryana.Shri Singh is a descendant of Rao Tula Ram, a Freedom Fighter of India’s 1st War of Independence in 1857. He is a political and social worker, agriculturist and an advocate. He holds a B.A. (Hons) degree from Hindu College, Delhi University, and an LL.B degree from the Law Faculty at Delhi University.He is also a sports champion having been a Member of the Indian Shooting Team from 1990- 2003; (ii) He was also a National Champion in Skeet Discipline for 3 years consecutively and has secured 3 Gold Medals in SAF Games and a Bronze Medal in Commonwealth Shooting Championship. Shri Singh’s political career has been equally illustrious. He has been Union Minister of State of several ministries including External Affairs, Defence, Chemicals and Fertilisers, Urban Development, Planning, amongst others. He has been elected as a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) four times from the Jatusana Vidhan Sabha in Haryana. He served as the Minister of State, Independent Charge, for Food and Civil Supplies in the Government of Haryana. His commitment to public service continued as he assumed the role of a Cabinet Minister in the Government of Haryana from 1991 to 1996. During this tenure, he handled portfolios related to Environment & Forests and Medical & Technical Education, contributing significantly to the state’s development. Shri Singh was elected to the 12th Lok Sabha in 1998. During this term, he was a member of the Committee on Science and Technology and Environment and Forests.12th Lok Sabha, he represented the people and actively participated in the Committee on Science and Technology and Environment and Forests. He was re-elected to the 14th Lok Sabha and served as the Union Minister of State for External Affairs from May 2004 to February 2006, followed by a tenure as the Union Minister of State for Defence from February 2006 to 2009.During his re-election to the 15th Lok Sabha in 2009, he chaired the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology. He resigned from the 15th Lok Sabha in April 2014 but was subsequently re-elected to the 16th Lok Sabha in May 2014. During this term, he served as the Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) in the Ministry of Planning, Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, and the Ministry of Defence.He has held key positions as Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) in the Ministry of Planning and the Ministry of Defence from November 2014 to July 2016. Subsequently, he served as Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Ministry of Planning; Union Minister of State, Ministry of Urban Development and Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation from July 2016 to September 2017.From September 2017 to May 2019, Shri Singh assumed the role of Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) in the Ministry of Planning and Union Minister of State in the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers. He was re-elected to the 17th Lok Sabha in May 2019 for his fifth term and continued his service as Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) in the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation and the Ministry of Planning from May 2019 to July 2021.Shri Singh is an active participant in social and cultural activities. He is also deeply committed to providing educational facilities in rural areas. In his leisure time, he enjoys angling, exploring the wonders of nature, and reading. His sporting interests extend to golf, swimming, tennis, and shooting.
Ritesh Tiwari, Executive Director, Finance & IT and Chief Financial Officer – Hindustan Unilever Limited & Unilever, South Asia
Ritesh is a global finance leader with a rich experience in leading diverse teams across the UK, India, and other Asian markets. He is a future-focused, high-energy, results-oriented business leader driven by his purpose ‘Reimagine possibilities and bring value with values.’ Before his current role as the CFO of HUL, Ritesh was Vice President, Finance – Global Performance Management for Unilever and CFO for Unilever International based out of London, where he helped bring together the financial and human capital of Unilever to deliver performance with impact. He also played a pivotal role in Unilever’s performance management, leading the strategic scenario planning and response during the COVID-19 pandemic. Ritesh joined Unilever as a management trainee in 1999 and in his career spanning over two decades has held roles across core finance, demand planning and procurement. Driven by his mantra of ‘delivering in the present while building for the future,’ Ritesh is credited with bringing digital transformation, simplification, and leading projects with high business impact throughout his career. Ritesh is an active member of various industry bodies, including President of Bombay Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Independent Director on ONDC (Open Network for Digital Commerce) Board, Chairman of the CFO Council of FICCI (Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry), and a member of the CII (Confederation of Indian Industry) National Committee for CFOs where he also chairs the sub-group on sustainability. By qualification, Ritesh is a Chartered Accountant & Cost and Management Accountant.
Hemant Gupta, Head – BSE Social Stock Exchange
Hemant Gupta is heading the Social Stock Exchange at BSE and is the Managing Director at BRTSIF (BIL Ryerson Technology Startup Incubator Foundation), the Technology incubator at BSE. After 26 years at Citibank, where he worked in a wide variety of functions including Product Management, Technology, Operations and Internal Audit, in India and North America, Hemant decided to swap a large corporate role for a more socially impactful role with BSE Sammaan, a startup set up by BSE for helping Companies do more effective CSR. He led the building out a platform for CSR matchmaking and management, that was acquired by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs in 2020 and relaunched as the National CSR Exchange in 2022. He was a member of the Working committee and Technical Group constituted by SEBI for setting up the Social Stock Exchange (SSE) in India. He is currently working as the Head of the SSE at BSE. He has taken over the helm of BSE’s Tech Incubator / Accelerator called Zone Startups India and is actively leading several Accelerator programs including empoWer – India’s first Women focused Startup Accelerator. He has spearheaded launching of several new initiatives at Zone Startups including, India’s first RegTech Accelerator program, a women-oriented accelerator program focusing on the North East and Jammu & Kashmir, and Capital Connexion – a platform bringing startups and investors together. Hemant holds a Management degree from IIM Calcutta and an Engineering degree from IIT Madras.
Anantha Narayan, Advisor, Sattva Consulting
Anantha Narayan brings 25 years of rich experience of working at investment banks across India and in Singapore before he moved to the social impact sector. As an Advisor with Sattva, he has been closely associated with the conceptualisation and the roll-out of the Sattva Knowledge Institute. Before joining Sattva, Anantha was the Director of Equity Research at Credit Suisse. Prior to this he has worked at ICICI Securities and Morgan Stanley as well in various roles. Anantha holds a Bachelors in Electrical Engineering (Hons) degree from Mumbai University. He has also earned a Post Graduate Diploma in Management (MBA) from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. He is also currently an advisor to TVS Capital Funds. He was also a Member of the Technical Advisory Committee of the National Financial Reporting Authority, Government of India, and a Member of the CII National Committee on Financial Reporting.
Dr. R. Balasubramaniam, Chairman, Social Stock Exchange Advisory Committee
Having embarked on his journey in the development sector by living and working for several years among remote forest based tribal communities in the southern Indian district of Mysuru, Dr. R Balasubramaniam (Balu) is a widely respected development activist, leadership trainer, thinker and writer. He is the Member-HR in the Capacity Building Commission of the Government of India. He is also a visiting professor at Cornell University, USA and at IIT-Delhi, India where he teaches courses on Leadership and Human Development. He is the Chairman of the Social Stock Exchange Advisory Committee set up by SEBI. After his MBBS, he earned his MPhil in Hospital Administration & Health Systems Management from BITS, Pilani. He has a Master’s in Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard University. His living habits were greatly influenced by the teachings of Swami Vivekananda and at the age of 19, he founded the Swami Vivekananda Youth Movement based on the principles of Ahimsa, Satya, Seva and Tyaga. He has spent more than three decades of his life in the service of the rural and tribal poor in the forests of India. He is also the Founder of Grassroots Research and Advocacy Movement, a public policy thinktank in India. Dr Balu embodies a rare blend of grassroots and macro perspectives and policy through his multi-faceted experience of more than three decades. He is a Tata Scholar, a Mason Fellow of the Harvard Kennedy School and a Fellow at the Hauser Center for Civil Society, Harvard University. He was the Head and Visiting Professor of the Vivekananda Chair, University of Mysore twice.
Dhruvi Shah, Executive Trustee and Chief Executive Officer, Axis Bank Foundation
Dhruvi Shah heads the Axis Bank Foundation (ABF), which aims to create sustainable livelihoods for rural communities in India by enhancing and diversifying their streams of income. She has over 24 years of experience spanning banking, microfinance and rural development. Before joining ABF in 2016, Dhruvi was with the ABN AMRO Bank N.V for 18 years, where she took up the responsibility of ABN AMRO’s ‘Sustainable Development and Not-for-Profit Management’ vertical in 2008 when ABN AMRO Bank N.V. got rebranded as The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) N.V. She shaped the philanthropy and corporate citizenship engagement for RBS and established the RBS Foundation India, using her deep understanding of banking and microfinance to lead their operations, systems and processes. She is also the curator and author of ‘The Book of Aspiration’ – a collection of inspirational memoirs from social leaders. As an advisor to multiple NGOs and a member of various working groups, Dhruvi passionately supports several social causes such as sustainable development, natural resource management, women empowerment and financial literacy.
Noshir Dadrawala, CEO, Centre for Advancement of Philanthropy
Noshir H. Dadrawala is CEO, Centre for Advancement of Philanthropy (CAP) through which he has been offering compliance related advisory to nonprofits and corporate social initiatives. His career spans over 36 years in the nonprofit sector, working with a diverse range of organisations, from large established national and global organizations, to corporate and family grant makers, to non-profit start ups. Drawing upon more than three and a half decades of hands-on experience and practical insights, Noshir’s main role at CAP involves simplifying the confusing and complex maze of old, but ever changing, new laws. Noshir’s legal expertise in the sector is widely recognized, as is his deep understanding of compliance within philanthropy. His current international affiliation includes serving as member on the advisory board of the International Center for Not-for-profit Law (ICNL). Earlier, he was on the Board of Worldwide Initiatives for Grantmaker Support (WINGS), Resource Alliance, as also Asia Pacific Philanthropy Consortium (APPC).
In India, he serves as trustee of the Forbes Foundation, Everest Industries Foundation, Collective Good Foundation, G. J. Kapoor Foundation, Bharatiya Samaj Seva Kendra, Ashta No Kai Foundation, Make a Wish Foundation and the Bombay Community Trust. He is also a member of the Audit Committee of Akshay Patra Foundation and Governing Board Member of the BSE Social Stock Exchange. Noshir has authored several resource books and is currently an active Blogger on compliance related issues for NPOs. He is also a speaker at many local and international conferences and guest faculty at leading business schools and the Tata Institute of Social Sciences.
Namita Dandekar, Chief Operating Officer, Raintree Foundation
Namita Dandekar is a Chief Operating Officer of Raintree Foundation, where she plays a pivotal role in ensuring the seamless functioning of the organization and spearheads initiatives that drive sustainable and thriving ecosystems. With 16 years of diverse experience, she brings a unique blend of strategic thinking, operational excellence, and a deep commitment to positive social impact. In 2021, driven by her fervor for making a difference, Namita joined the Raintree Foundation. She initially led the Communications team, where her innovative strategies and compelling narratives amplified the foundation’s outreach and engagement. Recognizing her dynamic capabilities, she swiftly transitioned into a broader operational role, taking on the responsibilities of Chief Operating Officer. This transition showcased her versatility and adaptability in managing complex challenges and fostering growth. Her ability to inspire and mobilize teams towards a common goal is a testament to her exceptional leadership qualities. Under her guidance, the team at Raintree Foundation is empowered to drive impactful projects that make a lasting difference in the communities they serve. Before her tenure at Raintree Foundation, Namita gathered valuable experience working with renowned PR agencies such as Adfactors and Christensen IR. She also held positions in reputable corporates including Opto Circuits and Piramal Enterprises, where she honed her strategic thinking and operational expertise. In addition to her corporate journey, Namita ventured into entrepreneurship, showcasing her versatility and entrepreneurial spirit. She successfully managed a bakery business for more than 5 years, complete with a physical storefront. This experience not only highlighted her business acumen but also demonstrated her ability to manage diverse challenges and succeed in different domains. Namita completed her Masters in PR & Communications from the prestigious University of Westminster, London. Her educational foundation, coupled with an innate passion for creating positive change, set her on a trajectory towards impactful leadership in the sector
Subramanya Kusnur, Founder Chairman & CEO-AquaKraft Group Ventures, Treasurer – Governing Council of UN Global Compact Network India and Consultant – Ministry of Water Supply, Sri Lanka
Dr. Subramanya Kusnur is known for his advocacy for clean drinking water & safe sanitation. He is the Founder, Chairman and CEO of AquaKraft Group Ventures, an innovation-driven next-generation Sustainability & Impact group that creates actionable solutions to drive improvements in sanitation, clean drinking water, public health and hygiene across India. His business philosophy is service to the nation & mankind, and he has successfully spearheaded a movement that has leveraged innovation, advocacy, entrepreneurship, sustainability and capacity building. He has been at the forefront of advocating sustainability rights since the inception of AquaKraft in 2010, which he formed, leaving behind a successful corporate career. Since then, he has relentlessly worked in the field of Water, promoting Green & energy efficient solutions, invested over 5000 many days, and travelled over 7000 villages and a million miles, contributing his mite to help India achieve its dream of giving the “Right To Water” to every citizen. AquaKraft has, till date, harvested and treated over 5 billion litres of water across 9 states of India. Dr. Subramanya is the Treasurer of the Governing Council of the United Nations Global Compact Network India. Dr.Subramanya is a Graduate in Science from the University of Mumbai and holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Computer Software and Applications. He started his career with CANFINA, a wholly owned subsidiary of Canara Bank, a leading Indian Public Sector Bank and subsequently moved to the private sector in the area of Equity Broking, Debt Market Operations, Resource Mobilization and Structured finance. He then leveraged his experience in the BFSI segment to the IT arena where his experience spans from e-business strategies to Enterprise Banking Software, Enterprise Risk Management and Payment Systems. He was also involved in developing a comprehensive strategy for a nationwide project enabling financial inclusion of rural masses leveraging a Mobile Transaction Platform. He brings in rich experience of over 30 years in the BFSI, IT & Public Affairs spanning through both Public & Private Sector, domestically and internationally. He has a keen focus on serving the public with issues relating to Children Welfare, Drinking Water & Sanitation, Public Health, Alternate Energy, Rural Development, Public Policy and International Bilateral Relationships. He has travelled widely across India and particularly Rural India. He has a strong international exposure by virtue of having travelled extensively across the Middle East, South East Asia, Africa and the United States of America. He is also awarded with different Awards
Abhay Gupte, Partner, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu India LLP
With a career spanning over 40 years, Abhay Gupte has strong advisory, auditing and consulting experience leading teams in a professional, diverse, multi-cultural environment. Abhay has served some of India’s largest organizations and financial conglomerates including regulators. He has been an integral part of the growth of Deloitte’s Risk Advisory (RA) practice’s in India for the last 30 years beginning with a 2 member team of over 5000 professionals in India offering enterprise risk advisory, IT risk and information security advisory services. Abhay is a leading expert in risk management, regulatory services and SOX in various industries viz. Automobiles, Technology Media and telecommunications and Banking, Financial Services and Insurance.
Heena Khushalani, Partner, Climate Change and Sustainability Services, Ernst & Young Associates LLP
Heena is a Partner with EY India and she leads the financial services sector within climate change and sustainability services practice. She has over 16 years of experience in ESG, working across the spectrum in Sustainability advisory, Impact Investing/Sustainable Finance, Impact Reporting and Assessment, Philanthropy and Sustainable Development in the US, South and South East Asia markets. She has worked with some notable organizations including Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) in the US, with Aavishkaar Capital and Xynteo in India, leading work across multiple thematics within ESG as well as sustainable finance engagements.
Vaneeta Gangwani, Director, PW LLP
Vaneeta Gangwani is a Director with PW LLP and works in the CSR Advisory practice in the assurance division. She has over 19 years of professional experience in providing services in the field of CSR strategy research & policy formulation, CSR program monitoring, financial reviews, due diligence, social and operational reviews, assurance services and impact evaluation studies. She is a seasoned development sector professional and have been assisting a wide range of corporates, government PSUs, donors and aid agencies, international organizations and NGOs in their CSR journey. She is also part of the Local Fund Agent team for Global Fund (GF) grants in India and managing related engagements including capacity assessments for NGOs and Government Departments.
Sandeep Kothawade, Associate Director, KPMG
Sandeep is a development sector professional with 16+ years of experience. He has expertise in CSR & development sector advisory, multi-stakeholder platforms design and operationalization, social enterprise and community institutions building, PMU operations, third-party evaluations, SROI, True Value assessments, policy design and implementation, and Government relations. He is a certified SROI practitioner and trainer and has trainer more than 200 professionals till date. He has played role of a consultant, a donor, and an implementor as well
Aziz Fidai, Head – CSR, Metro Brands Limited
Aziz Fidai is a caring social advocate and an experienced corporate banking professional with 25 years of industry insight. Holding a Sociology degree and an MBA in Social Entrepreneurship from NMIMS, Mumbai, he is equipped with a solid educational foundation. He’s also a certified Independent Director and a Rotary World Peace Fellow from Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, underlining his dedication to both professional development and creating a positive impact. After spending around 25 years in banking, in 2014, Aziz joined Axis Bank Foundation as Operations Head, merging his career with his deep-seated passion for social causes. From 2019, he’s been at the forefront of Metro Brands Ltd.’s CSR and Sustainability vertical, driving purposeful initiatives that uplift communities in need and nurture the environment. Beyond his work, Aziz actively participates in community projects and dedicates time to coaching underprivileged children in two municipal schools. He shares his insights through weekly blogs, reflecting his commitment to sharing knowledge. During his leisure time, Aziz finds joy in reading, practicing yoga and meditation, and cherishing moments with his loved ones. His appetite for learning knows no bounds, embodying his role as a lifelong learner. Aziz’s ultimate goal? Crossing the finish line of a full marathon, a testament to his determination and personal growth journey.
Aloka Majumdar is Managing Director, Global Head of Philanthropy & Head of Sustainability, HSBC India.
In her capacity as Global Head of Philanthropy Aloka focusses on overseeing the execution of HSBC’s global philanthropy strategy, and aligning it with the ESG pillars of ‘transition to net zero’ (E) and ‘building inclusion and resilience (S). She works closely with multiple stakeholders including leadership teams in the UK and regions across geographies where HSBC has a presence. Aloka also heads Sustainability for HSBC Group in India, which comprises the Bank and other HSBC companies and lead the fulfillment of the growing sustainability priorities and initiatives for the Group in India. She is a member of the Group Sustainability Executive Committee (ExCo) and of the HSBC India Executive Committee (ExCo). Her expertise lies in the fields of Financial Inclusion, Skills development and Climate Change. She has worked extensively with a wide range of stakeholders that include community based organisations, multilateral agencies, the academia and central and state governments. She was awarded the Parivartan Sustainability Leadership Award in 2016 and recognized by Social Venture Partners (SVP) with Grant Thornton (knowledge partner) as a women exemplar in 2019. Graduating with Honours in Political Science from University of Calcutta, Aloka started her career as a financial journalist, specializing in covering Banking and Finance.
Prasad Pradhan, Director Sustainable Business & Communications, South Asia, Unilever
Prasad joined Hindustan Unilever in 1993. Since then, he has handled diverse areas of Communications namely Public Affairs, Advocacy, Media Relations, Issues Management, Employee Engagement, Leadership Communication, and sustainability. In his role as Director, CCA, he is responsible for driving the Sustainable Business & Communications agenda in South Asia markets. Prasad holds a master’s degree in Personnel Management from Symbiosis Institute of Management, Pune. He is a Director on the SMILE Council, a section 8 company formed by the Municipal corporation of Mumbai. He is also a member of the Circular Economy Committee of FICC and a Trustee of Bombay City Police Research Foundation (BCPRF). His hobbies include playing Tennis and Cricket. In the early 1980s, he played first class cricket for the State of Maharashtra for 10 years and represented India (under 20) & (under 22) against England and West Indies.
Matilda Lobo, Head – CSR, IndusInd Bank
Matilda Lobo brings 25+ years diverse global Banking & Financial Services experience, spanning Strategy, Business Development, Risk Management, Corporate Banking, Trade Finance, ESG, and CSR. Having excelled at FIAT Group, General Electric (GE), and Standard Chartered Bank, she now leads CSR at IndusInd Bank championing the Bank’s CSR Strategy of economic empowerment of marginalised communities through holistic rural development in aspirational districts, education, inclusive sports and sustainable environment interventions. Matilda’s passion for solving social issues and multifaceted expertise drives her role, fostering change rooted in the commitment to gender equality, inclusion, and climate resilience.
Prerana Langa, Chief Executive Officer, Aga Khan Agency for Habitat
Prerana Langa is passionate about building regenerative ecosystems for large-scale impact. She set up and successfully ran two corporate foundations from scratch for ICICI Group and YES BANK. She headed CSR for ICICI Group. She currently leads Aga Khan Agency for Habitat in India with innovative work in environmental infrastructure, climate risk resilience, biodiversity, nature-based solutions- coastal restoration and water security. She was the Head of a philanthropic foundation, working on the wellbeing of the individual, community, and the planet in over 1100 villages in Punjab. She has professional experience of over two decades, working on a range of innovative and scalable programs across the spectrum; education, health, financial inclusion, environment, youth leadership, fellowships, community partnerships, capacity building of civil society and poverty alleviation. She has developed innovative and world record-breaking media for social change movement with a focus on nurturing youth to emerge as change makers and strengthening Non-Profits/Enterprises to maximize social impact. Prerana has won several awards including being recognized amongst the top 5 Social Impact professionals in India by Asia Venture Philanthropy Network (AVPN) and Social Venture Partners in 2019. She is a spokesperson and representative for social impact across media including CNBC & The Economic Times and global forums; IITs, IIMs, ISB, SP Jain etc. She has been featured in a book, “The Chef Executive Officer” alongside other high-profile CEO’s including Aditya Puri, Jerry Rao, and Ken Cato on innovative leadership. She holds a Diploma in CSR and Sustainability from the Swedish Institute and an executive program from the World Bank & Harvard University South Asia Institute. She holds a Master’s degree in Business Management.
Sandeep Khosla is the Director General of the Bombay Chamber of Commerce and Industry since February 2020. Sandeep has over 33 years of overall experience in the Media & Entertainment industry. He has 20+ years experience in Leadership roles having spent 23 years as Group Vice President with the Indian Express Newspapers (Bom) Ltd., 6 years as CEO with Network 18 and 4 years as CEO at Mid-day Infomedia Ltd. Sandeep was also the Producer of the Annual Star Screen Awards for 10 years. He has successfully built and led top performing teams nationally. He has in-depth knowledge of the Publishing industry with expertise in Advertising & Marketing.
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