Pramod Boro is an Indian politician serving as the president of the United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL) since 2020 and the current Chief Executive Member of the Bodoland Territorial Council (The biggest sixth schedule Council government in NE region with more than 31 Lakh Population).

He became the longest-serving President of All Bodo Student Union (ABSU) from 2009 to 2020 (Feb). Ever since he became the President of the Union, he tirelessly dedicated himself to serve the society with a voluntary zeal. His prime importance towards his responsibility was to bring permanent peace to the Bodoland region and to bring change in the society where every human being can live with full freedom and have the right to education and development. Under his leadership, in the long Bodoland Movement, there were many upheavals in Bodo politics, and ABSU faced many criticisms and threats. Despite such situations, Pramod Boro has boldly continued the effort to bring permanent peace in the region.

His focus is to establish peace in the region ever since he got the momentum with the observance of ‘Arms and Violence Free Society’s foundation day observed by ABSU on 15 February 2009. Connecting all the major events observed by the Union as ‘Anti-Terrorism Day’ on 30 July (Since 1996).

Mr. Boro was born on (1st of March 1975) to at Sauraguri village under Tamulpur police station in Tamulpur district of BTR. He completed his degree from Rangia College in 1994.

Dhruvi Shah is the Executive Trustee and CEO of Axis Bank Foundation (ABF). ABF supports livelihood promotion for rural communities across India. It collaborates with not-for-profit organisations to foster community-centric programmes, designed to intentionally sustain economic growth. Dhruvi is also the co-author of “The Book of Aspiration”, and mentors several social enterprises.

Dr. Mihir Shah is one of India’s leading scholars, practitioners and policy-makers on water management and agro-ecology. He is Distinguished Professor, Shiv Nadar University, where he has pioneered a first-of-its-kind MA in Rural Management program, focused on students from the most disadvantaged regions and communities of the country. From 2009 to 2014 he was Member, Planning Commission, Government of India, handling the portfolios of Water Resources, Rural Development and Panchayati Raj. From 2019 to 2021 he chaired the Government of India’s Committee to draft the new National Water Policy. This is the first time ever that a person from outside government was asked to chair this committee. An economist by training, Dr Shah wrote a much-acclaimed doctoral dissertation at the Centre for Development Studies, Kerala. After teaching for some years at the Centre, he resigned to explore fresh terrain beyond the ivory towers of conventional academia, which culminated in 1990 in the formation of Samaj Pragati Sahayog (SPS), headquartered in a remote tribal village of Madhya Pradesh. Inspired by the life and work of Baba Amte, SPS is today one of India’s largest grassroots initiatives for water and livelihood security. As part of Team SPS, Dr. Shah lived and worked with India’s tribal communities for over three decades, in the hinterlands of central India, forging a new paradigm of inclusive and sustainable development, which strengthens democracy at the grassroots, based on the leadership of women. Dr. Shah was the first President of the Bharat Rural Livelihoods Foundation (2013-19) and the first Chair of the Revitalising Rainfed Areas (RRA) Network (2014-18) and the National Coalition for Natural Farming (NCNF) (2021-24) He is a Founding Signatory of the Geneva Actions on Human Water Security, 2017. He was a Member of the International Steering Committee of the CGIAR Research Program on Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE) from 2012 to 2018. Dr. Shah has addressed audiences on his life’s work all over the world from Stanford University to the World Bank in Washington, the OECD in Paris, the Arctic Circle in Iceland, Chatham House and University College, London and University of Cambridge, England, UNESCO-IHE, Delft, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, Austria, the EAT Forum, Stockholm, Rachel Carson Centre, Munich, Himalayan University Consortium, Chengdu, China, International Water Management Institute, Colombo, the Asian Development Bank, Manila, the Asian Institute of Technology, Bangkok and the Singapore Water Week. He was the Keynote Speaker at the Global Water Summit at Rome in 2012 and the International EcoSummit Congress at Montpellier in 2016. His research has been published extensively in pre-eminent journals such as Economic and Political Weekly, Current Science, Ambio, Hydrogeology Journal, Journal of Hydrology, Contributions to Indian Sociology, Review of Development and Change, Seminar and Indian Journal of Labour Economics.

Dr Ajit Kanitkar is a researcher and policy analyst based in Pune. Over a career spanning 35 years, he has worked as a researcher at Vikasanvesh Foundation, as a programme officer at Ford Foundation as well as Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, and as a faculty member at IRMA Anand. He is associated with several civil society organisations, including his alma mater Jnana Prabodhini in Pune, as a volunteer. Ajit has published extensively, including four books on social enterprise, women entrepreneurship, and farmer producer companies.

Dibyendu Sarkar retired in 2021 as an IAS Officer in the rank of Secretary to the Government of West Bengal. A post-graduate in English and Sociology, he spent 35 years and a half in the civil service. Shri Sarkar has wide ranging experience in training, research and extension activities and served as Director, B.R. Ambedkar Institute of Panchayats & Rural Development (BRAIPRD), West Bengal at Kalyani, Nadia. He played key role in promoting activities supportive of consolidation of self-help groups as Secretary, Self-help Groups & Self Employment (SHG&SE) Department, Government of West Bengal. He led the Mahatma Gandhi NREGA programme at the state level as Commissioner for more than seven years; coordinated activities pertaining to Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) as Mission Director in the state. He has also worked in the Communication for Development section in UNICEF, West Bengal and Assam. Post-retirement, he provides support to several CSOs in advisory capacity. He is the founder Director and CMD of Ecovocal Solution Private Limited, incorporated to work in the domain of environment sensitive sustainable development and Director of another agricultural biotech company, Smart Farming India Private Limited.

Liby T Johnson is the Executive Director of Gram Vikas, Odisha.  He has led large-scale, impactful efforts over nearly three decades in the community development sector in India with civil society and governments. His experience spans diverse sectors like water, natural resources, migration, livelihoods, local governance, disaster management, and institution development. As the chief functionary of Gram Vikas, he is responsible for leading the organisation’s work in its fifth decade aiming to influence the life of six million people by enabling water and livelihoods security.  He contributes regularly to policy discussions at the State and National levels on water, sanitation, migration, enterprise development and disaster resilience. He is an alumnus of the Institute of Rural Management Anand, India.

M.P. Vasimalai, Founder and Executive Director of the DHAN Foundation, is a development leader with more than four decades of development experience. Hailing from a farming family in Tamil Nadu, he has mentored thousands of development professionals and played a key role in establishing over 500 self-sustaining community institutions throughout India.

Following his studies Masters in Agricultural Science and Management at the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (IIMA), Mr. Vasimalai dedicated his career to working with marginalized communities. Inspired by the philosophies of Mahatma Gandhi, Vinoba Bhave, and J.C. Kumarappa, he has dedicated his life on translating Gandhian principles into scalable development models.

In 1997, he established the DHAN (Development of Humane Action) Foundation to empower impoverished communities through the engagement of skilled professionals, facilitating their socio-economic advancement. Under his leadership, DHAN has expanded its reach to impact 4.81 million families across 17 Indian states. Mr. Vasimalai champions the concept of “Community Swaraj” as essential for sustainable development. He has demonstrated the efficacy of deploying highly qualified personnel at the grassroots level to work directly with communities, emphasizing that such engagement is not a privilege but a duty and an expression of “Giving Back to Society”.

Mr. Vasimalai prioritizes institutional development, believing that institutions transcend individual contributions. His leadership has positioned DHAN as one of the pioneer in poverty alleviation through community governance and management. DHAN’s initiatives in areas such as community-led water conservation, agricultural development, development finance, and women’s empowerment have demonstrably reduced poverty. Over the past three decades, Mr. Vasimalai’s dedicated efforts have led to the development and nationwide scaling of community-driven models in the themes of Healthcare, Education, Mutual insurance, Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), and Housing.

Aman Bhaiya is a dynamic CSR professional with nearly 10 years of leadership experience in Corporate Social Responsibility and advisory experience in Financial Markets. A founding member of the SBI Foundation, he has been instrumental in shaping its strategy, policies, and procedures. Aman has successfully managed CSR activities worth Rs. 800 Cr, impacting over 25 million lives through 120+ programs. Known as a Social Intrapreneur, he excels in organizing Board meetings, networking with key stakeholders, and formulating policies. Aman has a proven track record in executing CSR programs in various fields, including education, healthcare, and sustainability. His innovative projects, such as the Development Impact Bond in Education and Tele Mentoring for COVID-19 warriors, have significantly influenced state policies and driven social change in India.

Anita Purty is the Mukhiya (head) of Karalajodi Panchayat in the Sadar block of West Singhbhum district, Jharkhand. Her panchayat comprises five villages, where notable work has been carried out under MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act) with the support of BRLF (Bharat Rural Livelihoods Foundation). As the Mukhiya, she has facilitated pensions and housing for many people. Under MGNREGA, she has provided employment to numerous individuals and initiated works such as land bunding, pond construction, and tree plantation, for which she has been honored. In her area, exemplary work has been done through MGNREGA, providing local employment and reducing migration. Now, people are happily living in their villages. Those without toilets have been provided with sanitation facilities, and compost pits (Nadeep) have been constructed for waste management.

Anjani Kumar Singh is a Senior Program Officer and Country Lead at the Gates Foundation. He leads the foundation work in India related to community platforms and Women’s livelihoods. He has more than 25 years of experience in designing and operationalizing large-scale rural development programs in the areas of community institution building (SHGs; WUAs; CIGs; FPOs etc.), agricultural value chain development, rural livelihoods, rural enterprise promotion, community finance, monitoring & evaluation, and management of development programs. Before joining the foundation, Anjani worked with the World Bank and was critical member of various World Bank task teams managing agriculture and community development projects in Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Nigeria, Nepal, Sri-Lanka, Cambodia etc. Anjani’s contribution to various large scale community development program in India like District Poverty Initiative Project (DPIP); National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM) and JEEViKA program in Bihar is well known.  Anjani has 360-degree experience in the development sector —starting with grass-roots action projects with civil society organisations as well as with the National and State Governments (Govt. of Bihar and MoRD); International Consulting firms (e.g., EURO PRAXIS, Barcelona and GRM International, UK); and multi-lateral donor agencies like the World Bank and FAO. Anjani is a graduate of Columbia University, School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), NY, USA and has studied at Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai and Rajendra Agricultural University, Pusa, India.

Kuldip Singh is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Bharat Rural Livelihoods Foundation (BRLF). Kuldip has been associated with many grassroots organizations and has significant experience managing high-impact projects supported by Governments and national and international agencies. He has more than twenty years of diverse experience in the development sector. His area of expertise lies in managing high-impact, large-scale projects, partnership building, resource mobilization, capacity building, and team building. For the last eight years, Kuldip has been instrumental in shaping the programmatic vision for BRLF in various roles. As Chief Operating Officer – Programs, he has successfully implemented state partnership projects in West Bengal, Odisha, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, and Maharashtra. He deeply understands the issues related to the Central Indian Tribal Belt and believes in impactful collaborations with civil society, government, and institutions for sustainable development.

With a master’s in social work, he has previously worked with the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation as a National Coordinator of the Natural Resources Management division. He is a founding member of Gram Gaurav, a grassroots NGO based in Rajasthan.

A tribal woman from Odisha, Laki Jani has no land of her own. She and her family work on land owned by others. there are times when they don’t have enough to eat. Her constant effort towards learning and leading things makes her in the path of developmental change in the locality.

Laki’s personality takes her beyond her role in agriculture forming personal bonds with the women she educates. they hesitantly reach out to her directly for advice whenever new crops are harvested. Being hardworking individuals in agriculture, it’s essential that our children learn to be self-reliant and capable of looking after themselves.” Laki’s personality takes her beyond her role in agriculture forming personal bonds with the women she educates. they hesitantly reach out to her directly for advice whenever new crops are harvested. Being hardworking individuals in agriculture, it’s essential that our children learn to be self-reliant and capable of looking after themselves.”

Laki’s dream is to help tribal women farmers to be independent and make their own decisions. She uses her knowledge to teach them sustainable farming techniques and organizes gatherings where she shares information about government schemes.

Nand Kumar (IAS Retired) has made a name for himself in the field of school education in the whole country. Through his persistent efforts, he has succeeded in bringing about a dramatic change in the quality of education in Government schools in Maharashtra as reported by successive independent Surveys carried out by third parties like ASER and NAS.

He is now engaged in eradication of poverty through MGNREGA in the State of Maharashtra in which he has chosen ‘हर खेत को पानी’ and ‘Catch The Rains When It Falls Where It Falls Where It Falls’ as entry points. So far 5 villages in different regions of Maharashtra are on the verge of becoming MGNREGA Free and its replication process is promoted by the government of Maharashtra and is in the initial phase.

Parallelly, he is working on replicating this model through ‘Vedh’ a Professional Learning Community (PLC) of teachers and officers that have been meeting daily on Zoom since 5th July 2020.

Pradyut Bhattacharjee is Executive Director of Seven Sisters Development Assistance (SeSTA) (www.sesta.org). He is an Engineer by education and has been a development professional for the last 22 years, leading teams and projects during his stint with Professional Assistance for Development Action (PRADAN) in Jharkhand & Chhattisgarh; his forte being promoting & nurturing women collectives, sustainable livelihoods, grooming young professionals, institution building and Organisation Development processes. Pradyut is also an empanelled National Resource Person of NRLM supporting State Rural Livelihood Missions (SRLMs) all across North-Eastern states. He has long experience of working on institution building, social mobilization and sustainable livelihoods. He has worked as Chief Executive Officer of one of the largest Women Cooperatives in Jharkhand, working on input and output linkages. Pradyut also engages in Organisation Development Processes with smaller organizations of NE and is also engaged in permaculture in his ancestral house in a village in Nalbari, Assam. Pradyut loves reading books, birding, trekking, butterfly watching and gardening in his spare time.

Rajeev Ahal works in GIZ India as Director, Natural Resource Management and Agroecology in the Environment, Climate Change and Natural Resource Cluster, where he leads bilateral projects on Water Security and Climate Adaptation and Global Projects on `Sustainable Soil Management’. He coordinates other projects in agroecology, rural development, social protection, sustainable farming systems, market led development approaches (including PPPs), Artificial Intelligence, value chain development, Farmer Producer Organisations etc with various government ministries and state governments. He graduated in engineering and holds a Diploma in Gestalt from International Programme for Organisational and Systems Development. He has over 33 years of experience of working with international agencies, governments, civil society and the private sector in India and African countries. He loves to write when he can and has published fiction and non-fiction works.

Father Regimony, the Secretary of Bastar Sewak Mandal (BSM), is a dedicated development professional with over two decades of experience in uplifting tribal communities in Bastar and surrounding districts. From 2004 to 2009, he served as the Youth Director under the Diocese of Jagdalpur, followed by his role as Project Manager for a livelihood project funded by CASA from 2006 to 2010. He also managed various schools under the Diocese of Jagdalpur until 2017. Since 2017, he has been leading Bastar Sewak Mandal as its Secretary and Executive Director, spearheading numerous initiatives focused on Natural Resource Management, women empowerment, food security, and child development. Under his leadership, BSM has implemented impactful projects to eradicate malnutrition, ensure sustainable livelihoods, and empower marginalized communities, making a significant difference in the lives of tribal populations in Bastar.

Mother Anahata is a dedicated social worker who has been serving society through Shamayita Math, a organisation headquartered at Amarkanan in Bankura district, West Bengal. Inspired by the philosophy of Revered Prabhuji, the founder of Shamayita Math, she joined the organization as a dedicated sannyasin in 1994 after completing her graduation in Zoology. Guided by the mission of Shamayita Math—“to serve the marginalized with an aim to create holistic development opportunities, helping them achieve self-empowered lives with dignity”—she has devoted her life to the welfare of society.

Since 2006, Mother Anahata has been instrumental in initiating and expanding rural livelihood programs under Shamayita Math. These programs focus on empowering rural communities through the dissemination of agro-techniques, water and soil conservation, and other scientific approaches. Starting with a small team in Bankura district, the programs have grown significantly, now operating across West Bengal, Jharkhand, and Chhattisgarh, with a larger team of professionals. As the chief coordinating person, she oversees the execution of all rural livelihood projects, ensuring their impact and sustainability.

Ashwini Kulkarni is presently working with Pragati Abhiyan, a Civil Society Organisation based in Nashik Maharashtra (www.pragatiabhiyan.org), which she has founded with like minded friends. She has extensively worked on MGNREGA, working with the Community, working with Government at all levels from local administration to the ministry in Delhi and has also worked with renowned researchers to understand the program in the context of rural development. Working on rural livelihoods for a long time naturally led to exploring the issues of small and marginal farmers especially the rainfed. Public policies and public investments are the main drivers of development hence studying policies of the Government has been important part of Pragati Abhiyan;s work. In addition to working with various stakeholders, she has been involved in occasionally writing for the media to supplement the discourse on various issues. She is closely associated with networks – RRAN and NREGA consortium and RCRC

P.S. Vijayshankar is one of the seven Founder-Directors of Nature Positive Foundation (N+3F), a non-profit company engaged in the promotion of sustainable and nature positive farming and chemical-free food systems. His areas of interest include ecological agriculture, rural livelihoods and agricultural markets. He is a co-founder of Samaj Pragati Sahayog (SPS), a civil society organisation based in Central India. He was a Visiting Scholar at the Centre for Advanced Study of India (CASI), University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA, (2011) and is currently Professor of Practice at School of Humanities and Social Sciences (SHSS), Shiv Nadar University, Delhi. His recent publications include Tribal Development Report: Livelihoods, Human Development and Governance, (co-edited with Mihir Shah, 2 Vols.), brought out by Bharat Rural Livelihoods Foundation (BRLF) and Routledge.

Manas Mandal is the Program Officer – Eastern Zone of Bharat Rural Livelihoods Foundation (BRLF). He is a highly qualified professional with a Master of Arts in Rural Development from IGNOU and a B.Tech in Biotechnology from the West Bengal University of Technology. With over 16 years of experience in the field, he has established himself as an expert in Integrated Natural Resource Management (INRM) and Rural Livelihoods, encompassing farm, off-farm, and non-farm sectors.

Manas possesses exceptional project management skills, excelling in grass-root project implementation and financial management. He has a proven track record of effective partnership management, liaising with diverse stakeholders such as private enterprises, banks, government line departments, donors, start-ups, and NGOs. His strong facilitation and presentation abilities make him an adept communicator at all levels. Manas is also highly skilled in data analysis and reporting.

Manas has worked with organizations such as Transforming Rural India Foundation (An Initiative of TATA Trusts), the Rural Development Department of the Government of Jharkhand, Action for Social Advancement (ASA), Shamayita Math, and Professional Assistance for Development Action (PRADAN). His expertise lies in youth skilling and enterprises, integrated natural resource management, agri and agri-allied-based livelihood models, and convergence of government initiatives.

Himangshu is the Team Leader of Bodoland, Assam in Bharat Rural Livelihoods Foundation (BRLF). He is an Engineering Graduate from the National Institute of Technology, Silchar, and later obtained a Post Graduate Diploma. He has worked passionately to alleviate rural poverty for the last two decades. He worked in grassroots organizations, donor agency & consulting firms. He gained in-depth exposure to livelihood challenges and promotion in India’s Eastern and North-Eastern parts. Community Institutions always inspire him. He considers Natural Resource Management one of his core areas of expertise, and value chain-based livelihood promotion is one of his areas of interest. He sharpened his household-based participatory livelihood planning skills, developed partnerships, demonstrated team leadership, and spearheaded multiple organisational initiatives.

Himangshu is a board member of the gender and youth-focused organization “Rupantaran Foundation.” He believes in the participatory approach and upholds transparency as the highest value.

Kushagra Merchant is a co-founder of Social Synergy Foundation (sosynergy.org) that, since its set-up in 2014, provides long-term organisational development and institution building support to a variety of predominantly small and medium-sized civil society organisations.

In addition, he has been associated as an independent consultant with the Indian School of Development Management since 2016 and has supported it in multiple capacities including curriculum design & pedagogy development, teaching, development of case studies, and student assessments/mentoring.

Prior to setting up Social Synergy Foundation, he was a management consultant, first with Accenture Services India’s consulting division, and later with the erstwhile Monitor Group’s unit called Monitor Inclusive Markets (later part of FSG) on their work on development of market-based models for low-income housing and drinking water in urban India.

He holds a PGDM from Indian Institute of Management Calcutta (2007) and a Bachelor of Engineering (B.E.) in Electronics and Telecommunications from K.J. Somaiya College of Engineering, Mumbai University (2003).

Dev is the Program Officer of Southern Zone in Bharat Rural Livelihoods Foundation. He is a project management professional with more than 12 years of enriching experience in agriculture development, rural Livelihoods, micro-enterprise development, intuition building, and climate resilience. He worked in the DFID-Climate Change Innovation Programme in Odisha to provide technical assistance for implementing Phase-II action plans of OCCAP. He has also supported the State’s implementation of the Integrated District Irrigation and Agriculture Plan (DIAP), Agri Value Chain, and promoting FPO/FPC, cluster development in Odisha. He also provided hand-holding support to access finance from the Green Climate Fund, Adaptation measures in climate-smart agriculture, and climate change primitive measures for different consulted departments of Govt. of Odisha. He has successfully delivered key assignments of Ministries, State governments, the World Bank, GEF, NABARD, and other reputed bilateral organizations nationwide. Before joining BRLF, he worked in different verticals with UNDP, ARIAS Society, and OPML India. Dev is a Postgraduate from IISWBM, Kolkata, pursuing a Ph.D. from Utkal University, Odisha.