Mr. Pradeep Chaturvedi, Vice President, Institute of Directors, India. He is the Chairman - Delhi Chapter of the Indian National Academy of Engineering (INAE), and also the Chairman of Technology Forecasting & Management Forum. Mr. Chaturvedi is deeply involved in corporate governance, regulatory issues both domestically and internationally, and the development and regulation of transformative technologies. A graduate in science as well as mechanical engineering, he is a well-known international expert on energy and the environment and has been a member of several government committees on energy policy. He was involved with the drafting of bills for the Energy Conservation Act of 2001 and the Electricity Act of 2003. He was a member of India’s Integrated Energy Policy Committee of the Planning Commission in 2005. He was also involved with the drafting of the Engineers Bill. He has a deep understanding of the corporate, technical, and legal aspects of the energy sector in India and abroad. He has served in over 20 countries under UN projects and has extensive hands-on international experience. He is a Fellow of the Institution of Engineers (India) (IEI), the Indian National Academy of Engineering (INAE), the All India Management Association (AIMA), and several other national and international professional organisations. He was also the Chairman of the Institution of Engineers (India) (IEI) - Delhi State Centre, the Safety and Quality Forum (SQF) of IEI, as well as other committees of IEI. He has played a crucial role in promoting engineering education for India’s socio-economic development.He is the recipient of several international and national awards, including the World Food Day Award of the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the Engineer of the Year Award of the Federation of Engineering Institutions of Asia and the Pacific (FEIAP). He has authored and edited 36 books on energy, sustainability, and corporate governance.

Professor Manna, President, INAE is currently the Vice Chancellor of BIT Mesra, Ranchi on lien from IIT Kharagpur. He obtained his B. Engg. Degree from Calcutta University (B.E. College) in 1983, M. Tech. from IIT Kanpur in 1984 and PhD from IIT Kharagpur in 1990. He was a Premchand Roychand Scholar (1992) and a Mouat Medal awardee (1999) of Calcutta University. He is an educationist and materials engineer with wide ranging research interests covering phase transformation, structure-property correlation and modeling in new and nanometric metals and ceramics, laser/plasma assisted surface engineering, nano/ferro-fluid and bainitic steel. His studies on amorphous Al-alloys, laser surface engineering of steel/Mg/Al alloys, boundary diffusion controlled phase transformations, and thermal/magnetic properties of nano/ferro-fluid are highly cited. He teaches subjects related to physical metallurgy and surface engineering. As a guest scientist, he visited different renowned Institutions and Universities abroad like Max Planck Institute at Stuttgart, Technical University of Clausthal, Liverpool University, Nanyang Technological University, NIMS-Japan, Unipress-Poland and University of Ulm. His research exploits have been published in over 300 peer reviewed publications; he has guided 30 doctoral theses and conducted 35 sponsored projects worth over Rs 25 crore as the PI. He is a Fellow of all the national academies of science (INSA, IASc, NASI) and engineering (INAE) in India. He was both a DAAD (1988-90) and Humboldt Fellow (2001-02) in Germany. He was honored as a distinguished alumnus by IIEST Shibpur and IIT Kharagpur. He is a recipient of The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) prize for engineering sciences (2014) and was elected a Fellow of TWAS (2015). He is also a Member of the Asia Pacific Academy of Materials. He received the MRSI Medal in 2000, Binani Gold Medal (1999) and G D Birla Gold Medal (2008) of IIM, AICTE Career Award for Young Teachers (1995), and INSA Medal for Young Scientist (1992). He was felicitated by the Ministry of Steel with the Young Metallurgist (1991), Metallurgist of the Year (2002) and National Metallurgist Award (2018). He was the National Coordinator of IMPacting Research INnovation and Technology (IMPRINT), a unique technology development initiative of MHRD during 2015-20. He is a member of the Research Boards of several industry/R&D like RINL, GAIL, BHEL, ARCI, Min of Steel and serves in several national level committees and boards of DST, DBT, CSIR, SERB, INSA, etc. Earlier, he served as an expert in NAAC and NBA. He is a former President of the Indian Institute of Metals and Vice President of the Indian National Academy of Engineering (INAE). University of Kalyani and Kazi Nazrul University have conferred DSc (hc) on him in 2017. He served as the Director of CSIR-CGCRI in Kolkata during 2010-2012 and of IIT Kanpur during 2012-2017. Professor Manna is now the 14th President of INAE since Jan 1, 2021 for the next 2 years and is passionately involved in making INAE a national agency for promoting engineering and technological self-reliance of India by translational research, innovation and entrepreneurship.

Lt Col Shobhit Rai (Retd) has been engaged with Indian National Academy of Engineering (INAE) as officiating Executive Director since January 2020. He was commissioned into Indian Army in the Corps of Electronics & Mechanical Engineers in the year 1991 after training at National Defence Academy, Khadakvasla Pune and Indian Military Academy, Dehradun. He is a Mechanical Engineer from Military College of Electronics & Mechanical Engineering, Secunderabad. His specialization in the army was on Armoured Fighting Vehicles and further an expert on Biomedical Equipment. He tenated various appointments in army and has had operational experience in field areas and combat zones across the country. His last appointment while in army was as Chief Maintainability Engineer at Maintenance Advisory Group (MAG) affiliated with the office of Director General of Armed Forces Medical Services, Ministry of Defence, New Delhi as an expert on medical equipment till 2013. Since then, he has been in a number of leadership roles with industry & corporate to include being a General Manager of a manufacturing unit which was engaged in casting and machining of automotive components and as General Manager in business operations as part of Walmart India. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Military College of Electronics & Mechanical Engineering, Secunderabad, a master’s degree in Bio Medical Engineering from IIT Madras and a qualification in management from IIM, Ahmedabad.

Dr. Ajay Mathur, Director General of the International Solar Alliance (ISA), leads a 119-member inter-governmental organization promoting solar energy adoption. Under his guidance, the ISA initiated solar projects and capacity building in developing nations, publishing annual reports on solar technology progress. Notably, the ISA is establishing a Solar Facility to mitigate investment risks in African countries and launched a program supporting solar startups in the continent. Previously, Dr. Mathur held key roles at TERI, chaired global initiatives, and served as India's climate change negotiator, spokesperson at the Paris climate talks, and interim Director of the Green Climate Fund.

Shri Bhupinder Singh Bhalla, a 1990 batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the Uttarakhand cadre, took over as Secretary of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) in the Government of India in October 2022. He has experience about 33 years in multiple sectors with Commerce and Industry, Urban development, Personnel and General Administration, Health, Economic Affairs, Finance, Elections, Communications and Information Technology. With an honours degree from Shri Ram College of Commerce, ICWA and an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, he navigated corporate finance for three years before joining the Indian Administrative Service.

Anil Kakodkar, obtained his BE Hons. (Mech. Engineering) degree from the Bombay University in 1963 and M.Sc. in the Experimental Stress Analysis from the Nottingham University in 1969. He joined the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) in 1964 after securing top rank at the training school, became the Director of BARC in the year 1996 and was in the apex leadership role as the Chairman, Atomic Energy Commission and Secretary to the Government of India, Department of Atomic Energy, for nine long years during 2000 -2009. India’s atomic energy programme received significant boost through contributions and leadership of Dr. Kakodkar. Undeterred by the restrictions imposed by the international community, he succeeded realising several key developments for India. He conceptualised and built Dhruva, one of the largest research reactors in the world and was among the key top individuals responsible for the peaceful nuclear explosion experiment in the year 1974 and nuclear weapons tests in 1998. He also pioneered indigenous development of PHWR power reactor system and design and development of AHWR that would use thorium. India also demonstrated nuclear submarine powerpack technology under Kakodkar’s leadership. Post superannuation, Dr Kakodkar continues to be active in several aspects of energy, education, and societal development. Development of CILLAGE, a concept for sustainably bridging the urban rural divide being one among them. Several reports of national importance have been brought out by committees chaired by him. He also chairs Rajiv Gandhi Science and Technology Commission of Govt. of Maharashtra along with many other bodies. Dr Kakodkar has been felicitated with all the three Padma awards as well as the apex State awards from Govts. Of Goa, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, besides numerous others.

Gauri Singh is a career bureaucrat with an experience of over thirty years in policy formulation, implementation and policy advocacy in the field of renewable energy, sustainable development and livelihoods. She has worked at the federal level in the Government of India and in Madhya Pradesh. At the federal level, particularly in the field of new and renewable energy, she has vast experience of policy formulation, coordination, and international cooperation. Policy initiatives led by her include, the policy framework of National Solar Mission of India 2010, to build solar power capacities in India. More recently, she steered the rural development sector, in Madhya Pradesh. In this role she provided strategic guidance for planning and implementing large impact community led initiatives, for poverty reduction and sustainable development. She spearheaded the policy formulation, with a strong focus on climate resilience and adaptation, to support livelihoods of the existing self-help groups of 2 million poor women. She is an alumna of Delhi University, India with major in Economics.

Jonas Moberg, CEO of the Green Hydrogen Organisation since May 2021, brings extensive experience to the table. His tenure at Trafigura, from 2018 to May 2021, included pivotal roles such as Global Head of Corporate Affairs and Government Affairs. Noteworthy is his leadership of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) from 2007 to 2018, a global anti-corruption standard adopted by 55 countries. In earlier roles, Jonas made significant contributions as a Senior Advisor in the Executive Office of UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and as a Director at the Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum. A seasoned member of the Swedish Foreign Service, with postings in London and Maputo, he holds law degrees from the London School of Economics and the University of Stockholm.

Dr. Ashish Lele is the Director at the National Chemical Laboratory (NCL) in Pune, India. He received his Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering from the Institute of Chemical Technology in Mumbai (1988) and a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Delaware (1993). Dr. Lele has made many novel and high-impact contributions to polymer science and engineering. The thrust of Prof. Lele's research has been the deep probing of polymeric material microstructures at the molecular and mesoscopic length scales and then relating these to their macroscopic dynamical and equilibrium properties. His significant contributions include molecular tailoring of stimuli-responsive smart hydrogels, new insights into the anomalous rheological behavior of complex fluids, and the coupling of macromolecular dynamics and polymer processing. Dr. Lele has been awarded the CSIR Young Scientist award (1996), the Indian National Science Academy Young Scientist award (1998), and the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize in Engineering Science (2006). Recently, Dr. Lele was awarded the prestigious Infosys Prize for Engineering and Computer Science for the year 2013 for his incisive contributions in the area of Rheologically complex fluids and polymer processing. He is a Fellow of the Indian National Academy of Engineering and of the Indian Academy of Science.

Pradeep Tharakan has nearly 20 years of experience focused on global clean energy investments and climate change response. He currently serves as the Asian Development Bank's (ADB) Director for Energy Transition. He is responsible for policy dialogue with senior government and sector stakeholders across ADB's client countries, development of transition roadmaps, blueprints, strategic programs, development of innovative financing models, and origination of new projects and programs across renewables, energy efficiency, energy storage, green hydrogen, and coal power phaseout. Previously, he was ADB’s Regional Advisor for Energy Transition in South Asia (Jan - June 2023); lead for sovereign energy operations in the Greater Mekong subregion (2016-2022) based out of Thailand, and Energy Team Lead for Indonesia (2012-2016.), based out of Jakarta. He has a PhD in Environmental Science, a MBA, and a master’s degree in Public Administration.

Shreyans has more than 18 years of experience in private and sovereign investments, investment strategy development and risk management with organizations, including the International Finance Corporation (IFC)/World Bank Group, the Asian Development Bank (ADB), Private Equity Pro Partners, Merrill Lynch, and Ernst & Young.On the investment side, Shreyans has been involved in the entire investment cycle, from deal origination to structuring investments across different asset classes including; alternatives such as private debt, private equity, and venture capital, as well as direct debt and equity to blue chip and growth stage companies. In terms of sectors his experience spans real estate, infrastructure, financial institutions, and manufacturing.Shreyans also contributed to strategy development. He has assessed investment portfolios providing valuable insights to shape future country and sector investment strategies. Furthermore, he has been involved in creating new investment products in sectors including green hydrogen and electric vehicles.

Based in Jakarta, Mathieu serves as Director Asia at HDF Energy, a French Independent Power Producer specializing in hydrogen power. With over 14 years of experience in Renewable Energy, he held diverse roles in IPP, EPC, and key supplier companies. Before joining HDF Energy in 2018, Mathieu led the development of North African and East European subsidiaries for a French developer and EPC. Subsequently, he spent four years as Business Development Manager at ArcelorMittal Exosun.

Mr. Sturle Pedersen is an experienced Chief Executive Officer with over 30 years of global experience in leading successful business initiatives and ventures. Skilled in conceptualizing ideas and seizing opportunities, he has a track record of identifying and pursuing growth opportunities through strategic partnerships, mergers and acquisitions, and securing funding from global industry leaders.

Dr. Byrana Nagappa Suresh assumed charge as Chancellor, IIST on 6th November 2017. Dr. B N Suresh, an aerospace scientist. served as the founder Director of IIST. He was the Director of Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC), Thiruvananthapuram during the period 2003-2007. He is known for his contribution to Space Capsule Recovery Experiments (SRE). He retired from IIST in November 2010. Presently he is serving as Vikram Sarabhai Distinguished Professor at ISRO Headquarters since November 2010. He was also distinguished Professor at IIT, Mumbai and MIT, Manipal. Dr. BN Suresh's significant contributions in the field of Space Technology have been honoured with numerous awards, including the Padma Bhushan (2013), Padma Shri (2002), Distinguished Alumni Award - IIT Madras (2004), Dr.Biren Roy Space Science and/or Design Award (1993), ASI Award 1996 for Rocket & Related Technologies (1996), “AGNI” Award for excellence in Self Reliance (1999), “Ramanujam Memorial Award” (2005), “Technical Excellence award” (Jan 2006), “Outstanding Achievement Award” (June 2007), “Lifetime Achievement Award” (Dec 2007), “National Systems Gold Medal” (Dec 2007), and “Aryabhata Award” (2009).

A former President of the Indian National Academy of Engineering, Dr. Sanak Mishra is a Member of the Governing Board of the Steel Research & Technology Mission of India. He also chairs one of the Task Forces constituted by the Ministry of Steel for the Decarbonisation of the Steel Industry. An internationally acclaimed scientist, and a brilliant technocrat, communicator, and author, Dr. Sanak Mishra stood first in the whole Odisha State in the Matriculation examination and obtained a BSc Honours degree in Physics with first-class honors from Ravenshaw College as a Government of India National Merit Scholar. He is the recipient of the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, where he secured a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Metallurgy in 1968. He is also a recipient of the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the Department of Materials Science & Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA, where he obtained an MS degree in 1970 and a PhD degree in 1973 and was engaged as a staff member. Part of his doctoral work was in collaboration with the National Magnet Laboratory at MIT, Cambridge. Dr. Mishra has been an Alexander von Humboldt Fellow and Guest Scientist at the Aachen Technical University in Germany and a US National Science Foundation Visiting Scholar at the University of Pittsburgh. Research partnerships include the US Naval Research Laboratory in Washington DC, Carnegie Mellon University, IIT Madras, IIT Bombay, and IIT BHU. He was an AICTE-INAE Distinguished Visiting Professor at IIT Delhi. One of the top metallurgists in the country and an icon of the steel sector, Dr. Mishra was conferred the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Ministry of Steel, Government of India, in 2018. Earlier, he had received the National Metallurgist Award. He has also received the Platinum Medal of the Indian Institute of Metals, JRD Tata Award for Excellence in Corporate Leadership, and other recognitions such as the Visvesvaraya Gold Medal, GD Birla Gold Medal, Kamani Gold Medal, MRSI Medal, Jai Krishna Memorial Award, NP Gandhi Memorial Award, etc. Recruited directly from the USA as a founder member of the Corporate R&D Centre (RDCIS) at Ranchi of the Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), he spearheaded the development and industrial application of a plethora of new processes and products and earned a strong reputation as a pioneer of Steel Research in the country and rose to the position of Executive Director of RDCIS. From SAIL, he moved on as Vice President of ArcelorMittal Corporate Group and as CEO of its India Projects. Subsequently, he served as the first Secretary-General and Chief Executive of the Indian Steel Association, anchoring it as the voice of the steel industry and contributing significantly to the formulation of the National Steel Policy-2017 and policies on Mining, Commerce, and Industry. Later on, he was Senior Advisor to MIDHANI, the Ministry of Defence enterprise. Dr. Sanak Mishra is a Past President of the Indian Institute of Metals and a former Chairman of the International Organization of Materials, Metals, and Minerals Societies. He is a Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences India, Computer Society of India, Institute of Directors, All India Management Association, and the Institution of Engineers India. His autobiography was published by Notion Press, titled “Sanak Mishra-An Autobiography” and is available from amazon.in in India and from amazon.com outside India.

Dr. Umish Srivastva is an Executive Director of IndianOil R&D Centre in Faridabad, India. His pivotal role in the commercialization of innovative indoor solar cooking system “Surya Nutan”. He steered development of IOC’s high performing CBG Technology and executing mega project of largest renewable energy research centre “IndianOil Technology Development & Deployment Centre”. As the Team Lead of IndianOil Centre for Alternative & Renewable Energy (iCARE), he spearheads pioneering initiatives in Solar, Bioenergy, Hydrogen, Gasification, and Batteries, showcasing his expertise across diverse energy domains. Dr. Srivastva boasts over 40 patents grants and has contributed to more than 20 publications in esteemed technical journals. His academic journey, marked by a Gold Medal in Mechanical Engineering, post-graduation from IIT-Roorkee, and a Doctorate in Energy Studies from IIT-Delhi, underscores his deep-rooted knowledge and dedication to advancing energy research and development.

Mr. Sarbojit Pal is serving as the Manager of Partnerships at the Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) Secretariat within the International Energy Agency (IEA) in Paris. He is an economist with experience in policy research on transportation and clean energy, project management and analytics in both developing and developed countries. Prior to his current role, Mr. Pal held positions at esteemed institutions such as NITI Aayog, the Confederation of Indian Industry, and the Alliance for an Energy Efficient Economy (AEEE), where he honed his skills and made significant contributions to the field of clean energy and sustainable development. Mr. Pal's academic background includes a Master of Science in Economics from the Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research and a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the University of Calcutta.

Dr Bibek Bandyopadhyay is the former Adviser of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) and former Director of the Solar Energy Centre (SEC), Government of India. He also worked in IIT Delhi and Department of Science and Technology (DST). He was involved with the Indian National Solar Mission, the Hydrogen Program and setting up of the Solar Energy Centre (now National Institute of Solar Energy). After superannuation from Government of India service in 2013, he has been engaged in advisory services in the policy, management and technical space of clean energy technologies and remains associated with teaching & research. He served as a Visiting Professor of IIEST Shibpur, as a Distinguished Visiting Professor of NIT Arunachal Pradesh and as an adviser to the consulting firm Nexant Inc. for several years. He was on the editorial board of several international journals, and currently serves as an Associate Editor of the journal ‘Solar Energy’. Dr Bibek is an alumnus of Belur Vidyamandir, Visva Bharati Santiniketan and University of Delhi. He completed a course in management from the Istituto Per La Ricostruzione Industriale (IRI) Rome. He is a fellow of the Indian National Academy of Engineering.