Dr. Taslimarif Saiyed

Dr. Taslimarif Saiyed is the Director and COO of C-CAMP, Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms. In this role, he manages C-CAMP's technology platforms, growth strategies, strategic collaborations for new technology creation, education and training programmes, and business and innovation accelerator unit. He also oversees the Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer Office at C-CAMP.

Prior to joining C-CAMP, he worked as a Scientist with University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), studying neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson's disease. He holds a doctorate in Neuroscience from Max-Planck Institute for Brain Research, Germany. In the bay area, he also served as a Management Consultant with QB3 New Biotech Venture Consulting as well as in an individual capacity where he consulted for biotech firms in the US.

Dr. Hemalatha Balaram

Dr. Hemalatha Balaram is a Professor at Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Bangalore. She has completed her Msc (Chemistry) at the University of Hyderabad and Ph.D (Biophysics) at the Indian Institute of Science.

She is also a member of the following committee's

• Member, Indian Academy of Sciences
• Member, Academic Advisory Committee, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Bangalore
• Member, Programme Advisory Committees, Science and Engineering Research Board,

The main focus of study in Dr. Balaram's laboratory has been on protein structure and molecular enzymology with particular reference to enzymes of the malarial parasite, Plasmodium falciparum. Dr. Balaram's work on fumarate metabolism has led to the identification of a novel pathway, operative in the intra-erythrocytic stages of the parasite that recycles of fumarate to aspartic acid. She has 77 publications to her name.

Dr. Ruchi Singh

Dr. Ruchi Singh has received a Ph.D. in Microbiology from Jiwaji University working at National Institute of Pathology (ICMR) on the drug resistance and differential gene expression in the Leishmania donovani isolated from Post Kala Azar Dermal Leishmaniasis patients. She carried out her post-doctoral work on investigating the basis of antimony resistance in Leishmania donovani parasite and carried out the work at Centre for Biologics Evaluation and Research, FDA, US.

In 2007, she joined as a Scientist-C at National Institute of Malaria Research (ICMR) and initiated studies on molecular diagnosis of malaria and tracking of drug resistance in Plasmodium parasite. Currently, she is Scientist-D at National Institute of Pathology (ICMR) and her present focus of research is on development of field applicable and noninvasive diagnosis methods for infectious diseases. She has authored more than 25 research publications and 2 book chapters in the field of Leishmaniasis and Malaria.
She was the first Indian recipient of UNESCO L'oreal fellowship for young women in Life Sciences in 2006. She is recipient of Shakuntala amirchand award of ICMR.

Dr. Indira Nath

Dr. Indira Nath is an Indian immunologist. Her major contribution in medical science deals with mechanisms underlying immune unresponsiveness in man, reactions and nerve damage in leprosy and a search for markers for viability of the leprosy bacillus.

She received her MBBS from All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi. She joined AIIMS as MD (pathology) after mandatory hospital training in the UK.

In 1970 Dr. Nath was in the UK with a Nuffield Fellowship. During this period she came to specialize in immunology. She worked in the area of infectious diseases, particularly leprosy, with Professor John Turk at the Royal College of Surgeons and Dr RJW Rees at the National Institute for Medical Research, London.

After coming back to India, she joined Professor GP Talwar's Department of Biochemistry at AIIMS, which had just initiated immunology research in India. She retired in 1998 but continued to work at AIIMS as INSA-SN Bose Research Professor.

Her research is focused on the cellular immune responses in human leprosy. She has over 120 publications, invited reviews, opinion/comments on recent developments in international journals. Her discovery and her pioneering work are a significant step towards the development of treatment and vaccines for leprosy

She was awarded the Padma Shri by Government of India in 1999, and L'Oréal-UNESCO Awards for Women in Science in 2002 amongst many other awards.

Dr. Kavita Rege

Dr. Kavita Rege is the Principal of Sathaye College.

She was the recipient of 'Rawell Award' for standing first amongst girls at the H.S.S.C. exams. She was also a rank holder in B.Sc. and M.Sc. exams. She has a Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of Bombay.

Dr. Kavita began her career as a Research Scientist with Alchemic Research Centre, a part of British Multinational– Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI). She later moved to Hindustan Lever Research Centre where she gained valuable research experience. After 5 years in industry, she shifted to academics and joined Sathaye College, then known as Parle College in 1983. She has now over 28 years of teaching experience at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. She is also the Co-ordinator of Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) Centre at Sathaye College.

Dr. H. Krishnamurthy

Dr. H. Krishnamurthy is currently the Director of the Central Imaging and Flow Cytometry Facility at the National Centre for Biological Sciences. He is also working as consultant for Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms. His research interest lies in hormonal regulation of spermatogenesis and trafficking and signalling of gonadotropin receptors. He has published over 60 research papers and has edited a book on Applications of flow cytometry in stem cell research and regenerative medicine.

Dr. Krishnamurthy obtained his B.Sc. from Vijaya College, Bangalore, M.Sc. from Bangalore University and PhD from Manipal University. He moved on to undergo postdoctoral training at the Institute for Reproductive Medicine, Muenster, Germany, Institute for Clinical Research, Montreal, Canada and University of Iowa, Iowa, USA. Later, he moved to Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center, Columbia University, New York, USA as Associate Research Scientist and Managing Director of the flow cytometry facility. At present he is also serving as the Live Education Task Force member of International Society for Advancement of Cytometry.

Dr. Snehalata Deshmukh

The former Vice Chancellor of the University of Mumbai, Dr. Snehalata Deshmukh, is a recipient of numerous awards and honours for her contribution in the field of education. She is the Chairperson of King George infirmary and the Former Dean of L.T.M.G Hospital. She is also a member of the Economic Development Council. She has 150 research contributions and publications to her credit as an eminent Pediatric Surgeon.

Ashutosh Burnwal

Ashutosh Burnwal (Principal Cofounder & CEO of Buddy4Study) has been in the scholarships domain since 2010. An engineer and MBA, his mission is to create awareness for scholarships among Indian students. Before starting up, Ashutosh was working with British Petroleum. He has been a proactive writer and activist in scholarship domain and also authored India’s first scholarship guidebook for school students.

He is the scholarship man of India.

Venkat Changavalli

He is an Advisor, Author, Leadership Mentor, Management Consultant and Trainer.

An MBA from IIM, Ahmedabad and B.Tech (Chemical) from NIT, Warangal, Venkat Changavalli has 38 years of total experience including 19 years as CEO. He is the Advisor to the Government of Uttar Pradesh for Home and Health departments. He is the Managing Director of ABC Ltd (A corporation fully owned by Govt. of Andhra Pradesh).

Mr. Changavalli has also authored a book “Manage, Live and Lead”, an inspirational guide for managers, citizens and students. He is also the Director on the Board of State Bank of Hyderabad. He is a guest faculty in several reputed business schools to teach Strategic Thinking, Innovation, Execution, Team Building, PPP and Dimensions of Leadership etc.

Sulekha Nair, Features Editor at Firstpost

Sulekha Nair has been a journalist for two decades working on business features across diverse newspapers and magazine. She is passionate about women centric topics like women' s role at work place, policies pertaining to women and pregnancy leaves; women and IT space, among many others. She has conducted interviews on Radio and also taught Journalism for a short while in a college in Mumbai. While she is currently working in the digital media, she brings innovation to this new and fascinating arena. In her opinion, the urgency of job in the digital media is mindblowing and exhilarating.

Professor Susanta Lahiri

He is a senior professor in the chemical sciences division at the prestigious Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics and also at Homi Bhabha National Institute. He is a co-creator of super heavy element 117

On April 12, 2015 he was awarded the highest international honour for nuclear chemists "The Hevesy Medal Award". The award was established in 1968, he is the first Indian to ever win this award. Professor Lahiri has also published nearly 180 papers in peer-reviewed journals such as Physical Review.

Manju Latha Kalanidhi

Manju Latha Kalanidhi, a Hyderabad-based journalist with over 15 years of experience, believes in the credo: Be the change you want to see. She has always used every opportunity to highlight burning societal issues and bring it to the notice of the powers that be.

Her social initiative Rice Bucket Challenge, a desi spin on the Ice Bucket Challenge, has managed to garner more than 1.8 lakh kg of rice across the world since 2014. A recipient of JFW Women Achiever Award 2014, the Karamveer Chakra Gold Award etc, she is a social influencer with over 1 lakh followers across social media.

Dr. Prathama S. Mainkar

Dr. Prathama S. Mainkar, Senior Principal Scientist at CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology is a synthetic organic chemist and medicinal chemist by training. She has experience of over 15 years in pharmaceutical industry before joining CSIR-IICT.

Her efforts in industry have helped a molecule reach Phase IIa Clinical trials. She received the OPPI Woman Scientist Award for the year 2016. She is involved in the drug discovery initiatives of CSIR-IICT.

Anishaa Sahijwala, Journalist at The Times of India

Anisha Sahijwala has been an education journalist for over eight years now. She covers the education and property beat for The Times of India and has extensive knowledge on local and global education. A Masters in Journalism and Communication, Anisha is also a social media expert and an avid photographer. She has a keen interest in exploring new technology, is a foodie and doubles up as an animal rescuer in her free time. Anisha's a passionate teacher and has been mentoring and teaching a number of journalism students at HR College of Commerce and Economics, and KC College, Mumbai. Her documentary '19 | 16' on female infanticide as a journalism student, won many praises nationally.

Prof. Sharmistha Banerjee (Ph.D, Biochemistry)

Prof. Sharmistha Banerjee is a professor in the Department of Biochemistry at School of Life Sciences, University of Hyderabad.

Her research area is Molecular pathogenesis and immunology of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M.tb), HIV and M.tb-HIV co-infection. Some of her recent honours include: DBT- Innovative Young Biotechnologist Award (IYBA) 2011- Department of Biotechnology (DBT) by the Govt. of India, BioAsia Innovation Award 2008 from Bio Asia - The Global Bio Business Forum, etc.

Ms. Shrabonti Bagchi

Shrabonti Bagchi, Culture Editor at FactorDaily, has been a writer and editor with several mainstream publications such as The Telegraph, DNA, and The Times of India.

In a career spanning over 15 years, she has written about culture, society, entrepreneurship, sustainability, food, science, and design. She was recently part of the winning team at a media-tech hackathon organised by the Global Editors Network, and will be participating in an international symposium of editors in Vienna in June, 2017. She is based in Bengaluru and can be reached @shrabonti on Twitter.