Who’s Who

Who's Who

Founder Chairperson

Dr. Biswajit Roy Chowdhury

Dr. Roy Chowdhury, faculty member in the Department of Geography of Vidyasagar College (affiliated to the University of Calcutta), Kolkata, and the founder chairman of South Asian Institute for Advanced Research and Development (SAIARD), Radhanath Sikdar Institute of Geospatial Science and Technology (RSIGST) and International Institute of River Affairs (IIRA), has obtained his M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Geography from Calcutta University with a specialization in urban and transport geography. He was also awarded an honorary doctorate from UN Rescue Services, Nigeria. Along with teaching, he has engaged in several academic and administrative activities and acted as a steering committee member in G-20 India. He has significantly contributed to the field of urban and river studies, has published several research papers in different national and international journals, and has written 11 books, out of which 7 books were published by the School Education Dept., Govt. of West Bengal. He was awarded the Junior Scientist of the Year 2017 Award & Young Innovator Award 2018 and has obtained life memberships of some reputed organizations like INCA, ISCA, IGS, ISRS, IIPA, IMS, etc.

Our Advisors

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Bio

Dr Sameer Saran obtained his Post Graduate degree in Physics in 1995, PhD Geoinformatics in 2003 from Indian Institute of Remote Sensing, ISRO and advanced research at Wageningen University, The Netherlands. Prior to joining Regional Remote Sensing Centre-North as DGM in 2023 he was Head, Geoinformatics Department, IIRS, Dehradun from 2015 to 2023. He joined Indian Space Research Organisation in 2000 at Indian Institute of Remote Sensing as a scientist and since then working on various domains of geoinformatics namely Distributed GIS, 3D City models, Citizen Science, Geospatial Modelling and Geohealth. His major achievements are in the area of national biodiversity database organisation, modelling and dissemination of species and spatial database of the entire country by developing Indian Bio-resource Information Network (IBIN) – a multi-institutional initiative of Department of Biotechnology and Department of Space, Govt. of India as a National Coordinator. He has developed various innovative geospatial tools and solutions on biodiversity, disaster, urban, governance etc. He has been awarded prestigious national and international awards namely President Appreciation Medal in 2021, National Geomatics Award for Excellence in 2019, Outstanding Contribution Award in 2019 by Asian Association of Remote Sensing (AARS) during ACRS 2019, South Korea, National Geomatics Award for Technology in 2017, Indian National Geospatial Award 2011, ISRO and ASI Team Excellence Award in 2009. He has published more than 100 peer-reviewed papers in national and international journals and supervised around 10 PhD students. He also served as Vice President of Indian Society of Remote Sensing during 2019-2021. He is presently Chair of ISPRS Working Group WG IV/10 on Applied Spatial Science for Public health, Associate Editor of JISRS journal and Deputy General Secretary of Asian Association of Remote Sensing.

Bio

Dr. Debapriya Dutta is a renowned Indian scientist with a Ph.D. from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute. He has held various positions, including Scientist at the Central Soil and Water Conservation Research and Training Institute, Senior Scientific Officer-I at the Natural Resources Data Management System Division, Counsellor at the Embassy of India, Director of the Indo-French Centre for the Promotion of Advanced Research, Head and Adviser/Scientist in SEED, State Science and Technology Programme, and National Geospatial Programme, and Chancellor of Mall Reddy University. Dutta has also served as the Chairman of the Geospatial Information Standard Group of the Bureau of Indian Standards. He has also held a Post-Doctoral Fellowship in Geo-Information Management from the International Institute for Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation and a Senior Professional Research Fellowship on Groundwater Governance from the International Water Management Institute. His research interests include the application of Geoinformatics for Natural Resources Management, watershed management technologies, geo-information management, rural development, and international S&T cooperation.

Bio

Dr. Shiv Prasad Aggarwal, born on December 15, 1966, is the Director of the North Eastern Space Applications Centre (NESAC) since September 2021. He earned his B. Tech. from Allahabad University, and postgraduate and Ph.D. degrees from IARI, New Delhi, with post-doctoral research from ITC/IHE, The Netherlands. With extensive experience in Remote Sensing and GIS, he previously led the Water Resources Department at IIRS, ISRO, Dehradun. Dr. Aggarwal has made significant contributions to hydrological modeling, disaster management, and climate change impact assessment, and has played a key role in capacity building through the United Nations-affiliated CSSTEAP. He is the President of the Indian Society of Remote Sensing (ISRS) and has received numerous awards, including the National Geospatial Award for Excellence (2018) and the National Award for e-Governance (2022). He is a Fellow of several professional societies and has over 170 research publications.

Bio

Nirmalendu Kumar is
Additional Surveyor General, Northern zone, Chandigarh, in Survey of India. My
responsibility is now the overall management of all the departmental and
non-departmental mapping and surveying operations, pertaining to the areas of
Rajasthan, UP, Delhi, Uttrakhand, Panjab, Haryana, Himachal, JK and Ladakh. He
is also pursuing his PhD from Civil Engineering department of IIT Delhi . He
has completed his M Tech from J N T University, Hyderabad and Master degree in
geo-information management from I T C, The Netherlands. He has also worked as a
Director in National Spatial Data Infrastructure(NSDI) on deputation basis and
has assisted CEO, NSDI, Dr R Siva Kumar and Shri P S Acharya, CEO NSDI and Head
(TWF)/ Associate Head (NRDMS-NSDI)/ and Coordinator (MMGA) of DST in
administrative and technical matters. Earlier he was in Delhi State Spatial
Data Infrastructure (DSSDI) , 3 D GIS project of Delhi, since its inception and
assisted the Project Director in its planning and execution. Basically, he is a
core mapping and surveying professional and has over 30 years of experience in
spatial technologies viz. GIS , photogrammetry, Remote sensing and GPS. He has
experience in Systems Conceptualization and Design for Spatial Data
Infrastructures, including standards development, network design, database
design and schemas, applications development. He has published over 10
technical papers on GIS, geo-information management in various conferences/journals.

Bio

Antony John, is a seasoned technology leader and Senior Director at iSpatial Techno Solutions (IST), specializing in geospatial technology, AI-driven solutions, and services management. With extensive experience in operations, project delivery, business development, and presales, Antony has established himself as a key player in implementing innovative GIS and AI solutions for complex challenges across industries. Antony has led high-impact projects that leverage GIS and AI technologies to deliver actionable insights and transformative solutions. He has played a vital role in developing GeoAI expertise on the Energy.AI initiative, focusing on advancing energy sector innovations. A strategic thinker and hands-on leader, Antony is passionate about integrating GIS, AI, and data analytics to address real-world challenges. His ability to create tailored, client-focused strategies and his dedication to excellence have made him a trusted expert in the field, delivering value-driven solutions for organizations and stakeholders globally.

Bio

Prof.
Deb Jyoti Pal is Sr. Vice President of GalaxEye and Professor of Practice in
the Department of Natural and Applied Sciences at TERI School of Advanced
Studies (TERI SAS), New Delhi, India. He received his Ph.D. in the groundwater
exploration domain from Visva Bharati University, West Bengal. He graduated in
Geology from Banaras Hindu University, Uttar Pradesh, and a PG Diploma in
Remote Sensing from the Indian Institute of Remote Sensing, Dehradun. With
more than two and a half With decades of experience, Prof. Deb Jyoti Pal has
worked across various verticals, providing solutions across the government and
public sector, water resources, environment studies, utilities, and defense. He
has also offered consulting and advisory support to leading geospatial
platforms and space data analytics companies, giving strategic insights on
everything from designing commercially feasible solutions to charting future
roadmaps. Through innovative, integrated, cross-sectional approach, and a
growth-oriented outlook, as a business leader he has delivered bespoke
solutions in a fast-transforming and rapidly disruptive industry landscape.
Working across corporations and social development organizations, he firmly
believes in the power of technology convergence, human ingenuity,
collaboration, and the spirit of dynamism to be a true change-maker.