Board of Trustees - TrustIDEA

Board of Trustees

Our Board of Trustees

These are the people who have conceived IDEA to work towards its ambitious vision.

Dr. Rakesh Malhotra

Chairman (Settler)

Dr. Rakesh Malhotra holds several academic degrees such as M.Sc. (Dairying), Ph.D. (Public Administration), and D.Lit. (Public Administration). He has a cumulative experience of over 36 years in the Development sector through policy advocacy, strategic planning, project management, governance, vocational skill development, financial inclusion, community institution building, capacity building and research.

Mr. Bhaskar Pant

Trustee

Agriculture and Rural Development, rural financial institutions, FPOs, SHG, etc. Has served in various Reginal Offices and Head Office of NABARD and also at He retired CGM of NABARD, Reginal Office, Uttarakhand. Holds total professional experience of about 35 years.

Dr. Debesh Roy

Trustee

Dr Roy holds a PhD in Economics and is an author of a book, and several book chapters, research papers, and newspaper articles (in Financial Express), in the areas of macro- economic policy, agricultural economics, climate change, banking, microfinance, financial inclusion, and poverty and human development. He is an economist and an independent consultant. He has 32 years of experience in the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), India’s largest Development Financial Institution. He has worked extensively in the areas of research in economics and agricultural economics; rural infrastructure financing; microfinance, financial inclusion, and rural livelihoods; and institutional development of rural financial institutions. As an independent consultant, he is associated with NABARD, Mumbai, NABCONS, New Delhi, and Integrated Research and Action for Development (IRADe), New Delhi.

Mr. Sanjeev Dhamija

Trustee

He commenced his career from commercial bank. Thereafter joined NABARD. He served in various capacities in NABARD and retired CGM of NABARD. His areas of expertise are – Institutional Development, Inspection of Banks, corporate planning, etc. Holds total professional experience of about 38 years.

Mr. Shiv Kumar Sherikar

Trustee

Mr. Shiv Kumar academically holds professional qualifications of M.Sc in Dairying (Animal Husbandry), M.B.A in Marketing and Sales Management, M.A in Clinical Psychology, Post Graduate Diploma in Mental Health, One year Diploma in Counselling skills, Diploma in Community Mental Health from NIMHANS Bangalore. He holds a Certificate in a Course in Mental Health and Psychological issues during COVID-19 from NIMHANS, Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Psychological Assessment of Children and adolescents in special circumstances. He is currently working as a Counsellor with National Career Service (Ministry of Labour & Employment) Govt. of India New Delhi. He holds expertise as a Psychological Counsellor, a Clinical Psychotherapist and is qualified to conduct Psychometric assessments, and formulate strategies as to how to restructure the pattern of irrational thinking of emotionally distressed, unpleasant and dysfunctional persons. He is also apt in creating strategies as to how to cope up and change unproductive thoughts and maladaptive behaviour to rationally and empower and foster positive mental health & well-being & personal growth and lead an improved quality life. He has a rich experience of more than 30 years in sectors of Dairy, Co-operatives, State Federations, Multinationals and the National Dairy Development Board.

Ms. Poonam Bhalla

Trustee

With an experience of more than 20 years in the Education sector and having held positions of a teacher as well as co-ordinator, Mrs. Bhalla’s passion has been in assisting students to excel in their career paths. Not only does she impart knowledge in the fields of Social Sciences, English and Hindi, she pro-actively engages students in co-curricular activities to expand their horizon of knowledge. Moreover, she also guides parents and aids them in upbringing their child’s professional goals and counsels them to cope with personal difficulties.

Mr. Harshpal Arora

Trustee

Harshpal Arora holds a Diploma in Mechanical Engineering (PUSA Polytechnic) and a B.Com from Delhi University, blending technical and business expertise.

He is a results-driven professional with experience in operations, sales, customer service, and business development. He has led ventures like his own distribution network and scaled a BPO from 5 to 100+ employees.

As Operations Manager at Shri Balaji Foundation, he oversaw sales, procurement, dispatch, and a 50-member call center, ensuring efficiency and customer satisfaction.

Harsh excels in team management, client relations, and administration, and is skilled in MS Office, Tally, and digital documentation. Known for his adaptability and problem-solving, he builds strong ties across sectors.

Fluent in Hindi, English, and Punjabi, he brings a calm, structured, and proactive approach to every role.

Ms. Chandra Karki

Trustee

Ms. Chandra Karki, belongs to Nainital. Her education qualification is M.A. In Economics, M.A. in Sociology, PGDRD from IGNOU, MBA from Amity University. She is trained from EDI- Ahmadabad, SIDBI-Lucknow, IMDUP Lucknow, NABARD-Meerut, ATI-Nainital etc. While working with various organizatons AAROHI, SOTEC, SUCHETNA, MAHILA SAMAKHYA, AFC Foundation, SHIVANSH and 3 companies of BASIX achieved 21 years of experience In Social Inclusion, Institutional Development Services, Gender Issues, Mobilization, Microfinance, Financial Literacy, Digital Literacy, Capacity Building of SHG/groups, Cluster, Federation Members, NGO, MIS, Solar Energy, Disaster Management Training Program, Rural Artisans Development Program, Entrepreneur Development Program and Rural & Urban Project Management.

Ms. Arti Devi

Trustee

Ms. Arti Devi is a postgraduate in Social Work (MSW), with a strong foundation in community service and education. She has completed internships with reputed NGOs such as Navjyoti Development Society and Prayas JAC Society, where she was actively involved in grassroots-level programs focused on social development and empowerment.

In addition to her academic and field experience, She has also been engaged in teaching, offering personalized educational support to students in an informal setting. Her involvement in both the social and educational sectors reflects her commitment to creating a meaningful and lasting impact in the community.