Founder & Managing Director,
Ibex Expeditions Pvt. Ltd.

Member Since: January-2008

Explorer, Mountaineer, Environmentalist, Adventure travel & Eco tourism specialist.

Mandip has over 35 years of climbing and exploration experience in India and other parts of the world. He has instructed at outdoor schools in Scotland and Wales, climbed in the Alps and made first ascents in the Indian Himalaya .

The Limca Book of records nominated him ‘India’s most versatile Expeditioner ‘. He was conferred the Ness Award for expeditions and explorations by the Royal Geographical Society, London.

In 1989 at the ICEWALK International Students Expedition in the Canadian Arctic near the North Pole, he studied environmental impacts of pollutants in the ice and the growing ozone hole, under the auspices of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

In 2002, the year of the Mountains, he participated in an Indo Pakistan Friendship expedition in the Swiss Alps under the IUCN and UIAA and has been campaigning to save the Siachen Glacier from environmental degradation due to the two armies present.

In 2007 , he undertook a ecotourism river expedition with the Government , in the state of Madhya Pradesh to try and convert bandits into tourism guides and naturalists in this biodiverse rich but bandit ridden area.

Mandip Singh Soin FRGS , is the Founder and Managing Director of Ibex Expeditions Private Limited. Established in 1979, Ibex is a specialist tourism company in India that specializes in Ecotourism, Adventure, Luxury & Safari Travel.

Ibex received the Green Globe Distinction Award & the PATA Gold Award in 1999 for Outstanding Environmental Achievements. The World Travel Environmental Company Award in 2000 and in 2001 they received the National Award of Excellence by the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India for being the most environmentally friendly organisation .

He has edited the four issues of the Environment & Eco Tourism handbook published by the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India.

He lectures worldwide on responsible and ecologically sound tourism and is deeply committed to being a good trustee of this earth.

His other passions, when not on expedition, are listening to Beethoven, fly fishing, indulging in puns, flipping omlettes to perfection and for relaxation he takes the occasional bungee.

MD,
CGH Earth Hotels

Member Since: January 2008

Jose Dominic has been heading CGH Earth (formerly Casino Group of Hotels) as its Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director from 1978 to 2017.

Casino Hotel started by Dominic Joseph in 1957, grew into a group of Hotels, globally and nationally acknowledged for its unique model under Jose Dominic’s leadership.

In 1988, the group won the contract to reconstruct and operate the Bangaram Island Resort on Bangaram Island in Lakshadweep islands. The model adopted pioneering for its time put the Lakshadweep on the global tourism map and became the precursor of a new model of tourism introduced by the group in Kerala then known as Casino Group of Hotels. Beginning with Spice Village in Thekkady in 1991 was followed by several award winning hotels such as Coconut Lagoon in Kumarakom in 1993, Marari Beach in 1996 and the Brunton Boatyard in 1998 and thereafter best in class facilities for Ayurveda and Yoga and recently Prakriti Chikiktsa.

The model rested on the foundations of sustainability, social inclusion and the local ethos. The demonstrative success of this model resulted in other entrepreneurs adopting the model that eventually gave to Kerala the leadership to adopt Responsible Tourism as the development strategy. Today tourism represents for Kerala a key engine of development based on Responsible Tourism for which Kerala Tourism has now won the prestigious UNWTO Ulysses Award.

In recognition of his efforts the Ministry of Tourism, in the year 2003 gave a Special Commendation Award to Mr. Jose Dominic for Resort Development. Jose Dominic was also the founder President in the year 2000 of Kerala Travel Mart which has emerged as one of India’s most significant tourism marketing event. He has been the recipient of several awards including Management Leadership Award from Kerala Management Association, Lifetime Achievement Honour form Times of India group, Aathithya Ratna Award from Hotel Investment Forum, Award for “Business Excellence leading to Development of society at large” from Manappuram Finance, Sustainable Person of the year Award, Hotelier Award from UTC, Business Excellence from D.C. Books, Entrepreneurship Award from TiE Kerala, Business Reliability Award from Reporter Channel, Game Changer Award from Durga Das Publication to name some.

The group renowned for its sustainability initiatives has received the prestigious Green Globe Award from World Travel Mart, several awards from Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) for environment conservation. Also the hotels of the group have been repeatedly recipient of Excellence in Tourism Award from Government of India, Ministry of Tourism as well as from the Government of Kerala.

Jose Dominic has served on several National and State advisory panels on tourism of the Government and industry bodies. Some of these include National Tourism Advisory Council of the Government of India and the Government of Kerala, Tourism Think Tank of Government of India, Member – Expert Panel on Tourism of ASSOCHAM (Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India, and CII (Confederation of Indian Industry) etc. He has been invited to speak at major conferences and seminars on Tourism including Conference on Tourism Taxation organized by World Tourism Organization, Colloquium of Conservation and Heritage Tourism organized by the British Council. He has also presented papers on Sustainable Tourism at the Annual Convention of the Indian Association of Tour Operators.

Jose Dominic is the Founder President of Kerala Travel Mart and founder member of the Eco Tourism Society of India. He has been closely associated with the conservation movement and serves as the Co-convener of INTACH (Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage). He was the past President of TiE – Kerala Chapter, was the President of the Cochin Chamber of Commerce and was Chairman of CII, Kerala region. Jose Dominic is presently member of the WTM Responsible Tourism Advisory Panel, member of National Tourism Advisory Council – Government of India and member of Kerala State Tourism Advisory Panel. He is also in the Board of Governors of Xavier Institute of Management and Entrepreneurship (XIME) – Kochi.

Mr. Jose Dominic Kuruvinakunnel, hails from Pala, Kerala, is a Chartered Accountant by qualification and graduate in Commerce from Loyola College, Chennai.

MD,
Travel Corporation India

Tower B, Delta Square, M.G. Road,
Sector 25, Gurgaon 122001, Haryana,
National Capital Region of Delhi, India

Member Since: January 2014

Mr. Dipak Deva is a self-made man, who started his career as a junior staff member of a travel company in Jaipur, and over the past twenty- eight years has been a key part of the success of the tourism industry in India. His pride in India’s culture and history, and passion for developing unique tourism destinations and experiences within the country have contributed strongly to the India growth story by developing the tourism sector in an exponential manner, both in terms of value and quality of tourists that visit the country.

Mr. Deva is currently the Managing Director of Travel Corporation (I) Ltd.

Under Mr. Deva’s leadership the company has become the largest inbound destination management
company in the country. It has grown to a turnover of over $ 80 m annually, and services over
150,000 passengers per year, or over 6 per cent of the total number of tourists that are serviced by the formal tourism industry in India.

TCI is the market leader for inbound tourism from UK, Germany, France, Russia, Spain, Portugal and Japan. The company owns leading international brands such as Sita, Distant Frontiers, Go Vacations (JV with Europe’s DER Touristik).

He led and helped ensure TCI became the first Indian tourism company to acquire Destination Management Companies in 17 countries, thereby creating a truly Indian owned global footprint for the first time ever.

The companies that Mr. Deva has led have won National Tourism Awards since 2002. TCI is now the most awarded and recognised Travel company in the industry. It is the only company to have won the National Tourism Awards over 25 times across various categories, and has won over 74 honours and tributes from the Travel and Tourism Industry.

While Mr. Deva enjoys growing new markets and increasing the share of the international tourism market for India, he is a strong believer in ‘Inclusive Tourism’, and has integrated giving-back-to- society as a key part of his professional life. Since 2008, Mr. Deva has partnered with a non-profit organisation, to help empower underprivileged women by making them financially self-sufficient and has brought a qualitative change to their lives. Through this project, over 5000 women from the marginalised sections of society have been given an opportunity for employment, which has improved the lives of their families, given them immense self-respect, and helped them emerge as role models for the younger generation in their social eco-system. The women create handmade bags from recycled paper which are handed out to clients along with their travel documentation. Each bag has a small note attached to it that tells the recipient about the women and their work, and how the traveller is helping change their lives.

Mr. Deva also works closely with the Ecotourism Society of India to promote environmentally responsible and sustainable practices in the tourism industry across the country. Via TCI he also supports Jal Bhagirathi Foundation which works towards water conservation and distribution of water in the Thar Desert in Rajasthan.

Mr. Deva has also helped create a Nepal Relief Fund to support people affected by the devastating earthquake on April 25, 2015. The fund has helped rebuild the theoretical class room and a vocational workshop which are used for training the children in Sanjiwani Vocational School located in Dhulikhel – 30kms east of Kathmandu.

Based on the work initiated by him, TCI has won the National Tourism Award Responsible Tourism Project/Initiative in 2011-12 and the National Tourism Award Responsible Tourism Project/Initiative –Human Rights Impact Assessment India, in 2013-14. They have also won the PATA Gold Award for the company’s strong focus on women’s empowerment, human rights and child protection.

Mr. Deva has recently been inducted as a member of the National Tourism Advisory Council, Ministry of Tourism as an individual expert member.

CEO,
A Sharma Associates

T: +91 11 26475054

Member Since: January 2014

Prof. Anil Sharma (Adjunct Faculty, IIT Rooeki) began his career as a young architect with the firm of “Bhardwaj and Bhardwaj Associates”, in New Delhi from 1982 to 1984. He subsequently joined the multi-national firm of “Kabil and Associates” at New Delhi and then proceeded to gain an invaluable, experience with the firm of “Schooly Caldwell Associates”, in Columbus, Ohio at the United States of America.

Returning to India, after the American experience, with a high level of self-confidence, Anil Sharma embarked on his enterprise of private professional practice.

Mr. Anil Sharma as a private professional Architect, now with well over 30 years of wide experience in designing multi star hotels (www.asharma.com), which are climate responsive & energy efficient. He has designed more than 70 hotels all over India in every climatic zone from Cold climate of Gulmarg to Hot & Dry climate of Hyderabad. He adopts latest materials & technology to achieve operational efficiency & to reduce carbon emissions. All his latest designs are LEED / IGBC compliant and certified. The hotel “Khyber, Gulmarg” is the most awarded hotel by “Coinde Nast” and various other travel platforms of repute.

Apart from his professional duties as an Architect, he has balanced his work with teaching responsibilities, as visiting expert and faculty member to the following institutions of repute:

(1) “Indian Institute of Technology”, Roorkee
(2) “The School of Planning & Architecture”, Bhopal
(3) “The School of Planning & Architecture”, New Delhi
(3) “Indira Gandhi Technical University for Women”, Kashmiree Gate, New Delhi.

Mr. Anil Sharma and his projects have been recipient of the following awards:

1. His first hotel project; “Holiday Inn”, Pune won the Best hotel of the year in Asia Pacific Region in the year 1994.
2. In the year 2013 another hotel designed by Mr. Sharma, “Hotel Khyber” in Gulmarg, was awarded “Best Luxury Hotel of the world”.
3. In the year 2014 Mr. Sharma, was awarded “The Most Innovative Hotel Design Architect” for Holiday Inn Express & Suites, Hyderabad at the Hoteliers Summit held in Mumbai.
4. “Taj Hotel and Convention Center, Agra” won “Best Architectural Design Hotel” in “Time2Leap awards 2019” at Hyatt Pune.
5. “Club Babylon, Ahemedabad”, was awarded “Most Sustainable Architectural Design in Hospitality” in Time2Leap awards 2019” at Hyatt Pune.

Mr. Anil Sharma has been the member of National Jury Members for various Architecture Design Awards being run by A+D and Archi-design.

In the year 2014, Mr. Sharma was invited to participate as a Jury Member of the evaluation committee for the IIT Roorkee-Campus Extension meetings for their 330 Cr. expansion project. He was also a jury member for the development of the MNIT campus at Jaipur.

Mr. Anil Sharma, has taken the initiative in leadership role in organizing and hosting the annual “Hi-Aim” Conference that is a collective assembly of (1) Hospitality Industry leaders (2) their Architects, (3) Interior Designers and (4) Managers. This year, “Hi-Aim” held its fifth annual conference at Colombo, Sri Lanka in the month of March. (www.hi-aim.org)

Mr. Anil Sharma has been deeply committed to his Alma Mater, and has already made several inputs and contribution for taking the revered institution to higher level value goals and achievements.

Mr. Sharma has been instrumental in formulation of the following annual awards at the awards for students at the IIT Roorkee:
1. The Manoj Jain memorial award for the student with best “Human Values”
2. The R.P. Singh memorial award for the “best student of Architecture” at the IIT Roorkee.

Mr. Anil Sharma, has provided a whole hearted support to the CSR initiative “Anushruti” and has helped in organizing the fund-raising event at Greater Noida campus of IIT Roorkee in 2015.

Mr. Sharma has always been keen on sharing his knowledge through classroom teaching, and technical project co-ordination meetings, he has always felt responsible for imparting the rightful knowledge. Many clients, consultants’ even specialists approach Mr. Sharma for his suggestions and technical expert knowledge that he has gained through hard work and experiences of more than 35 years in the Industry.

He has recently accepted the role of an Adjunct Professor, at IIT Roorkee, and has been actively involved in not only improving the curriculum, but also acting as External Expert for Institutions of Architecture at I.I.T Roorkee, Uttrakhand, and the School of Planning & Architecture, New Delhi for their B. Arch & M. Arch Programs as also the “Indira Gandhi Delhi Technical University for Women” as Consulting Architect, in-charge of establishing the Department of Architecture.

He has also taken up assignments as a visiting faculty member in I.I.T Roorkee for conducting semester wise design studio for 2nd year to 5th year students; he has also been part of the evaluation of thesis seminars.

He has also been given charge to conduct the stage-by-stage thesis projects of B. Arch V year students as an External Expert of the Jury

His lecture on “My Discovery of Architecture” in I.I.T Roorkee in the month of May 2015 was very well received by the students and the entire Department of Architecture and Planning at IIT Roorkee.

M: +91 9811031980

Apt 282, Air Force & Naval Offcrs Enclave Plot 11, Sector 7, Dwarka, New Delhi – 110075

Dr. Anjuna Parashar Dhir is a ‘Skills & Strategy’ professional, active in the area of Higher Education, Continuous Professional Development & Responsibility in Business practices. Her current engagements lie in the area of ‘creating & promoting Sustainability in The Tourism Industry. She also functions as Director – Programmes, Ecotourism Society of India.

An Academic at heart, Dr. Dhir has had a very creative 10 year stint in areas as teaching, creating & launching industry relevant courses and research & consultancy

Her research interests lie in the field of ‘Sustainability’ in Business Practice, in craft traditions, lifestyle practices and livelihoods. A self acknowledged Indophile, with a Masters Degree in Tourism ( MTA) , her PhD Thesis combined her two passions , India and its traditional wealth and customer value creation- with an exploratory study on ‘Tourist Shopping in India’ suggesting ways to make Indian craft more marketable.

Her Corporate work experience over 10 years, spans multiple industries such as Tourism, Marketing , Advertising, Broadcasting and Retail & Fashion . She headed the erstwhile Fashion & Lifestyle hub of Delhi, 1 MG Road.

A long-term focus of concern for Dr. Anjuna Dhir remains interventions leading to betterment- through policy reforms, education and awareness.. To this end, she strives to work in areas having a wide ranging impact over a longer term.

M: +91 9015226116

T: +91 291 2510741

Umaid Bhawan Palace,
Circuit House Road,
Jodhpur – 342006,
Rajasthan

Member Since: October-2013

T: +91 364 2522642

Member Since: January-2014

1464, Sector 14
FARIDABAD 121 007

T(R): 0129-2221464
M: 9868160626

Member Since: August-2009

Mr. S. Banerjee was Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, from August, 2007 till October 2008. In the Ministry of Tourism, Mr. Banerjee took several initiatives for upgrading infrastructure at important tourism destinations in India for improving visitor experience. He was instrumental in articulating India’s response to climate change in the tourism sector.

This response focused on sustainable tourism for promoting and preserving India’s environmental and cultural heritage with emphasis on inclusive growth. The ‘sustainable’ tourism route was showcased in the Tourism Ministry’s innovative Rural Tourism Project designed to strengthen disadvantaged but skilled rural artisan communities through support to capacity building and infrastructure, with particular emphasis on the role of women. International cooperation was an important focus that was promoted with the ‘India-China Year of Friendship Through Tourism’. China opened its tourism office in New Delhi in August 2007 and India’s fourteenth overseas tourism office was inaugurated at Beijing, China, in April 2008. Several initiatives were taken during Mr. Banerjee’s tenure to enhance cooperation between India and ASEAN countries in the field of tourism. Through the IBSA Summit, cooperation between India, Brazil and South Africa was strengthened with interaction of the travel trade and signing of a tripartite agreement on tourism. The Incredible India Campaign continued to win accolades. India, for the second consecutive year, was adjudged among the top two favourite destinations by the Conde Nast Traveller (U.K.). India won the PATA Grand Award for Marketing and World Travel Awards for World’s Leading Destination Marketing Campaign.

Prior to this, till July 2007, Mr. Banerjee was Director General (Acquisition) in the Ministry of Defence, Government of India. In this tenure, he institutionalised a monitoring system for capital acquisition schemes for effective utilisation of the Defence modernisation budget. He was instrumental in the formulation of the Defence Procurement Procedures 2005 and 2006. These documents, for the first time, included guidelines for ‘Defence Offsets’ and the ‘Make’ procedure that were designed to encourage development of the Indian Defence industry.

Before joining the Defence Ministry, Mr. Banerjee worked as Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Urban Development from December, 1996 to February, 2002. In this tenure, he initiated reforms in the Urban Sector for making urban local bodies viable and efficient. The reforms included Municipal Accounts, formulation of a model Municipal Act, and guidelines for a regulatory framework for public-private partnerships.

Mr. Banerjee worked in the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, from December, 1985 to May, 1991. As Joint Secretary (Marketing) in that Ministry, he dealt with the crisis that affected India’s oil supplies following the outbreak of the Gulf War in August, 1990.

Earlier in his career, Mr. Banerjee worked in the erstwhile State of Andhra Pradesh. He was Collector and District Magistrate of the important Districts of Krishna and Khammam and headed the Departments of Fisheries, Social Welfare and Civil Supplies.

After finishing his schooling at St. Joseph’s College, North Point, Darjeeling, in 1964, Mr. Banerjee joined St. Stephen’s College, University of Delhi, from where he received his Bachelor of Arts (Honours) and Master of Arts degrees in History in 1968 and 1970.

In 1971, Mr. Banerjee joined the Indian Administrative Service.

He received his Master’s Diploma (Public Administration) from the Indian Institute of Public Administration, New Delhi in 1992 and M. Phil degree in Social Sciences from the University of Panjab in the same year.

Mr. Banerjee was a Visiting Fellow in the Queen Elizabeth House, University of Oxford, U.K. (1995-1996) and in the National Institute of Urban Affairs, New Delhi (2002-2003).

Following his retirement from the Indian Administrative Service in 2008, Mr. Banerjee chaired the Committee constituted by the Ministry of Finance in 2009 to review the processes, practices and procedures followed for the procurement and finalisation of security sensitive items relating to currency. The report of this Committee was submitted to the Union Finance Ministry on March 31, 2010. Mr. Banerjee was a member of the Vigilance Advisory Council of the Central Vigilance Commission and the Advisory Board of the Centre for Joint Warfare Studies, a professional research institute under the Ministry of Defence. Mr. Banerjee was also appointed Independent External Monitor for the Ministries of Defence and Food Processing Industries.

Currently, Mr. Banerjee is an Independent Director on the Board of ITC Ltd.

M: +91 9868276051

C-2/97, Sector 36,
Noida-201301, U.P.

Member Since: August-2010

He has served the Government of India in various capacities in his distinguished career as an Officer of the Indian Administrative Service.

In his career, he has served as Secretary, Central Vigilance Commission, Secretary & Chairperson of National Authority, Chemical Weapons Convention. He retired as Union Secretary to the Government of India, Ministry of Tourism. He headed a Committee constituted by the Ministry of Environment and Forests to formulate guidelines for forest and wildlife eco-tourism in the country. He has served as Member on the Ethics Committee of Standing Conference of Public Enterprises, as Chairman, Advisory Committee on World Heritage Matters, Ministry of Culture, as a Part-time Non-official Director on the Board of SAIL and as Chairman, Committee for National Heritage Sites under the aegis of Ministry of Culture. Currently he is serving as the Secretary General, WTTC India Initiative.

M: +91 9425007850

E – 5 Surendra Garden,
Hoshangabad Road,
Bopal, MP – 462043

Member Since: August-2013

Retired as the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests & Chief Wildlife Warden of Madhya Pradesh, India, after thirty five years in the Indian Forest Service (IFS). Twelve years in policy formulation and implementation.

Worked for 7 years as protected area manager, seven years as forestry manager and five years as a scientist at the Wildlife Institute of India (WII). Developed and implemented internationally funded projects on ecodevelopment planning, protected area management and scientific research for biodiversity conservation, and teaching participatory approaches to forestry and wildlife managers. Managed Indo-US collaboration project on the development of the Wildlife Institute of India; Worked as Additional Director Project Monitoring and Evaluation (PME) (later as Director) in an integrated forestry project, the Madhya Forestry Project, financed by the World Bank/IDA. Worked as an Advisor to the Madhya Pradesh Ecotourism Development Board. FAO/UNDP consultancy in protected area management planning. Taught a course in ecodevelopment and participatory planning in Sri Lanka for FAO/UNDP. Worked as a wildlife crime control and legal reforms consultant and as team leader of an international consulting group for the preparation of 20-year forestry master plan for Bangladesh on World Bank funded projects.
Developed an operational framework and 20-year strategic plan for South Asia Wildlife Enforcement Network (SAWEN).

Member of the international consulting group tasked with the designing of a world class tiger safari and rescue centre outside Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve.

Drafted the India Ecotourism Policy on behalf of the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) for submission to the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change.

Former Secretary, Ministry of Tourism
Read More

T: +91 11 40158779

C-31, Ground Floor, Panchsheel Enclave, New Delhi-110017

Member Since: May 2018

Mr. Vinod Zutshi joined Indian Administrative Service (IAS) in 1982 and belonged to Rajasthan Cadre. He superannuated in February, 2017 at the post of Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Govt. of India. Mr. Zutshi has 35 Years of experience in Central Government and Government of Rajasthan with long experience and exposure in the fields of Tourism, Public Policy & Administration, Management and Election & Democratic Governance.

Mr. Zutshi served as Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Govt. of India between 2015 to 2017. He also held the following positions in Tourism Sector at National Level:
Secretary, Ministry of Culture, Govt. of India; Vice Chairman, National Tourism Advisory Council, India; Chairman PATA Chapter India; Board Member, PATA; Chairman, NCHMCT; Chairman, Board of Governors, IHM, Pusa; and Vice Chairman, Board of Governors, IITTM;

He held many key positions in Tourism Sector in the State of Rajasthan namely, Secretary, Tourism, Govt. of Rajasthan; Secretary, Civil Aviation, Govt. of Rajasthan; Commissioner, Tourism, Govt. of Rajasthan; Chairman & Managing Director, Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation; and CMD, Rajasthan State Hotels Corporation.

Vinod Zutshi is now a Consultant & Advisor in Travel and Tourism for more than two years and is based in Delhi.

Some of the key organisations with which Mr. Zutshi is currently associated as Consultant / Advisor/Honorary Member are:

• Member, Managing Committee of National Apex Body of PHD Chamber of Commerce & Industry
• Honorary Member, Tourism Committee, PHD Chamber of Commerce & Industry
• OYO – as a Member (Independent Expert) of Partner Advisory Council
• Member of CII National Committee on Tourism & Hospitality
• Adviser to FICCI Medical Value Travel Committee 2019
• Executive Member of India Cruise Lines Association (InCLA)
• Member, Board of Trustees, Foundation for Aviation & Sustainable Tourism (FAST)
• Honorary Member, Ecotourism Society of India (ESOI)

Mr. Zutshi is an Alumni of Harvard Kennedy School and MBA from Faculty of Management Studies, Delhi University. He is also an Advocate enrolled with Bar Council of Delhi.

Mr. Zutshi is also a Resource Person in the area of Travel and Tourism. In the recent past He has visited as Guest Speaker at IAS Academy, LBSNAA, Mussoorie; Indian Institute of Public Administration; Central Universities of Banaras Hindu University, Garhwal University and University of Pondicherry; Amity University, Noida; IITTM, Bhubaneswar and Jamia Millia University.

Mr. Vinod Zutshi has travelled far and wide during his long career in various capacities. He has travelled to USA, UK, Germany, France, Australia, Azerbaijan, Italy, Netherlands, Austria, Spain, Jamaica, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, China, Hong Kong, Turkey, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Japan and Bangladesh.

Ecologist

T: +91 9822056736

A802, Rachana Sayantara, Hazari Pahad, Nagpur, Maharastra – 440007

Member Since: May 2017

Born in an Armed Forces family, I was always hooked to the outdoors. I soon realised that birds and smaller mammals fascinated me the most. Simultaneously, I found that Adventure was always a part of life. So have ended up being an explorer, trekker, scuba diver, sky diver, river rafter, birdwatcher and a nomad for life! Local people and their customs, and nature itself have been my biggest teachers – and I keep trying to learn more at every step.

Founded one of the most popular wildlife and adventure camping organisations – Pugmarks, before selling it and moving to Maharashtra Forest Department at Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve (earlier Melghat Tiger Reserve). My mandate is to work in the field of creating a better eco tourism experience for visitors.

I also work to create livelihood opportunities and then capacity-build the local forest neighbouring communities – enabling them to earn respectable incomes. They thereby become stakeholders in the process of conserving our beautiful wild spaces.

Director & Principal Advisor
Zinc Hospitality, Cross Roads Hotels, Speciality Restaurants

Member Since: January-2008

RAKESH MATHUR is a Hospitality Industry professional with over forty-seven years of leadership experience in Indian and Global Hotel groups.

After schooling in Shimla and Graduation in Economics Honours from SRCC, Delhi, he joined Oberoi Hotels in 1973 as a Management Trainee and grew in the Industry and worked with Global and Multinational Hotel Organizations and became Executive Director of IHG ( then BASS ) Hotels for South and West Asia.

Rakesh’s passion with India’s Heritage, Culture and Environment started in 2001, when he took over as President of ITC WelcomHeritage Hotels, a Company launched under the Chairmanship of HH Maharaja Gaj Singh ji of Jodhpur to revive India’s BUILT Heritage through Tourism.

Since Heritage Properties are mostly in Rural areas, Rakesh Co-founded the Ecotourism Society of India, to spread awareness about sustainable tourism practices, and is its Current Honorary President.

Rakesh continues to contribute his experience and expertise as a Board member to the Indian Heritage Hotels Association, INTACH Tourism Committee, Auro University, Surat, (Tourism), and HI AIM as CHAIRMAN.

He is also Director and Principal Advisor to Lords Hotels and Resorts.

Apart from his professional affiliations, Rakesh is associated with several Industry and Philanthropic activities. He is recipient of The Karamveer Patra from ICONGO for pioneering the CODE OF CONDUCT for SAFE & HONOURABLE TOURISM , officially endorsed by UNODC and adopted by the Ministry of Tourism, and several awards for contributions to the Hospitality Industry.

He is a Paul Harris Member of the Rotary Club of Delhi Southend, Hon. President of Save the Children India (Delhi), and supports a personal Charitable Foundation engaged in poor and orphaned children’s health and education and women’s empowerment.

Rakesh is widely travelled, father of two sons and a daughter and two grand daughters, who all enjoy Photography, Arts, Cinema and Travel.

Jt. Managing Director,
Creative Travel Pvt. Ltd.

T: +91 124 4567777

Member Since: January-2008

Rohit Kohli is Jt. Managing Director of the Creative Travel group. Established in 1977, Creative Travel is today considered to be one India’s largest independent, family owned Destination Management Companies. The other main business includes Signature Tours by Creative Travel, specializing in luxury outbound journeys; Plan it! meetings and conferences, a cutting edge PCO and corporate loyalty management company; and Jungle Sutra Wildlife Journeys, India’s first wildlife specialist DMC focusing on lesser known fauna of the subcontinent. The group also runs an Academy of Tourism.

Creative Travel is South Asia’s most recognised tour operator and has won many accolades including the prestigious National Awards regularly since 1979, multiple World Travel Awards, SITE Crystal Awards, PATA Gold awards etc.

Rohit is a hotelier by qualification, having graduated from a leading hotel management school and has initiated at some of the top luxury hotels in the country.

Rohit’s position at the group, aside from sharing overall management responsibilities, also includes management of the operations and business development functions of the organization. Rohit is also responsible for the strategic planning including expansion and new focus areas. The company has 20 offices around the world. One of Rohit’s key involvements is in the sustainability and responsible efforts of the organization through the Ram Kohli Foundation.

Rohit sits on the boards of several trade associations as part of his ‘volunteerism’ efforts. Some of them include being the first Secretary of Young Tourism Professionals (worldwide), the youngest Hony. Secretary of PATA India and formerly on the International board of PATA. Rohit also served as the India Chair for ICCA India, and a governing body member of Ecotourism Society of India, Rohit also serves on the Asia Pacific advisory boards of leading global hospitality chains.

O-10, First Floor, Chittaranjan Park, NEW DELHI – 110019

Member Since: January-2008

Seema Bhatt has worked extensively on issues related to ecotourism, biodiversity and climate change. Her particular focus of work is on strengthening the links between conservation of biodiversity and livelihoods of local communities.

She views ecotourism as one such link and has coordinated two projects on ecotourism as the South Asia Coordinator for the USAID supported Biodiversity Conservation Network. Seema has since then worked extensively with various other ecotourism projects in India and other parts of South Asia. She has co-authored a book on Ecotourism Development in India published by the Cambridge University Press. Seema is a Fulbright Research Scholar and was based at the Center for Responsible Travel (CREST) in Washington DC where she explored the feasibility of ecotourism certification in India. She has since her return, been working on setting standards for ecotourism in India. Seema holds a Master’s degree in Environmental Studies from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. She is also at present the Honorary Vice President of the Ecotourism Society of India. Seema Bhatt is at present with the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations.

MD,
Indeco Hotels, Chennai

T: +91 44 24998121

Member Since: January-2008

Mr. Steve Borgia is currently the Chairman & Managing Director of INDeco Leisure Hotels. INDeco is “INDIA ECOLOGY”, a tourism company with National interest. And also the only Indian Hotel group to win the distinguished “Global Eco Tourism Award”. His pioneering rural tourism in India mend the broken backbone of Indian villages has been one of his most significant contributions to TOURISM AND DEVELOPMENT in India.

With basic education in Commerce, he specialized in Group Dynamics and Social Communication from CNRS – LYONS, France. Later, returned to India to do ground research in social communication for Rural Development.

Steve Borgia wears several caps. But all through carries the INDOLOGIST one. Whether at the UN, Government of India, Press, Films, Hotels or the Corporate, he moves beyond competition, finding a unique position. His companies and concepts are people centric. Creating INDeco Hotels Swamimalai, INDeco Hotels Mahabalipuram and INDeco’s Lake Forest Hotel, India’s unique heritage hotel is a landmark. Making these heritage hotels accommodate, fund & operate the Steve Borgia’s Indian Heritage Museum, is a Master Stroke born out of his acumen for Business and his concern for humanity at large. Highly committed to ecology and heritage, he holds office as VICE PRESIDENT in the INDIAN HERITAGE HOTELS ASSOCIATION. He is also the founding member of the RESPONSIBLE TOURISM SOCIETY OF INDIA (Formerly – Eco Tourism Society of India). CHAIRMAN OF THE RURALTOURISM SOCIETY OF INDIA. FOUNDER MEMBER of Association for Agri & Rural Tourism in India.

M: +91 9811031980

Apt 282, Air Force & Naval Offcrs Enclave Plot 11, Sector 7, Dwarka, New Delhi – 110075

Dr. Anjuna Parashar Dhir is a ‘Skills & Strategy’ professional, active in the area of Higher Education, Continuous Professional Development & Responsibility in Business practices. Her current engagements lie in the area of ‘creating & promoting Sustainability in The Tourism Industry. She also functions as Director – Programmes, Ecotourism Society of India.

An Academic at heart, Dr. Dhir has had a very creative 10 year stint in areas as teaching, creating & launching industry relevant courses and research & consultancy

Her research interests lie in the field of ‘Sustainability’ in Business Practice, in craft traditions, lifestyle practices and livelihoods. A self acknowledged Indophile, with a Masters Degree in Tourism ( MTA) , her PhD Thesis combined her two passions , India and its traditional wealth and customer value creation- with an exploratory study on ‘Tourist Shopping in India’ suggesting ways to make Indian craft more marketable.

Her Corporate work experience over 10 years, spans multiple industries such as Tourism, Marketing , Advertising, Broadcasting and Retail & Fashion . She headed the erstwhile Fashion & Lifestyle hub of Delhi, 1 MG Road.

A long-term focus of concern for Dr. Anjuna Dhir remains interventions leading to betterment- through policy reforms, education and awareness.. To this end, she strives to work in areas having a wide ranging impact over a longer term.

M: +91 9015226116