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Our Team

Board of Directors


Dr. Balram Singh, Chairman

Dr. Balram Singh, Chairman

Dr. Balram Singh is a leading expert on protein structure, protein folding and functions, botulinum toxins and biodefense agents. He is the founder of Prime Bio. Inc., a leading product and service provider, and Institute of Advanced Sciences. A Professor with an interest in teaching innovative biotechnology, Ayurvedic biotechnology physical biochemistry, biochemistry, biological spectroscopy, fluorescence spectroscopy for biochemists, chemistry of the mind, biochemistry laboratory, and science of yoga.


Mr. Kanchan Banerjee, Managing Director .

Mr. Kanchan Banerjee, Managing Director .

Kanchan is a Healthcare IT professional. He has co-founded the Indo-US Health Initiatives and Boston Center of Excellence for Health and Human Development (BoCE). He is a certified yoga teacher and have been giving yoga workshops especially on college campuses in the US.


Mr. Pramit Maakoday, Director

Mr. Pramit Maakoday, Director

Pramit Maakoday is the co-Founder and Director of Indo-US Health Initiatives, the Boston Center of Excellence for the Health and Human Development and the e-Kisaan Foundation. Pramit has been the Vice President International Region of Computer Society of India (CSI). His current focus is on large scale e-healthcare and smart healthy city projects in India. Pramit was also awarded at NRI Gaurav Mahotsav by the IT minister of India, Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh and also received other Philanthropic awards.


Dr. N. K Manjunath, Director

Dr. N. K Manjunath, Director

Director, Research and International Affairs, S-VYASA University. Professor and Head of Anvesana Research Laboratories. He has conducted extensive research on yoga and its use for various disorders and has published many papers from his research. He is Editor of the International Journal of Yoga.


Dr. Darshan Mehta, Director

Dr. Darshan Mehta, Director

Medical Director and Director of Medical Education at Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine at MGH. He is also Associate Director for the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine at Brigham & Women’s Hospital/Harvard Medical School and serves as a consulting physician to the Home Base Program at Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr. Mehta in an Instructor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School.


Dr. Manoj Bhasin, Director

Dr. Manoj Bhasin, Director

Assistant Professor, Medicine, Harvard Medical School. Co-Director, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics and Systems Biology Center, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Dr. Bhasin is experienced Bioinformatician/biostatistician with strong track record in computational vaccine design, functional proteomics, systems biology and transcriptional data analysis


Dr. Purnima, Director

Dr. Purnima, Director

Dr Purnima, founder of charitable organization ‘Health is Wealth Foundation’ graduated from K.G. Medical College in Lucknow and received post-graduate training at many premier medical institutions in USA. US board certified in Obstetrics and Gynecology, she practiced as Minimally Invasive Robotic Gynecologic Surgeon. She served as Chief of Obstetrics Gynecology at Lowell General hospital, MA. She has also done board certification and advanced fellowship program in Obesity Medicine. As an Obesity Medicine expert, she formulated ‘BaroFit’, a scientific nutrition-based weight management protocol.


Mrs. Haimanti Banerjee, Director

Mrs. Haimanti Banerjee, Director

Haimanti is a Healthcare technology expert and has worked at several hospitals including Boston Children’s and Mass General as a quality control expert. She is also a certified yoga teacher and teaching in Boston area for past 20 years.


Dr. Anusha Shegal, Director

Dr. Anusha Shegal, Director

Classically trained Ayurvedic physician with over 15 years of experience in education, clinics and research. She is currently the Chair of the National Ayurvedic Medical Association Certification Board (NAMACB) and the academic director of the Boston Ayurveda School. Dr. Sehgal has been working to showcase authentic Ayurveda for which she is the author of Elementary Concepts of Ayurveda, to be released soon.


Mr. Sandeep Chakravorty (Ex Officio), Director

Mr. Sandeep Chakravorty (Ex Officio), Director

A member of the Indian Foreign Service (IFS) since 1996, has served in India’s Missions in several countries. Prior to becoming Consul General of India in New York in August, 2017, he was the ambassador of India to Peru and Bolivia. Earlier he was India’s deputy chief of mission in Bangladesh. He has also served in Indian embassies in Madrid and Bogota. In India’s Ministry of External Affairs he has held several positions including press relations officer, staff officer to minister and worked on desks dealing with Central Asia, East Asia and China.


Mr. Pawan Roy, Treasurer

Mr. Pawan Roy, Treasurer

Pawan Roy is a community volunteer, executive committee member of non- profit organizations like gibv.org and an international business leader with 25 years experience in aerospace & defense, dotcom, hotel/hospitality, and iron & steel industries.


Mr. Murali Menon, Secretary

Mr. Murali Menon, Secretary


Board of Trustees


Dr. Vasant Lad, TheAyurvedic Institute, New Mexico

Dr. Vasant Lad, TheAyurvedic Institute, New Mexico

Dr. Vasant Lad is an Indian author, Ayurvedic physician, professor and director of the Ayurvedic Institute in Albuquerque, New Mexico. His training includes the study of Western medicine and surgery as well as traditional Ayurvedic Medicine. He founded the Ayurvedic Institute in 1984. Vasant Lad is the author of 11 books on Ayurveda as well as hundreds of articles and other writings. His work has been translated into more than 20 languages.


Dr. David Frawley (VamadevaSastry),American Institute of Vedic Studies, New Mexico.

Dr. David Frawley (VamadevaSastry),American Institute of Vedic Studies, New Mexico.

Vedic Teacher (Vedacharya) and Author of 40 books published in 20 languages worldwide over the last several decades. His diverse fields of expertise include Ayurveda, Yoga, Vedanta, Tantra, and Vedic Studies. One of the 4 founding advisors for NAMA (National Ayurvedic Medical Association).


Board of Advisors


Dr. Ved Prakash Nanda, University of Denver, CO

Dr. Ved Prakash Nanda, University of Denver, CO

Prof. Ved Prakash Nanda has been honored with the Padma Bhushan award in 2018 in the field of Literature and Education. He is an expert inInternational Law. He is currently the John Evans Distinguished University Professor, University of Denver Thompson G. Marsh Professor of Law. He is also the Founding Director and Director Emeritus , International Legal Studies Program; and Director of Ved Nanda Center for International and Comparative Law, University of Denver Sturm College of Law.


Dr. Manohar Shinde, Dharma Foundation, CA

Dr. Manohar Shinde, Dharma Foundation, CA

Manohar Shinde, M.D., Ph.D. Psychiatry, was on the teaching clinical faculty of UCLA & USA schools of Medicine and at the “Institute for contemporary psychoanalysis” (ICP). He has also served as a Medical director in many institutions and retired from 29 years of Private practice in Glendale, Los Angeles. Dr. Shinde is a community leader with an extensive track record of philanthropy and service, and has impacted thousands of people. He serves on the board of several non-profit organizations serving the Indian community in North America.


Dr. Darshan Shankar, Transdisciplinary University (TDU), India

Dr. Darshan Shankar, Transdisciplinary University (TDU), India

Padmashri Darshan Shankar is the managing trustee of FRLHT and founder of TDU. His core contributions lie in the field of educational innovation. He started his career in 1973 at the age of 23, at the University of Bombay, where he designed and implemented a post graduate “experiential” learning program that won a Commonwealth Award in 1976, for being the best program in the Commonwealth for linking University education to community needs


Hilary Garivaltis, National Ayurvedic Medical Association (NAMA), MA

Hilary Garivaltis, National Ayurvedic Medical Association (NAMA), MA

Hilary Garivaltis, CAP, serves as the current Executive Director of the National Ayurvedic Medical Association and was the Founder and former Dean of the Kripalu School of Ayurveda. She received her initial training in 1997-1998 from the New England Institute of Ayurvedic Medicine and continued with advanced training in the U.S as well as in India between 1998-2007. She continues to study with the world’s leading teachers in the United States and in India whenever she gets the chance.


Dr. Diana Lurie, University of Montana, MO

Dr. Diana Lurie, University of Montana, MO

Professor of Nueropharmacology in the Skaggs School of Montana. She is certified Ayurvedic Practitioner (Kerala Ayurveda) and is the Editor-in-Chief for the Ayurveda Journal of Health.


Dr. Jay Glaser, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA

Dr. Jay Glaser, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA

Boardcertified in internal medicine and practices hospital medicine at UMass HealthAlliance Hospital, and addiction medicine at Clean Slate Centers in Worcester, MA. He is on the Faculty of the


Dr. Sat Bir Singh Khalsa, Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, MA

Dr. Sat Bir Singh Khalsa, Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, MA

Assistant Professor, Harvard Medical School. Associate Neuroscientist, Division of Sleep and Circadian Disorders, Departments of Medicine and Neurology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Field of research – Mind-Body Medicine. Special area of interest in the evaluation of the clinical effectiveness and basic psychophysiological mechanisms underlying the practice of yoga and meditation techniques


Dr. Subhendu Sen, Raritan Bay Medical Center, NJ

Dr. Subhendu Sen, Raritan Bay Medical Center, NJ

Associate Program Director, Internal Medicine Residency Program, Director of Medical Student Education, Raritan Bay Medical Center. His book on Alzheimer’s and Meditation entitled ‘Why Buddha never had Alzheimer’s: A Holistic Treatment Approach through Meditation, Yoga, and the Arts’ has received the prestigious United States Natilus Award.


Dr. Indranill Basuray, St. Francis Hospital, Memphis, TN

Dr. Indranill Basuray, St. Francis Hospital, Memphis, TN

He is also an Additional Professorof Cardiology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences Rishikesh, Uttarakhand-India and aVisiting Prof of Cardiology: SVYASA (A Deemed University) in Bengaluru, Karnataka-India. He is also the Founder President of the American Academy for Yoga andMeditation in Medicine & the Founder Secretary of the North American Chapter of theCardiological Society of India. Dr. Basu Ray was a former faculty member in Medicine(Cardiology) at Harvard Medical School and Tulane University Medical Center.


Dr. Shyam Mahapatra, Nanomedicine Research Center, USF, FL

Dr. Shyam Mahapatra, Nanomedicine Research Center, USF, FL

Associate Dean at the College of Pharmacy, Vice Chair of Research for Internal Medicine, Director of the Translational Medicine-USF Nanomedicine Research Center at the University of South Florida, and a Research Career Scientist at the James A. Haley VA Hospital in Tampa, Florida. Mohapatra is recognized nationally and internationally for his expertise in the field of nanoscale biomedical diagnostics and therapeutics in cancers, asthma, viral infections, and traumatic brain injury.


Dr. Marc Halpern, Founder President California College of Ayurveda, CA

Dr. Marc Halpern, Founder President California College of Ayurveda, CA

Dr. Marc Halpern, D.C.,C.A.S.,P.K.S., (Ayurvedacharya) is one of the pioneers of Ayurveda in the West and is considered to be a pre-eminent practitioner and teacher of Ayurveda in the United States. He is one of the few Westerners ever recognized in both the United States and in India as an authority on the subject of Ayurveda Medicine and was awarded the All India Award for Best Ayurvedic Physician.


Dr. Richard Fletcher, MIT D-Lab, Cambridge, MA

Dr. Richard Fletcher, MIT D-Lab, Cambridge, MA

Dr. Rich Fletcher leads the mobile technology lab, develops a variety of mobile sensors, analytic tools, and diagnostic algorithms to study issues in global health and behaviour medicine. Rich has done field work in over a dozen developing countries and currently leads several research efforts in the area of global health, agriculture, environmental monitoring, behaviour medicine, and Mental Health. Rich has worked for over 20 years in the field of wireless sensors and RFID, including 5 years with the US Air Force and 15 years at the MIT Media Lab, producing over a dozen US patents and several spin-off companies. In the field of medicine, Rich Fletcher currently leads several research studies funded by NIH, the Billand melind Gates Foundation, USAID, Vodafone and the Tata Trust.


Dr. Bhusan Pattawardhan, SavitribaiPhule Pune University, Pune, India

Dr. Bhusan Pattawardhan, SavitribaiPhule Pune University, Pune, India

Professor Bhushan Patwardhan brings over 30 year experience in research and development in the area of evidence based Ayurveda, ethnopharmacology, drug discovery & development and integrative medicine. He is a Fellow of National Academy of Medical Sciences (India) and visiting Professor at Indian Institute of Advanced Studies, Shimla. He is present Chairman of Academic Planning and Development Committee of National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education & Research. He was invited as temporary consultant to Commission on Intellectual Property Innovation and Public Health of the World Health Organization Geneva.


Dr. Dinesh Patel Co-Chair – Mass General Hospital, MA

Dr. Dinesh Patel Co-Chair – Mass General Hospital, MA

Former Chairman of Board of Registration in Medicine, State of Massachusetts, Former Board of Director Federation of state Medical Board, Associate Clinical Professor Harvard Medical School and Ortho surgeon at MGH, Chief, Arthroscopic Surgery Sports Medicine Orthopaedic Surgeon. Dr. Dinesh Patel is the Chief of Arthroscopic Surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital.


Dr. H. R Nagendra – Co-Chair – S-VYASA, Bengaluru, India

Dr. H. R Nagendra – Co-Chair – S-VYASA, Bengaluru, India

Chairman, International Day of Yoga Experts Committee, Chairman of Task force of AYUSH Chairman of SAC of CCRYN, Govt of India, Ministry of AYUSH. Dr. Nagendra is now the Chancellor of Swami Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana, Bangalore (S-VYASA) Deemed University. He has published 30 Research Papers in Engineering; authored and collected 110 papers on Yoga and co-authored 35 books on Yoga. He has guided nearly 20 PhD students.