ILEP’S MEMBER ASSOCIATIONS ARE WORKING
TOGETHER FOR A WORLD FREE FROM LEPROSY

ILEP India Team Members 

CEOs of ILEP India Member organizations

Dr. Ashok Agarwal is the Managing Trustee of NLR INDIA Foundation. He found his footing in public health & social sector in the early 90s.He is a public health specialist with over 26 years of experience in serving high-profile 

Mr. B. Vijayakrishnan

Representative, Fontilles

John is a public health professional with extensive experience in the development sector focussing on health. As FAIRMED’s (FM) Executive Director.

Dr. Jose has been Director of AIFO India since 2001. He holds a Ph.D. in Sociology, a pioneer in the rehabilitation and social inclusion of people affected by leprosy. Over 30 plus years, Dr. Jose is leading the battle for leprosy eradication working in several capacities.

Dr. M.Shivakumar, completed his MBBS in 1995 and soon joined DFIT Sponsored project in Karnataka. He worked as a medical officer till the year 2003 and later he worked as District Medical Advisor for 3 districts in 

Over twenty years of experience in development and humanitarian sectors (more than twelve years as Country Director), particularly in the areas of  representation(including with host governments), strategy development, 

Dr. Premal Das is a proficient leprosy reconstructive surgeon with over three decades of experience in correcting deformities due to leprosy, having assisted and learned from the renowned Leprosy surgeon, 

Mr. Shibu George has been with GLRA India and with DAHW Asia since 1989 in various capacities. Now he is holding the position of Interim Chief Executive Officer. An international M & E specialist for social 

Sunil Anand is the Asia Regional Director for American Leprosy Missions (ALM), based in Hyderabad, India. He is a medical doctor, a dermatologist and leprologist by training with over 38 years

ILEP India Secretariat

Dr. Srilekha Penna currently works as the Regional Research Coordinator at GLRA India. She is additionally designated as the ILEP India Coordinator.

Mr. Ashish Dangar

Dy. Coordinator – ILEP India (GLRA India)

Dr. Ashok Agarwal
chief executive officer
(NLR India)

Dr. Ashok Agarwal is the Managing Trustee of NLR INDIA Foundation. He has been contributing as Chief Executive Officer since February 2020. He found his footing in public health & social sector in the early 90s. He is a public health specialist with over 26 years of experience in serving high-profile national and international public health positions and impacting lives through innovative public health approaches.

Under his leadership since October 2019, NLR India Foundation has become well-structured as he’s actively engaged in overhauling entire organizational profile. The project interventions have been fine-tuned to follow more enabling strategies. The Foundation is now following a more empowering approach. With NLR India Foundation, Dr. Ashok’s prime focus is on the children of persons affected by leprosy, who are being mentored as “Change Makers” to help them improve themselves, their families, and their communities; they are also being trained in Life Skills Education. The focus is on bridging the gender and digital divide and providing; equal opportunities for education, digital literacy, and livelihood so that they can lead a dignified life.

Mr B. Vijayakrishnan
REPRESENTATIVE, FONTILLES

Mr. John Kurian George
Executive Director – FAIRMED India

John is a public health professional with extensive experience in the development sector focusing on health. As FAIRMED’s (FM) Executive Director, he currently oversees the overall management of FM India operations, finance, programs, fundraising, & administration as well. Besides his role also entails close coordination and collaboration with various stakeholders including the Government of India, State Government’s, people’s forum, WHO India, ILEP India members, and other key civil society organizations engaged in leprosy control work. In additional, John’s other interests include traveling, sports, music, and learning about different cultures.

Dr Jose Manikkathan
Secretary, AFIO India

Dr. Jose has been Secretary of AIFO India since 2001. He holds a Ph.D. in Sociology, a pioneer in the rehabilitation and social inclusion of people affected by leprosy. Over 30 plus years, Dr. Jose is leading the battle for leprosy eradication working in several capacities including national and international leadership positions. He is the lead monitoring and evaluation consultant. Past four decades, Jose committed his work during all the natural calamities like earthquakes, floods, tsunamis, epidemics that have hit India and served at the forefront.

DR. M.SHIVAKUMAR
CEO, DFIT

Dr. M.Shivakumar, completed his MBBS in 1995 and soon joined DFIT Sponsored project in Karnataka. He worked as a medical officer till the year 2003 and later he worked as District Medical Advisor for 3 districts in AP to provide technical support to TB and leprosy programmes till 2007. From the year 2007 worked as a Senior Medical Advisor to provide technical support to DFIT projects for South India and from the year 2008 as a Chief Medical Advisor for DFIT projects in India. From the year 2012 he is heading as secretary of DFIT and executing all its projects in India.

Mr. Prasant Naik
CEO, LEPRA Society

Over twenty years of experience in development and humanitarian sectors(more than twelve years as Country Director), particularly in the areas of representation(including with host governments), strategy development, leadership, staff management, Leprosy/LF & NTDs, child protection, child rights, education, vocational training, participatory
implementation, partnership management, humanitarian response and preparedness, gender, HIV/AIDS, Watsan, public healthpromotion, security management, shelter, cooperatives, vocational training & livelihoods, refugees & IDPs, camp management, humanitarian access negotiations in armed conflict, networking, fundraising (including from World Bank), change management and accountability to stake holders working in high and medium complexity countries with substantial budgets. Have strong skills in multi-sectoral project, fund raising & finance management (with yearly budgets often more than 20 million USD) and human resource development. I have a masters in Social Work, a post graduate diploma in Rural Management and a degree in engineering. I have worked in Africa (Kenya, Uganda, Mozambique and Angola), Asia
(Afghanistan, India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Thailand and Myanmar) and UK. Before coming into the humanitarian work, I worked for eight years with farmer’s cooperative and private sector.

Dr. Premal Das
Executive Director, TLMTI

Dr. Premal Das is a proficient leprosy reconstructive surgeon with over three decades of experience in correcting deformities due to leprosy, having assisted and learned from the renowned Leprosy surgeon, Dr. Fritschi and being further motivated by attending lectures from Dr. Paul Brand. An alumnus of Christian Medical College Vellore, he started working with The Leprosy Mission India in 1985. Two preceding generations of his family have also served in The Leprosy Mission. A passionate advocate of a leprosy & disability-free world, his special interest lies in preventing ulcer recurrence through more acceptable and effective footwear. In addition to his clinical work, Dr. Das has been in administrative roles for several years as Superintendent & Deputy Director (Medical) in TLM Trust India. From Lasso surgery for mobile claw hand correction, to 3D printing technology for customised insoles, early temporary Below Knee Prosthesis to alternate insoles, modified orthosis and splints, Dr. Premal is credited with introducing several innovations to The Leprosy Mission. In 2013 he was awarded the “Emmanuel Sundar Raj Memorial Award” from the Dept. of Surgery for continuous commitment to Christian Healing Mission. In 2015, Dr. Premal and Dr. Loretta, his wife, were awarded CMC Vellore’s prestigious “Paul Harrison Award” for significant, steadfast, and selfless service to people affected by Leprosy.

Mr Shibu George r
Interim CEO, GLRA India

Mr. Shibu George has been with GLRA India and with DAHW Asia since 1989 in various capacities. Now he is holding the position of Interim Chief Executive Officer. An international M & E specialist for social initiatives, a master trainer in project execution, and a social work graduate with postgraduate degree in Health Statistics and CBR. Mr. Shibu has extensive expertise in the fields of Leprosy, TB, Disability Inclusion, and Humanitarian Action. He has also presented several papers at conferences throughout the world, including The Union, ILC, and the World CBR Congress.

Dr.Sunil Anand
Asian Regional Director, ALM

Sunil Anand is the Asia Regional Director for American Leprosy Missions (ALM), based in Hyderabad, India. He is a medical doctor, a dermatologist and leprologist by training with over 38 years of both field level and top-level experience, strategic leadership and change management experience in the NGO sector. As a dermatologist and leprologist, he has hands on clinical experience and expertise in all aspects of leprosy including reconstructive surgery for leprosy deformities and hospital and program management. His experience as CEO of a large leprosy focused non-governmental organization includes strategic leadership and transformative change management

Dr Srilekha Penna
ILEP INDIA COORDINATOR AND REGIONAL RESEARCH COORDINATOR – GLRA INDIA

Dr. Srilekha Penna currently works as the Regional Research Coordinator at GLRA India. She is additionally designated as the ILEP India Coordinator, in which capacity she represents the ILEP India consortium on national and international platforms and coordinates the activities with the nine affiliated ILEP organizations, the Central Leprosy Division, state governments, WHO, APAL, and other significant stakeholders who share the same objective of eliminating leprosy in India. She holds a master’s degree in Global Health from Maastricht University, Netherlands, specializing in Public Health Epidemiology and Infectious Disease Surveillance with an overall experience of 3 years in the healthcare sector. She is experienced in the field of Leprosy and Social Behaviour Change Communication with advanced training received from ALERT, Ethiopia, and Magenta Consultancy, Tunisia. At GLRA, she is actively involved in researching innovative approaches to promote the active participation of persons affected by NTDs to improve their health and mental well-being. As the first young woman to represent ILEP India as a coordinator, she is a strong advocate for promoting and encouraging active participation of youth and especially women in the field of Leprosy with a vision to improve the overall health and well-being of persons affected by Leprosy and their families in India.

As a Global Health Tutor in the past at Maastricht University, she guided international student groups in developing innovative sustainable public health project proposals in low-resource settings in countries like Chad and Sri Lanka. She has conducted research in India, Bangladesh, and Southeast Asia, to address a number of pressing global health concerns, including leprosy, disease-related stigma, mental health, maternal health, and climate change. She is also actively involved in conducting research on NTDs, disease-related stigma, and burden in society and prioritizes evidence generation in the unexplored thematic areas in NTDs.

Mr Ashish Dangar
DY. COORDINATOR – ILEP INDIA (GLRA INDIA)