MR. ACHYUT DAS
Founder and Hon. Convenor
Mr. Das initiated the Jackfruit Forever group in 2021, which evolved into the Jackfruit India group. He founded and leads the tribal development NGO, Agragamee in the 1980s and has decades of experience in indigenous Odisha where jackfruits grow in abundance and agriculture remains the main option for jobs and income.
DR. M.V. ASHOK
Honorary Convenor
Dr. Ashok, former Chief General Manager, National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), is an expert on agricultural marketing in India, having recently authored the book “Emerging Trends in Agricultural Marketing in India”. He is currently Senior Advisor, BAIF Development Research Foundation, Pune. He is passionate about encouraging basic processing of jackfruit for income generation in rural areas.
MR. DEBASIS MOHAPATRA
Honorary Convenor
Mr. Mohapatra is Resident Consultant – Uttar Pradesh for the World Bank’s Agriculture and Livelihoods Group. He was formerly the State Head, Nutrition Project, Odisha Livelihoods Mission. He is active in promoting jackfruit in government nutrition programmes for its nutrition and livelihood components.
MR. SHREE PADRE
Hon. Advisory Committee Member
Mr. Padre, conferred the ‘Global Ambassador for Jackfruit’ title by the Jackfruit Promotion Council of Kerala, has published numerous articles, books and videos on jackfruit development and is the founder-editor of Adike Patrike, a unique Kannada farm magazine, which has published more than 30 cover stories on Jackfruit development in and outside India. He has also conducted many jackfruit awareness programmes and connected jackfruit activists across the world.
DR. NARAYAN HEGDE
Hon. Advisory Committee Member
Dr. Hegde is currently the Managing Trustee of the Nature Cure Ashram, Uruli kanchan, Pune, where the emphasis is on natural foods as the best healer. He was former President BAIF Development Research Foundation, Pune and specialises in tree based farming. He promotes grafting as a desirable method to propagate jackfruit and harness its nutritional, health and many other properties.
DR. S. K. PANDA
Hon. Advisory Committee Member
Dr Panda, former Chief Secretary, Tripura and Secretary, Ministry of Textiles, Government of India, has rich administrative experience related to nutrition. He is a keen practitioner of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and promotes handloom, handicraft and sericulture and the inclusion of jackfruit in government nutrition programmes.
DR. P. HARIDOSS
Hon. Advisory Committee Member
Former Deputy Director of Agriculture in Tamil Nadu’s Cuddalore district, Dr. P. Haridoss is an expert on all things related to jackfruit development. An agricultural scientist, his passion is to identify and distinguish the different varieties of jackfruit growing in Panruti, Tamil Nadu, India’s only large-scale commercial jackfruit plantation, by shape and size, sweetness and time of ripening.
DR. R.V. BHAVANI
Hon. Advisory Committee Member
Dr. Bhavani is a rural development professional with expertise in food systems and food and nutrition security issues. She was with the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) for two decades and has been a consultant to the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) of the UN in Bangladesh. Her interest is in promoting nutrition-sensitive Jackfruit value chain.
MR. SANJAY SETHI
Hon. Advisory Committee Member
Mr. Sethi is the Executive Director of the Plant-Based Foods Industry Association (PBFIA), a CEO-led body, that aims to unify the voice of the plant-based foods industry in India. Through PBFIA, he aims to expedite the advancement of the plant-based sector in India, in which jackfruit is a rising star, to create a healthy and sustainable future for consumers, farmers, food industry personnel, investors and civil society.
MR. RAKESH WARRIER
Hon. Advisory Committee Member
Mr. Warrier, Regional Director, East Region (Odisha, Bihar, Jharkhand & Chhattisgarh), BAIF Development Research Foundation, has extensive experience in the design, development, planning and implementation of diverse and innovative programs for rural development. BAIF’s Odisha team is currently focused on promoting jackfruit plantation and capacity
building of farmers in producing quality planting materials for the plantations.
MR. EKADASHI NANDI
Lead, Secretariat
Mr. Nandi, an advocate of traditional processing methods, has extensive experience in seed certification and organic farming. Formerly Chief Seed Certification Officer of the Odisha State Seed and Organic Products Certification Agency (OSSOPCA), he currently supports public agencies like the Government of India’s Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), NGOs and farmers in Odisha and across the country for adopting organic farming.
DR. PETIKAM SRINIVAS
Hon. Steering Committee Member
Dr. Srinivas is Principal Scientist, Central Horticultural Experimental Station (CHES), Odisha, under the Indian Council of Agricultural Research – Indian Institute of Horticultural Research (ICAR-IIHR). He invented the Arka Neelachal Raw Jackfruit Peeler and promotes minimal processing of jackfruit for income generation in indigenous Odisha.
MR. ASHOK DAS
Hon. Steering Committee Member
Mr. Das has extensive experience in Odia-language media and communication for promoting farmers wellbeing and the development of agriculture and allied sector. He is popularizing the benefits of Jackfruits for farmer prosperity.
PROF. P.C. LENKA
Hon. Steering Committee Member
Prof. Lenka is Retired Professor of Horticulture, Odisha Universty of Agriculture (OUAT). He is passionate about recording desirable germplasm, and promoting plantations of new and existing varieties of jackfruits.
MR. B.M. PATNAIK
Hon. Steering Committee Member
Mr. Patnaik, former General Manager of National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), has extensive experience with Odisha and Indian Government programmes in microfinance and rural development. He is passionate about value addition and P2C marketing of Jackfruits for improving rural and tribal income and nutrition.
MR. G.C. PANIGRAHI
Hon. Steering Committee Member
Mr. Panigrahi, formerly with Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), has extensive experience in developmental banking and agricultural finance. He is passionate about popularizing the usage of jackfruits for tribal livelihoods.