AMR - The Development Agenda

Amit Khurana is director of the food safety and toxins programme at the Centre for Science and Environment, India. Along with his team, Amit works to push for necessary change in policy and practice on issues related to junk foods and non-communicable diseases; pesticide use and organic and natural farming; and antibiotic use in food production and waste management from farms and factories and their linkages with the growing crisis of antimicrobial resistance. He works for the required change at the national level, and in countries of the global south as well as global policy relevant to such countries.

T Nanda Kumar is a retired I.A.S officer with more than 40 yearsexperience in policy making, implementation and administration. Has worked in Bihar, Jharkhand, Kerala, Gujarat and Delhi. He has a long experience in managing and overseeing companies of the Government. Has contributed to policy formulation in the areas of food, sugar and ethanol, edible oils, agriculture, horticulture, dairying, industrial development, textiles, trade & commerce, minerals, urban development. Prior to retirement in 2016 from the position of Chairman , National Dairy Development Board, he has held several key positions such as Member of the National Disaster Management Authority( 2010-2014), Secretary to Government of India, Department of Food & Public Distribution(2006-08) and Department of Agriculture & Cooperation(2008-10), Chairman of the Spices Board of India(1990-95), Secretary General of International Jute Study Group, (UNCTAD) Dhaka(2002-05) and Joint Secretary at Ministry of Textiles(1999-2005). He has also set up the Central Rail-side Warehousing Company, the Centre for Cold Chain development, the Warehousing Development and Regulatory Authority and the NDDB Foundation for Nutrition. He has also supervised functioning of the Food Corporation of India, the Central Ware Housing Corporation of India, National Seed Corporation of India and the National Cooperative Development Corporation, and restructured the National Textile Corporation.

Meenesh Shah Chairman, National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) is a Dairy Technologist from Sheth MC College of Dairy Science (Anand Agricultural University), Anand and also holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Rural Management from Institute of Rural Management, Anand (IRMA). He has multidimensional experience in the dairy sector for more than 35 years in Research & Development, Product & Process Development, Project Appraisal & Finance, Cooperative Services and Project Management. He has spearheaded the recently concluded National Dairy Plan Phase I, a Central Sector Scheme of Govt. of India, funded by the World Bank.Meenesh Shah is also the Chairman of Mother Dairy Fruit & Vegetable Pvt Ltd, Indian Immunologicals Ltd., IDMC Limited, NDDB Dairy Services, Anandalaya Education Society and Animal Breeding Research Organisation. He is also on the Governing Boards of IRMA, Vidya Dairy, National Cooperative Dairy Federation of India Ltd., and Foundation for Ecological Security. He is the Member Secretary of the Indian National Committee of International Dairy Federation (IDF) and also a Member of the Standing Committee on Dairy Policies and Economics of IDF.

Stefano Prato is the Managing Director of the Society for International Development (SID) and the Editor of SID’s Quarterly Journal “Development”. He is the coordinator of the Civil Society Financing for Development Group and member of the Editing Team of the annual Spotlight Report on Sustainable Development. He served as one of the Advisors to the UN Secretary General’s High-Level Panel of Eminent Personalities for the Post-2015 Development Agenda. He is also the co-coordinator of the global Civil Society Nutrition Group. He is a very active participant of the Civil Society Mechanism (CSM) of the Committee on World Food Security and co-facilitates the CSM Working Groups on Food Systems & Nutrition, Agroecology, and Sustainable Agriculture & Livestock. He graduated in Economics at the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration “La Sapienza” of Rome, Italy. He then pursued a second University degree in veterinary medicine and completed his PhD in Animal Health, Food Safety and Livestock Management.