Our Team

Dr. Nagesh Bhandari is a distinguished spine surgeon, educationist, and the Presidential Secretariat of Indus University. Trained at the internationally renowned Rehabilitations Krankenhaus in Germany under Prof. J. Harms, he has made significant contributions to spinal surgery, indigenous medical instrumentation, and medical research. Beyond medicine, he has played a pivotal role in promoting higher education, research, philanthropy, and institution building through Indus University and various educational initiatives. Under his patronage, the Centre continues to pursue excellence in Indic scholarship and civilizational research.

Aravindan Neelakandan is an Indian author, public intellectual, and independent researcher known for his writings on Indian civilization, history, cultural evolution, Indology, and public policy. Trained in agricultural sciences, psychology, and economics, his interdisciplinary work explores the intersections of civilization, culture, science, and national identity. He has authored and co-authored numerous books and articles and has contributed significantly to contemporary discussions on Indic knowledge systems and civilizational thought.

Dr. Ritendra Sharma, Dean, Indus Institute of Special Studies (IISS), is an educator, researcher, and science communicator whose work bridges modern scientific inquiry with the intellectual traditions of Indian civilization. His research interests include Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS), history and philosophy of science, education, and the dialogue between scientific and civilizational perspectives. Through his scholarship and public engagement, he has contributed to advancing interdisciplinary approaches to understanding India’s knowledge traditions.

Dr. Sameer Pande is the Head of the Centre for Indic Cultural and Social Studies (CICSS) at Indus University, Ahmedabad. His research focuses on Indic social thought, civilizational studies, Bharatiya Knowledge Systems, political sociology, and indigenous social studies frameworks. He leads research initiatives aimed at developing original Indic frameworks for understanding society, governance, economy, culture, and civilization. His work emphasizes the reconstruction of social sciences through indigenous categories, empirical research, and long-term civilizational analysis while fostering collaborations across academia, public policy, and knowledge institutions.

Email: socialstudies@indusuni.ac.in & sameerpande.iiss@indusuni.ac.in

Shailja Tewari is a Lecturer at the Centre for Indic Studies (CIS), Indus University, Ahmedabad. And she contributes and look after the economic, management section of the Centre for Indic Cultural and Social Studies (CICSS). Her research focuses on Indic management, economics, historical business trading communities, and Bharatiya Knowledge Systems. She oversees the economic domain of the Centre, leading research initiatives aimed at developing original Indic frameworks for understanding wealth creation, trade networks, and organizational governance. Her work emphasizes the reconstruction of economic thought and management theories through indigenous categories, empirical research, and historical analysis of mercantile traditions while fostering collaborations across academia, school outreach programs, and knowledge institutions.