The People
Mr Sameer Kochhar
Chairman, SKOCH Group
Reforms historian and author of best-seller ModiNomics, Sameer Kochhar is Director, SKOCH Development Foundation. He is also Chairman, SKOCH Group. His work has been acclaimed globally and endorsed by Mr Narendra Modi, Mr M Venkaiah Naidu, Dr Manmohan Singh, Mr Arun Jaitley, Mr P Chidambaram, Mr Yashwant Sinha, Dr C Rangarajan and Dr Montek Singh Ahluwalia and so on. He is a passionate advocate of social, digital and financial inclusion and is a foremost expert on governance and inclusive growth. In his thinking and writings and activities, his profound admiration for India’s economic reforms and in extension, those outstanding personalities who strive to make these reforms more meaningful and broad-based comes out clear and unambiguous. He has published over 21 volumes, most notable being:
- ModiNomics: A Journey of Inclusive Growth (2024)
- ModiNomics (2014)
- Defeating Poverty: Jan Dhan and Beyond (2015)
- Modi’s Odyssey: Digital India, Developed India (2016)
Quit a few of his books are recommended references Delhi University and Indian Institute of Management (IIMs).
Under his leadership and guidance the Foundation has supported over 400 tribal children in North East and Uttarakhand. The Foundation works for the capacity building of women and has reached out to thousands of women across India for financial literacy and digital literacy.
Dr Gursharan Dhanjal
Vice Chairman, SKOCH Group
He is a distinguished academic and development economist shaping India’s policy and evidence-based governance discourse through rigorous research and real-world impact. He is Vice Chairman, SKOCH Group and also Editor, INCLUSION magazine and leads high-impact studies on inclusive growth and flagship national programmes, while anchoring a Centre of Excellence with the Ministry of Tribal Affairs. With over 30 years spent across academia, journalism and consulting, he brings unmatched ground insights into governance and policy.
A prolific writer, Dr Dhanjal has contributed over 200 columns in leading national dailies including The Hindustan Times, The Times of India, The Financial Express and The Pioneer. He has published research papers in several journals of repute in addition to authoring following widely acclaimed books: Tarapur: The Politics of Nuclear Age; and, Infrastructure and Governance.
He was earlier Assistant Professor and taught Political Science at Delhi University for six years before joining Asia Business News (India). He also worked for CNBC, Star News and BBC during the late 90s.
Given his expertise he is invited by the Government of India to sit on various committees. He was member of the Working Group on ICT in Higher Education constituted by Planning Commission for the 12th Five Year Plan. He is a regular speaker at various public fora and institutions including IIT-Delhi and Delhi University where he is also a visiting faculty.
Ms Manisha Kochhar
Director, SKOCH Development Foundation
Manisha Kochhar is Director, SKOCH Group and plays a pivotal role in advancing the outreach and grassroots initiatives of SKOCH Development Foundation. A graduate in English Literature from the University of Delhi, she brings over three decades of professional experience across diverse sectors, combining organisational leadership with a deep commitment to inclusive development and community engagement.
She leads the Foundation's flagship grassroots programmes, SAMAVESH and SHAKTI, both of which seek to strengthen inclusion by empowering individuals and communities through knowledge, capability building and institutional support.
Under her leadership, SAMAVESH has evolved into one of the Foundation's largest financial literacy and investor awareness initiatives. The programme works at the intersection of financial, digital and social inclusion, helping first-generation banking customers, women belonging to Self-Help Groups (SHGs) and salaried government employees.
She also leads SHAKTI, the Foundation's women empowerment initiative, which works with women and community institutions to advance gender equality, financial independence and sustainable livelihoods. Working extensively with Self-Help Groups and grassroots organisations, SHAKTI promotes a model of development in which women's empowerment becomes a catalyst for stronger households and more resilient communities.
Beyond these programmes, Manisha Kochhar oversees the Foundation's outreach initiatives in the areas of entitlements, literacy, financial inclusion, digital inclusion and citizen-centric development.
She has also led and participated in impact assessment studies of several nationally significant public programmes, including the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) and the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY). Her areas of interest include working with children with special needs, marginalised women and minorities.