OUR TEAM
DR. APARNA HEGDE
Founder & Managing Trustee, ARMMAN
During her medical residency, Dr. Hegde witnessed closely how pervasive systemic problems led to preventable maternal and child mortality and morbidity. Unable to tolerate the status quo, she founded ARMMAN while completing her medical training in the US.
Dr. Hegde is an internationally renowned Urogynecologist. She serves as an Associate Professor (Hon) and Head of the Department of Urogynecology at Cama Hospital, Mumbai, which is one of India’s first University-based Centers of Excellence in the field with a fellowship program. Dr. Hegde is also the Founder and Director of the Center for Urogynecology and Pelvic Health, Delhi. Additionally, she is a Consultant Urogynecologist at Global Hospital, Surya Hospital, and Women’s Hospital, Mumbai.
In addition to MD (ObGyn), DNB, FCPS (Gold Medal) and DGO, Dr. Hegde holds a master’s degree from Stanford University, and she was awarded the IUGA International Fellowship in Urogynecology and Pelvic Reconstructive Surgery which she completed in the prestigious Department of Urogynecology at Cleveland Clinic Florida, before returning to India. She is a member of the Editorial Board of International Urogynecology Journal. She is also a member of the International Urogynecology Committee on Prolapse and the 7th International Consultation on Continence, international committees of experts constituted to develop evidence-based guidelines in the field. She is also a Board Member of the FIUGA (the Foundation for International Urogynecological Assistance).
Dr. Hegde is an avid researcher with multiple research awards with a best paper award at the American Urogynecological Society Annual Meeting in 2013 and more than 75 publications and abstracts in peer-reviewed journals She is an internationally recognized pioneer in the field of 3D and 2D sonographic assessment of the pelvic floor and is invited as an expert to conduct workshops and round tables on her research work at the IUGA (International Urogynecology Association) and AUGS (American Urogynecology Society) annual meetings since the last five years and last year’s FIGO conference. Her protocols in 2D and 3D imaging of slings are being used in multiple US and Canadian Universities. She was recently awarded the highly prestigious NIH (National Institute of Health, US) grant for her field study on bladder health in adolescent girls. She was also be awarded the Fellowship of the Sri Lankan Menopause Society in 2019, the 2nd international dignitary to be awarded the same, for contributions made to develop Urogynecology in Sri Lanka. She is a TED Fellow 2020 and Senior Ashoka Fellow 2020. She was awarded USAID ‘Social Entrepreneur’ award (2018), ‘Woman ChangeMaker’ award (Womanity Foundation, Geneva, 2017), Woman Icon Award in Asia by Nanyung University, Singapore (2016), ‘the Mother Teresa Social Leadership Fellowship in 2016, Digital Woman Entrepreneur Award in 2015, Top Social Innovator Award in 2014 and 2017, the ‘People’s Choice Award’ at Saving Lives at Birth event in Washington DC in 2011, among other awards. She has been featured as one of the five global women leaders in the Voice of America documentary, ‘A Single Step: Journeys of Women Leaders’ (2015).
Ramesh Padmanabhan
Chief Executive Officer
Ramesh Padmanabhan is the CEO of ARMMAN. Ramesh was Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at Piramal Foundation prior to joining ARMMAN, leading technology initiatives across primary education, primary healthcare and safe drinking water. Prior to joining the Piramal Foundation in 2016, Ramesh was the CEO of NSE.IT, a technology subsidiary of the National Stock Exchange of India, for seven years. At NSE.IT, Ramesh was pivotal in transforming the company from a captive to a global technology organization.
Ramesh has been the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of MphasiS, a technology services company. At MphasiS, Ramesh played key roles in product delivery, platform development, integration of companies and human capital management. Ramesh has done his post-graduation in software technology from the National Center for Software Technology, Mumbai.
Dr. Anuja Jayaraman
Chief Impact Officer
Dr. Anuja Jayaraman has over 15 years of experience in international development programs, policy-oriented qualitative and quantitative research, and has led the research, monitoring and evaluation, and information management functions. She has worked in the areas of income and non-income dimensions of well-being including poverty and health (maternal, child and adolescent health) in South Asia and Africa. At ARMMAN, she will take on the responsibility for both Research and Monitoring & Evaluation functions across programmes.
Dr. Anuja holds a Doctoral degree from Penn State University, USA, and a Master’s degree in Economics from the Delhi School of Economics. She has worked with organisations like SNEHA (Society for Nutrition, Education and Health Action), ICF Macro and UNICEF.
Shreya Deb
Senior Consultant
Shreya Deb is an Electrical Engineer from IIT Bombay and holds an MBA from IIM Ahmedabad. She has extensive experience across strategy, business finance, equity and debt investments as well as grant management.
Shreya brings a unique experience of operations, investments and strategy across a wide range of sectors, from insurance to healthcare. She began her career in strategy consulting with The Boston Consulting Group before joining the global impact investing firm, Omidyar Network (ON). At ON, she led investments in early stage startups as well as non-profits across India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Philippines, Ghana and USA. During her decade-long stint at ON, she built the firm's practice area in India in the field of land, housing and property rights. More recently, she donned the startup hat at Karkinos Healthcare, an early stage organization with the aim of making affordable cancer care accessible to the masses.
At ARMMAN, she oversees the various programmes including Kilkari, IHRPTM, MaMitra and Equity initiative.
DR. neha madhiwalla
Director – Research
Dr. Neha Madhiwalla has a Ph.D in Social Sciences and has been involved in public health research for over 20 years. Her areas of expertise include maternal and child health, health systems, medical education and training and bioethics. She has worked at the Centre for Enquiry in Health and Allied Themes (CEHAT) and Centre for Studies in Ethics and Rights, both affiliated to the Anusandhan Trust, between 1987 and 2013. She worked as a Research Scientist at the Ramalingaswami Centre for Equity and Social Determinants of Health, Bangalore in 2016 and 2017. She is a member of the research ethics committee at BARC Hospital, Mumbai, as well as the managing trustee of Chehak Trust, an organisation which has been involved in developing community based models for education, life-skills and disability rehabilitation.
She was awarded the MacArthur Fund for Leadership Development fellowship (2002-2005) for developing a life-skill curriculum for out-of-school adolescent girls, several elements of which were then incorporated in the Maharashtra state life-skills curriculum for girls in middle and high schools in 2005.
DR. HANIMI MODUGU
Director – Research
Dr. Hanimi Reddy has experience in conducting research on education and empowerment of adolescent girls, neonatal & postnatal care of children and mothers, family planning & child nutrition, and has published close to 40 research papers and multiple technical briefs. He has designed studies using mixed method data collection techniques and handled secondary datasets like Census, National Family Health Survey (NFHS) & more. He has worked with organizations like International Center for Research on Women (ICRW), Save the Children, Palladium, PHFI and SEARCH-Gadchiroli. Hanimi holds a Doctoral degree in Demography from International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS), Mumbai, and is a Post Graduate in Statistics from Andhra University.
Dr. Varada Madge
Director – Research
Dr. Varada Madge is skilled at epidemiological investigations, quantitative and qualitative research study designs, monitoring and evaluation, assessment surveys, data analysis and publications. With more than 16 years of work experience, she has worked on communicable and non-communicable diseases, healthcare innovations, WASH, maternal and child health, reproductive and sexual health, Health Economics and Outcomes Research (HEOR), health systems strengthening, mHealth, and universal health coverage. At ARMMAN, Dr. Varada leads the research for Kilkari and Mobile Academy. She works closely with the programme teams to conduct rigorous research studies that assess programme impact and build evidence to inform strategic decisions.
Dr. Varada has a Master’s in Health Sciences from the University of Pune, followed by Master of Philosophy and a Doctorate in Social Medicine and Community Health from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. She also has an MBA in Marketing and Strategy and Leadership in AI from the Indian School of Business, Hyderabad. In the past, she has worked with Indian Council of Medical Research, Public Health Foundation of India, Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences, MAMTA-Health Institute for Mother and Child, Evidence Action, Optum Global Solutions Pvt. Ltd. and The Energy and Resources Institute.
DR. SHUBALAKSHMI IYER
Director – Equity
Dr. Shubalakshmi comes with a vast experience in the field of social development and public health, especially in RMNCH+A (Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health) projects, communicable and non-communicable diseases, child undernutrition, local governance, livelihoods, vocational training and women and youth empowerment. She is skilled at strategic planning, team building, capacity building, monitoring and evaluation, stakeholder and vendor management, grant management and program development. She was recognised with the ‘Most Talented Quality Leaders (Global)’ award in the NGO sector, hosted by the World Quality Congress and Awards, 9th edition, 2023.
In the past, she has worked with organisations like Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Human Rights Research Center (HRRC), WHO-GOI NPSP (National Public Health Support Programme), Niramaya Health Foundation, Impact India Foundation, Bhavishya Alliance, Light of Life Trust, CCDT, TISS (Tata Institute of Social Sciences), Indian Academy of Pediatrics, AROEHAN, Piramal Swasthya and WISH (Wadhwani Initiative for Sustainable Healthcare) Foundation. She is a graduate in Indian Medicine from R.A. Podar Medical College and holds post graduate degrees in Hospital Administration, Population Sciences and Public Health from Indiana Health Care Association, Annamalai University and Texila American University respectively.
AMRITA MAHALE
Director – Innovation
Amrita Mahale has over 12 years of experience in digital innovation, product management, and strategy. She was previously the Head of Ideation & Incubation at the Wadhwani Institute for Artificial Intelligence and has also worked at Google and the Boston Consulting Group. She studied Aerospace Engineering at IIT Bombay and Stanford University. At ARMMAN, Amrita is responsible for driving the solution vision and product roadmap for Kilkari and Mobile Academy 2.0 through an iterative, evidence-based, human-centered approach.
MALIKA MALHOTRA
Director – Content
Malika Malhotra has a Master’s degree in International Educational Administration & Policy Analysis from Stanford University, California, USA. She specialises in research and policy analysis and creating knowledge sharing solutions for various stakeholders and has previously worked with BBC Media Action, India as the Project Director for National Scale-up of mHealth Services (Kilkari and Mobile Academy).
SANAT KUMAR
Director – Technology
Sanat Kumar has a Masters in Engineering with specialization in Computer and System Science from Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. He also has a double Master’s in Data Science and AI Engineering from Simplilearn. He has expertise in startup entrepreneurship, program management, customer support management, vendor management, software development, setting up offshore development centers, managing global technology operations, pre-sales and solution architecture. He has worked with organizations like HCL Corporation, Wayne Dresser, Visa, Texas Workforce Commission, Texas Education Agency and Westinghouse.
KUMAR MADHU SUDAN
Project Director – Kilkari & Mobile Academy
Kumar Madhu Sudan manages Kilkari and Mobile Academy projects with ARMMAN. He has 25 years of experience in the development sector during which he has worked with CARE Inc. Intrahealth International, CARE India and BBC Media Action. During the last 6 years he has played pivotal roles in implementing mHealth projects in India across several states.
DR. CHETAN PURAD
Director – Programs (Integrated High Risk Pregnancy Tracking & Management)
Dr. Chetan Purad leads the digital initiatives in ARMMAN to deliver equitable healthcare to underserved communities. With a background in medicine, public health, and management, he has over 22 years of experience driving operational excellence in healthcare programs.
His expertise in eHealth has enabled the implementation of transformative projects that improve patient outcomes and expand access to care. He has a proven track record of leveraging technology to optimize maternal and child health services, aligning with public health principles to achieve universal healthcare coverage. His team's work in rural health analytics has significantly influenced resource allocation and contributed to healthcare reforms in India.
He is committed to empowering organizations and communities through strategic direction and innovative solutions.
CARLYLE PEREIRA
Chief Program Officer
Carlyle Pereira is the Chief Program Officer at ARMMAN. He has completed his Bachelor’s in Social Work from Nirmala Niketan and a Master’s in Medical and Psychiatric Social Work from Tata Institute of Social Sciences.He began his involvement in the development sector as a volunteer at the age of 16 and has been associated with it for over two decades. He is passionate about technology and has collaborated with the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment & Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of India, as well as their counterparts in the Maldives and Egypt, implementing telecom solutions for social development. He has also been part of the Development Plan (DP) Advisory Committee – Health for Mumbai City. His interests include evolutionary biology and astronomy.
SHIRLEY VARGHESE
Director – Finance & Accounts
Shirley Varghese is a Chartered Accountant and has completed her Executive MBA from the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Calcutta. She has over 16 years of experience in the field of Finance, Accounts, Planning and Analysis, and Decision Support. Prior to joining ARMMAN, Shirley was Head of Financial and Commercial for the Corporate Travel Division at SOTC Travel Ltd. She has also worked with ICICI Bank, ABN Amro, and Royal Bank of Scotland and has supported multiple geographies such as the UK, Europe, and Asia in various finance-related roles.
GEORGE JOHN
Director – HR & Administration
George John is Director – Human Resource and Administration at ARMMAN. George is a post graduate in HR from Mumbai. He has over 14 years of work experience across Future Group, Tech Mahindra and various IT companies. He has worked as a consultant for startups, contributing in setting up processes and talent management. He loves to travel and enjoys sketching in his free time.
KRUTI DALAL
Head, Resource Mobilisation & Communication
Kruti Dalal is responsible for setting and implementing the strategy for fundraising and communication at ARMMAN. She has over 12 years of experience in the development sector and as a journalist for Bloomberg TV and Economic Times Now. She has completed her Master’s in International Journalism from Cardiff University, UK.
OUR TRUSTEES
ARMMAN is governed by our Board of Trustees who are leaders in their individual fields, they make sure we’re doing all we can to reach, help and enable a healthy pregnancy, childhood and adolescence for every woman, child and adolescent in the country.
Founder & Managing Trustee
Dr. Aparna Hegde is India’s leading urogynaecologist and pelvic floor reconstructive surgeon.
She holds MD, DNB, FCPS, DGO degrees; Master’s degree in biological sciences from Stanford University and International Urogynaecological Association International Fellowship in Urogynaecology and Pelvic Reconstructive Surgery from Cleveland Clinic, Florida.
Mr. Srinivaas V. Sirigeri (SVS) is an established self-made entrepreneur, spiritual seeker and a passionate promoter of health. He provided the initial financial support to ARMMAN in 2009 and has been on the Board of Trustees since then. SVS has a keen interest in working for various social and philanthropic causes. His family has also founded the Devasiri Seva Trust to support higher education of financially-weak meritorious students from Indian villages.
Mrs. Chanda Kathuria retired as the Vice Principal of R.A. Podar College of Commerce & Economics after an impactful teaching career of 37 years. She has also been a visiting faculty at Welingkar Institute of Management. She is currently a Director in an IT company in Mumbai. She has completed her Masters in Commerce and a Diploma in Higher Education from the University of Mumbai.
Mr. Arindam Mukherjee has over 26 years of experience in leading, creating & growing businesses across sectors. He holds an Engineering Degree in Electronics & Communications from the University of Mysore, India and has attended various executive leadership programs at Wharton, INSEAD, and Management Centre Europe, Brussels. Mr. Mukherjee spent the majority of his working experience at Philips Healthcare (18+ years), GE Healthcare, and his last position was Vice President, Global Head for Cardiovascular. In 2014, he started up InnovHealth B.V. with a special focus on reverse engineering, affordable healthcare (for emerging countries), and commercialization of growth for new innovative companies.
Dr. Janhavi Raut is the R&D Director, Beauty & Personal Care S&T at Unilever R&D India. She has been with Unilever R&D in different capacities since 1998. Dr. Raut has a Ph.D. and M.S. in Chemical Engineering from Pennsylvania State University, USA and completed her B. Tech. in Chemical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay. She has 21 publications to her credit and has filed over 26 patents, of which 20 have been granted. She has served on the Editorial Advisory Board of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research – ACS and has been a visiting professor at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi.
Mr. Anant Bhagwati has over 20 years of multi-sector experience leading large teams in organizations such as Bain, Accenture and HUL. Mr. Bhagwati is passionate about applying skills learnt in the consulting space to support NGOs, Funders and Coalitions with strategy formulation and implementation to solve social sector issues at scale with equity. He has a rich experience in working with NGOs at different stages of maturity to strengthen leadership, accelerate growth and build capabilities to enable them to achieve impact at scale. Mr. Bhagwati has an MBA from Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad and has led the Transformations team at Dasra.
Dr. Dayashankar Maurya has a PhD in Public Policy (Health Policy) from Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore. He is trained as a physician and has a Master’s degree in Business Administration (Hospital and Healthcare management), and in Public Policy (Health and Social Policy) from the National University of Singapore. Currently, he is an Assistant Professor and Chairperson of the Healthcare Management program and International Relations at T. A. Pai Management Institute Manipal, one of the top 15 management institutes in India.
Mr. Paresh Parasnis has over three decades of management experience with major strengths in strategy development, operations, project management, and stakeholder engagement. He headed the Piramal Foundation till March 2021, where he was responsible for the Piramal Group’s philanthropic investments implemented through various initiatives. Prior to that, Mr. Parasnis served as Executive Director & COO with HDFC Standard Life Insurance, and worked in various capacities with HDFC Limited and with Hindustan Lever. Mr. Parasnis is on the board of nonprofits such as Shoshit Seva Sangh, Patna, Collective Good Foundation, Bangalore, and Piramal Swasthya Management & Research Institute, besides serving as an Independent Director on the board of Kotak Mahindra Life Insurance Company Limited & Invesco Asset Management India Limited.