SANTOSH MARTIN

He is the Executive Trustee of the Sloth Bear Foundation. An engineer turned naturalist, Santosh Martin is a post graduate in Mechanical Engineering and has earlier worked as a lecturer before moving into what he liked the most – wildlife conservation. He has been actively involved in a lot of social activities and has been associated with many charitable institutions like schools, orphanages, day care centers, etc. Wildlife has been his passion since his childhood and he always had a dream of making a contribution towards the same. He has travelled widely, trying to document the Indian wildlife and is also involved in the conservation of the critically endangered Great Indian Bustard. He is a naturalist accredited with the karnataka forest department and has worked with the forest officials in the development of the Daroji Bear Sanctuary, which is one of its kind in India. A man with vision and enthusiasm, Mr. Santosh Martin is sure to carve a niche for himself in the field of wildlife.

M.K.APPAYYA

A retired Indian Forest Service ( IFS ) officer who held various posts in the Karnataka forest department as well as Government of India. A graduate in agriculture, he has traveled widely and has undergone various forestry courses in Australia , Papua New Guinea, Oxford, etc. He was the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests ( Wildlife ) and the chief wildlife warden of Karnataka for over 10 years. He has held many high positions like the Special Secretary (Forests),Government of Karnataka ; Chairman and Director, Karnataka Forest Industries Corporation ; Chairman and Managing Director, Karnataka Forest Development Corporation ;Consultant, World Bank- India Eco-Development Project ; Director, Delhi Zoological Park; Chairman, Karnataka Zoo Authority, etc.
Currently, he is the member of Karnataka State Wildlife Advisory Board and also a member of the Zoo Authority of Karnataka. He , with his vast experience in wildlife conservation is an asset to our organization.

J.K.ARORA

A retired Indian Administrative Services (IAS)officer who worked in various important positions in Karnataka Government as well as in Government of India. Some of the important positions held by him are: Additional Chief Secretary and Development Commissioner, Government of Karnataka ; Chairman and Managing Director, KSRTC ; Secretary, Department of Agriculture, Horticulture, Animal Husbandry and Fisheries, Government of Karnataka ; Deputy Commissioner of Bijapur and South Kanara districts ; Joint Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India ; Managing Director, National Co-operative Development Corporation, Government of India ; Consultant to World Bank, Government of India, Government of Karnataka, DFID, SDC, FAO, UNDP. Currently, he is the Director of Outreach Rural Policy Analysis and Action Research Centre, Bangalore.

B.N.VISWANATH

A graduate in Civil Engineering from Regional Engineering College, Bhopal and a Post graduate from IIT, Delhi. He headed the 1000 megawatt power plant ( Rupees 4000 crore project - approximately 1 billion dollars) at Kudathini near Bellary as the Executive Director before retirement. He has a special interest in wildlife conservation and creating awareness about environment in the school children.

SONIA SOANS

A Chartered Accountant by profession is a keen wildlife enthusiast and has been advocating the conservation of environment and the wildlife for quite some time. She is also associated with many charitable institutions like schools, orphanages, day care centers, etc.