Our Trustees
The Swapath Board has four Board of Trustees, one Managing Trustee along with core staff who manage the three main programmes of the Trust. There are volunteers joining in as and when required
Prof. Leela Visaria
Leela Visaria, Ph.D. in Sociology from Princeton University is an Honorary Professor and a former Director at Gujarat Institute of Development Research, Ahmedabad. Her research has been in historical demography, health, family planning, education and demographic transition. She has authored several peer-reviewed articles and has co-authored or edited seven books including Twenty-first Century India: Population, Economy, Human Development and the Environment in 2004; Abortion in India: Ground Realities in 2007 and India’s Family Planning Programme, 2017. She was awarded National Professorship during 2009-10 by the Indian Council for Social Science Research. She was the first President-elect of Asian Population Association during 2009-2010.
Ms. Minaxi Shukla
Minaxi Shukla, Co-founder of the Centre for Health, Education, Training and Nutrition Awareness (CHETNA), Ahmedabad is working as a Consultant, since 2016 for Promoting Learning for Life. She contributes and supports Government and Civil Society Organisations for Child Rights, especially nutrition, health, education- Early Childhood Care, Education and Development, right to participation. Currently, since May 2022, Minaxi is working as State Consultant, ECCE and School Readiness Programme, UNICEF and Government of Bihar.
Mr. Rajesh Bhat
Academically, qualified as a pharmacist, Rajesh Bhat is in the social development sector for over thirty-five years now. He was the Executive Trustee of Ahmedabad Study Action Group (ASAG) for 23 years and is now chiefly associated with the Swapath Trust as its Managing Trustee. His areas of interest and experience are rural poverty alleviation, Education and rehabilitation of vulnerable children, Panchayati Raj and Community-based disaster management. He believes in mutually strengthening action with research and vice-versa. He has worked at the grassroots all his career but also enjoys teaching and sharing his experience with students and interns. He has taught as a visiting faculty for nine years at the Human Geography Department of Basel University in Switzerland apart from teaching at some Indian colleges and Universities. He is a nature lover and a photographer with a deep interest in Gujarati literature. His academic background being associated with natural sciences, he also has experience of nature education for children.