About USINPAC: Our Leadership

Ms. Surabhi Garg is the Vice President of Finance and Operations at USINPAC and has headed its Fundraising and Operations since its inception. She was recently named 'Woman of the Year' in the 'Professional Organizations' category by the IndUS Business Journal.

Surabhi Garg holds a Ph.D. in Microbiology from NICED, a WHO collaborating center in India. She completed her post-doctoral studies at the International Medical Center of Japan, Tokyo and at the University of Maryland, College Park. She completed her undergraduate work in Anatomy and Physiology from Presidency College, Calcutta, India. She is also the Vice President of the biotechnology group at The Americon. She has 14 years of experience in the biotechnology industry conducting clinical research and analysis of biotechnology markets. She has authored 20 peer-reviewed articles and 13 abstracts presented at national and international conferences. Her areas of expertise include immunology, molecular biology, molecular epidemiology, microbiology, clinical diagnostics, and human physiology.

Ms. Garg has also worked at the Voice of America, Washington DC as a news show anchor and broadcaster for nearly 10 years.

Mr. Robinder Sachdev is the Director of India Affairs at USINPAC. A recognized expert on foreign affairs and economic diplomacy, he was featured as one of the 12 most influential Indian-Americans along with Mr. Bobby Jindal, Mr. Sanjay Puri, Mr. Fareed Zakaria, and Professor Jagdish Bhagwati by the Business & Economy magazine in 2007. Almost 20 years ago, he pioneered software-based professional political consulting in India and went on to work as a consultant with the staff of former Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi.

Mr. Sachdev is frequently quoted in the media and hosts a weekly show on foreign affairs on a regional TV channel in India. He publishes about two dozen op-ed articles every year in leading Indian and US publications. He has contributed to training programs in cross-cultural communications for the US Navy and Department of State and co-founded the Intercultural Management Quarterly published by the American University, Washington, DC. He has conducted workshops on communications and market entry for US and European corporate officers and has been a featured speaker in prestigious international conferences.

Mr. Sachdev is also the President of Imagindia Institute, an independent think tank that extensively works with the Indian Diaspora and in India to promote the imagination of India. He holds an MBA (International Business) and an MA (International Relations) from the American University, Washington DC where he also served as an Adjunct Professor, and has a B. Tech. (Electrical Engineering) from G.B. Pant University, Pantnagar.

Mr. Vikram Chauhan is one of the Co-founders of USINPAC and serves as the Senior Advisor on Strategic Issues at USINPAC. He has over 20 years of technical, management, and startup experience, and more than 15 years of experience with the public sector. He serves as a subject matter advisor in technology strategy and governance, and enterprise transformation (planning and execution of strategic change). He is the co-author of the SMART city model, a re-engineering methodology that provides e-business solutions for government and industry.

Mr. Chauhan has advised the Department of Defense and other Federal agencies, and foreign governments of countries such as Philippines, the UK, Venezuela, Colombia, Middle East, and India. He has functional knowledge of Healthcare, Finance, Telecom, and Defense & Security industries. He has also been on the Board of Directors for companies such as Acelsior, iDL systems, and TCIL BellSouth Ltd.

Mr. Chauhan holds a BE in Mechanical Engineering and an MBA and MS in Information Systems.

Mr. Manish Thakur is a Strategic Advisor at USINPAC working on issues related to security between the US and the Indian subcontinent. He has gained a distinct perspective on global security issues via his interactions and dealings with the government, military, education, and corporate.

Mr. Thakur has spent much of the past 20 years working on issues in international finance and real estate. He worked in various roles in financial services firms such as Merrill Lynch, SG Cowen Securities, and HSBC. There he worked on corporate finance issues in Indonesia, Thailand, Russia, Mexico, India, Australia, Britain, and the US. He was also the Chief Financial Officer of a global communications venture backed by Boeing. He was also the Managing Partner of Hudson Fairfax Group, a New York-based investment firm focusing in India.

Mr. Thakur holds a B.Sc. (Honors) in Economics from the University of London and an MBA in Finance from the Columbia University Graduate School of Business in New York.

Mr. Kersy Dastur has been involved with USINPAC since its inception, and is currently a Senior Advisor. He is a Business Strategy and Finance Consultant with over 38 years of experience in information technology, financial management, and global operations.

Mr. Dastur's professional career in the USA includes Senior Executive positions with national and international information technology consulting companies, a leading regional bank, and a congressionally-chartered housing corporation. Mr. Dastur led the global expansion of US-based operations into Europe, Australia, and Asia, including India. This combination of US business and international operations has given him a unique perspective on issues of strategic importance to the US. He has provided this experience-based advice to enable USINPAC to develop and promulgate its positions on strategic US policy issues like Homeland Security and Defense against Terrorism, Domestic, Economic, and Trade Policy, and Energy Independence.

Mr. Dastur was born and raised in Mumbai, India and earned his Bachelor of Commerce (B.Com) degree from the University of Bombay in 1966. He is a Chartered Accountant from India and holds an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Dr. Rahul M. Jindal is a transplant surgeon at the Walter Reed AMC and a Clinical Professor at George Washington University, Washington, DC. He obtained his M.B.B.S. and M.S. (Surgery) from B.J. Medical College, Ahmedabad, India. He then studied in the UK and earned an F.R.C.S from the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh. He received a Transplant Fellowship at the University of Oxford, UK, followed by Clinical Fellowships at the Boston University and Mt. Sinai Medical Center, New York.

Dr. Jindal is the author or co-author of 150 manuscripts in peer-reviewed medical journals and has presented at national and international medical meetings. He has mentored numerous medical students and residents, and is a recent recipient of a National Institute of Health award for his work done on improving the quality of life in patients suffering from colorectal cancer.

In addition to his clinical activities, Dr. Jindal earned a Ph.D. in Social Psychology from Middlesex University, London, for his work on improving the quality of life in patients suffering from kidney failure and have kidney transplants. Based on his experience in working with psycho-social issues in this group of patients, he co-authored a book entitled 'The Struggle for life: A psychological perspective of kidney disease and transplantation, by Baines and Jindal'. The book deals with psycho-social issues patients face when on dialysis and after transplantation. He has raised an awareness on psychological issues arising from this disease and the book is used as a standard textbook in dialysis and transplant programs around the world.

Dr. Jindal set up a Kidney Transplant program in Guyana, South America. He performed the first living-kidney transplant in Guyana in July 2008, mother to son, followed by three more living-kidney transplants. He has given hope to many kidney-failure patients and increased the overall medical standards in Guyana by setting up the transplant program and training local physicians in transplantation via CME activities.

Dr. Jindal has also participated in CME activities to benefit physicians in Gujarat, India for the past 20 years. He has been active in the local community in Washington, DC organizing blood donation drives and health camps at the B.A.P.S Temple in Silver Spring, MD. To gain insight into management and public policy, he recently completed the executive MBA program at Colorado Technical University, South Dakota. He has actively participated in the policy arena of the US India Political Action Committee.

Swati is a commerce graduate and is currently pursuing her MBA in Finance. Her experience includes working with stock markets and mutual funds. She has excellent analytical research and development skills and brings these skills to her work that she does with USINPAC.

Ritika Ghosh is a devoted volunteer at USINPAC. She was born and raised in Kolkata, India and has lived in the US for the past two years. Previously, she was a TV reporter for Aajtak /Headlines Today (leading national news channels in India) where she covered political-breaking news and worked on many human-interest stories. She has also worked as a television anchor for several entertainment channels in Kolkata. She has extensively traveled across India  as a result of her work. Along with volunteering for USINPAC, her inclination towards Indian fashion has led her to start a successful Indian Couture and Accessories business in Columbia, MD. She graduated from the University of London (Royal Holloway) with a specialization in English Literature. Her personal interests include Politics, Literature, Art, and Fashion. She currently lives in Maryland with her husband and assists in his entrepreneurial ventures.

Onkar Gill supports USINPAC as a volunteer. Born and raised in India, Onkar moved to Canada at the age of 16 and finished his high school in Toronto before graduating from the University of Toronto with a double major in Maths and Economics. He is currently studying law at the Thomas M. Cooley Law School in Lansing, Michigan. He is a strong advocate of free trade and believes that the US and India can lead the world towards a more integrated world economy.