Our Committee

Dr. Siddhartha Agarwal is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Mining Engineering at IIT (ISM) Dhanbad since 2020. His research focuses on applying AI and Machine Learning in mining, energy, and supply chain systems. He holds a Ph.D. in Systems Engineering from Missouri S&T (2015), specializing in Operations Research and AI. He also earned an M.S. in Mining Engineering from the University of Alaska Fairbanks (2010) and a B.Tech. from IIT-BHU (2006). Dr. Agarwal has worked with SAIL (2006–08) and the State Dept. of Natural Resources, USA (2009–10), focusing on mine reclamation and environmental compliance. He also served as a Mine Planning Engineer at Hexagon Mining in Arizona. From 2015 to 2020, he held leadership roles in credit risk and cybersecurity, including at Discover Financial Services and Asurion LLC. His research interests include online optimization, machine learning, and decision-making under uncertainty. His work has received support from the Technology Innovation Hub, Govt. of India. Dr. Agarwal received the 2014 Stevens Doctoral Award from INCOSE and the 2013 Ph.D. Research Award at Missouri S&T. He is an active reviewer for IEEE Systems Journal, the International Journal of Mining Engineering, and Wiley’s Systems Engineering.

Prof. Anindya Sinha, currently Professor of Practice at IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, holds over 40 years of distinguished experience in the coal mining sector. A topper in both B.Tech. (1984) and M.Tech. (1986) from ISM Dhanbad, he was awarded prestigious honors including the ISM Gold Medal and Pickering Medal of MGMI. He began his career at BCCL (1984–97), gaining wide experience in both underground and opencast mining. He earned his Ph.D. in mine ventilation from AGH University, Poland, under a Polish Government Fellowship, and co-developed ventilation software with the Polish Academy of Science. He served in CMPDIL in key leadership roles and was later deputed to the Ministry of Coal (2017–20) as Project Adviser, also acting as Govt. nominee Director (CMPDIL) and Chief Nodal Officer (SCCL). Prof. Sinha joined NCL as Director (Technical) in 2020, driving growth in production, digitization, safety, and sustainability. Post-retirement in 2023, he served as Advisor in the Trans-Mine project under ACPET and as Consultant to MoC for R&D project evaluation. He has published over 40 papers and represented India globally on coal policy and planning. His contributions earned him the MGMI Award of Excellence (2023–24) and IEI Eminent Engineer Award (2017). He is a life member of MGMI, IEI, and IMMA.

Professor and Director Institute for Advanced Mining Technologies (AMT), RWTH Aachen University .Prof. Dr.-Ing. Elisabeth Clausen is a Full Professor and Director of the Institute for Advanced Mining Technologies (AMT) as well as spokesperson for the Division of Mineral Resources Engineering at RWTH Aachen University. Prior she was a Scientific Research Assistant at Clausthal University of Technology, where she obtained her Doctoral Degree (Dr.-Ing.) in the area of Underground Mine Planning and Production Scheduling.

As Director, Dr. Amalendu Sinha oversaw pivotal research into coal mining, fuel technologies, and mine safety under CSIR, one of India’s premier science agencies .Academic contributions: Over 90 publications, cited nearly 2,000 times, with research spanning underground coal gasification, mine fire control, rock stability, hydrogeochemistry, and methane recovery

Chief Marketing Officer at Tvarana, an Oracle NetSuite partner delivering tailored ERP solutions across industries including mining. An alumna of IIM Bangalore and NSIT Delhi, Rashie brings technical expertise and strategic insight from her global experience spanning five continents. Prior to Tvarana, she built her foundation at Procter & Gamble, Coty, and General Mills. At Tvarana, she champions making world-class NetSuite ERP solutions accessible for India's mining sector and beyond.

Chief Growth Officer & Country Head - India at Tvarana, providing customer-centric digital solutions to various industries including mining. A Post Graduate in Industrial Engineering and Fellow of the Institute of Management Accountants of India, Prakasam brings 35 years of consulting experience across industries focusing on Enterprise Performance Management and Business Excellence. At Tvarana, he guides the implementation of ERP solutions to mining and other sectors, emphasizing change management as crucial to successful digital transformation.

Dr. Gyanindra Kumar Pradhan is a seasoned professional who, after over three decades of working in important positions at SAIL, IBP/IndianOil, and the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas, transitioned to teaching and research in 2013. He resigned from IndianOil to join AKS University, Satna (M.P.), located in a rural setting, where he has been working amongst needy, rural-background, Hindi-speaking students, dedicated to helping them envision a better future.Supported by the AKS University management with full cooperation and transparency in academic processes, the institution ensured quality faculty recruitment and infrastructural facilities. As a Professor of Mining, he has found immense satisfaction in seeing over 800 students successfully placed in jobs. In his role as Dean, Faculty of Engineering & Technology, he has made dedicated efforts to deliver quality education, training, and job opportunities to young graduates.He has authored books on Mining that have encouraged students to engage with textbooks more deeply. Dr. Pradhan has also completed consultancy projects valued at ₹30 lakhs per year from 2013 to the present. His teaching experience extends overseas as well as to Indian Mine Managers and young mining engineers from organizations like HINDALCO, Utkal Alumina, and NMDC through various off-campus programs.

Prof. Y.P. Chugh is currently a Visiting Professor at Southern Illinois University Carbondale (SIUC), where he previously served from 1977 until retiring in 2015 as Professor of Mining Engineering. He holds a BS, MS, and Ph.D. in Mining Engineering, the latter two from Pennsylvania State University. With over four decades of academic and industrial experience, he served as Department Chair for 16 years, leading several major research initiatives in coal and energy sectors. His expertise includes underground and surface mine stability, structural support, mine feasibility, productivity optimization, fly ash management, and dust control. Prof. Chugh has collaborated extensively with industry to enhance unit operations, economic performance, and safety. He holds multiple patents that have been successfully commercialized through industry partnerships. For his innovations, he was named a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors in 2015. In addition, he has received numerous departmental, college, university, and national awards, including those from the Society of Mining Engineers, recognizing his outstanding contributions to mining research and education.

Mr. Sietse van der Woude is a senior executive at the Minerals Council South Africa, leading initiatives on mining modernisation and safety. He is widely recognized for his commitment to people-centered innovation in the mining sector. Van der Woude holds an MSc in Radiation Physics and an MBA, where he focused on integrating sustainability into corporate strategy. With extensive experience in regulatory, operational, and advisory roles, he has served at the National Nuclear Regulator, where he helped establish a regulatory framework for radiation protection in mining, and held a key managerial position at Xstrata overseeing safety, health, environment, and quality. He has recently been appointed to the CSIR’s Future Production: Mining Advisory Panel, where he will help guide the organization’s efforts in mining innovation and forward-looking safety practices. His cross-disciplinary expertise makes him a key contributor to South Africa’s vision for a sustainable and modern mining future.

Dr. Sekhar Bhattacharyya is an Associate Teaching Professor of Mining Engineering in the John and Willie Leone Family Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering at Penn State University. With over two decades of experience in both academia and industry, he served as Program Chair for Mining Engineering at Penn State from 2019 to 2023, during which he successfully led the program through a rigorous ABET accreditation process. Dr. Bhattacharyya brings significant industry expertise, having held key roles in mine operations, project management, and consulting with firms such as Norwest Corporation, Consol Energy, and Joy Global. He is a licensed Professional Engineer (PE) in the state of Utah and holds Foreman’s certifications in both Pennsylvania and West Virginia. His academic and professional background reflects a deep commitment to excellence in mining education, safety, and operational efficiency.

Mr. Sihesenkosi Nhleko is a Lecturer at the University of the Witwatersrand’s School of Mining Engineering and a PhD candidate focusing on stope layout optimisation for underground mines. He holds both BSc and MSc degrees in Mining Engineering and has a strong background in narrow reef underground mining, with hands-on experience in both conventional and mechanised platinum operations. His academic interests lie in mine financial valuation, planning, and optimisation under uncertainty. Mr. Nhleko actively contributes to the Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (SAIMM), serving on the Johannesburg Branch Committee and participating in the Education and Career Guidance Working Groups. As a dedicated member of the Young Professionals Council (YPC), he continues to support its mission in alignment with SAIMM’s broader goals. His combined industry experience and academic engagement position him as a key advocate for the advancement of mining education and innovation in the region.

Dr. Snehamoy Chatterjee is an Associate Professor at Michigan Tech specializing in ore reserve estimation, mine planning, mining hazards, reliability and safety analysis, and the application of remote sensing and artificial intelligence in mining. He earned his PhD in Mining Engineering from IIT Kharagpur, India. His postdoctoral work includes ore reserve estimation at the University of Alaska Fairbanks and mine planning optimization at McGill University, Canada, with projects spanning India, Australia, and Canada. Dr. Chatterjee’s current research focuses on hyperspectral and InSAR remote sensing, generative AI for mine safety, and inverse modeling using deep learning. He teaches mine planning, mineral resource modeling, geostatistics, and mining optimization. An active member of IAMG, SME, and AGU, he has served on numerous international mining conference committees, earned the 2015 APCOM Young Professional Award, and received Mathematical Geosciences Journal’s Editor’s Best Reviewer Award in 2014.

Dr. Rajive Ganguli is the Malcolm McKinnon Endowed Professor of Mining Engineering and Associate Dean (Assessment) at the University of Utah. Previously, he was a Professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. With hands-on mining engineering experience in copper and coal mines in India and the US, Dr. Ganguli leads interdisciplinary research integrating machine learning, natural language processing, and mine safety analytics. His group developed UteAnalytics software, widely used globally since its 2023 release. He leads a $1.2M US Department of State cooperative agreement to provide mine training in Greenland. His work spans projects in the US, Mongolia, Denmark, Saudi Arabia, and Mexico. Dr. Ganguli played a key role in establishing the Mining Engineering Research Endowment at UAF, which now supports graduate students with over $4M in funding. He has authored influential handbook chapters on mine safety, systems engineering, and monitoring. His accolades include induction into the Alaska Innovator’s Hall of Fame (2017), the SME Robert Peele Award (2004), and recognition as the “Rock Star of Alaska Mining” (2014).

Dr. Cihan H. Dagli is a Professor of Systems Engineering and Engineering Management at Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T) and the founder of its Systems Engineering Graduate Program. He also directs the Smart Engineering Systems Lab and serves as a Senior Investigator at the DoD Systems Engineering Research Center - University Affiliated Research Center. A Fellow of INCOSE, IIE, and the International Foundation of Production Research, Dr. Dagli has been at Missouri S&T since 1988. His research focuses on systems engineering, cyber-physical systems, deep learning, machine learning, and computational intelligence. He has led over 50 research projects totaling more than $25 million in funding, including a major $10 million DoD grant. Dr. Dagli has published over 450 papers and books, with more than 4,400 citations. He has supervised numerous PhD students in engineering management, computer science, and systems engineering. His early work on water resource systems evolved into integrated modeling architectures for complex engineering systems. As a leading expert in smart system architecting, he focuses on adaptive meta-architectures using deep learning. Dr. Dagli founded and chairs the annual Complex Adaptive Systems and ANNIE conferences. He has bridged systems engineering with manufacturing, hosting the 2019 International Conference on Production Research. His leadership roles include Chair of INCOSE Fellows and Chairman of the Systems Engineering Honor Society Board.

Professor E. Topal is a faculty member at the Western Australian School of Mines (WASM), Curtin University, within the Faculty of Science and Engineering. He holds a B.E. in Mining Engineering from Suleyman Demirel University, Turkey, and an MSc (Mining Engineering and Mineral Economics) and Ph.D. in Mining Engineering from Colorado School of Mines, USA. His career spans roles as a shift supervisor in Turkey, research and teaching assistantships in Turkey and the USA, and research associate positions in Sweden and Canada. He served as Assistant Professor at Dicle University, Turkey, Senior Lecturer at the University of Queensland, and has been at Curtin University since 2009, rising from Associate Professor and Head of Department to full Professor. His teaching portfolio includes Hard Rock Mine Design, Advanced Surface and Underground Mine Planning, and Resource Estimation. Professor Topal’s research focuses on underground and surface mine planning and optimization, operations research, mineral and energy economics, and resource estimation. He is a member of professional societies including The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM), SME, and the Chamber of Mining Engineers of Turkey.

Hooman Askari is a professor of mining engineering in the School of Mining and Petroleum Engineering at the University of Alberta, Canada. He teaches and conducts research into mine planning & design and simulation of mining systems. Hooman is a registered professional mining engineer with more than two decades of operational, consulting, research, and teaching experience in the area of open pit mine planning and design. He has a strong track record of success in leading the Mining Optimization Laboratory (MOL) research team sponsored by industry partners into development, testing, and delivering mine planning optimization prototype software and mine simulation models to major mining companies. He consults as the Principal Engineer on long-term to short-term open pit production scheduling optimization and simulation of mining-systems through OptiTek Mining Consulting.

Associate Professor Simit Raval is the Director of Undergraduate Studies in Mining Engineering and Co-Director of the Laboratory for Imaging of the Mine Environment (LIME) at UNSW Sydney. He specializes in integrating sensing technologies to foster applied innovation across mining, environmental, and civil engineering sectors. Leading a research team, he focuses on utilizing data from sensors mounted on various platforms—from satellites to UAVs—to visualize, identify, and monitor operational environments. As project leader, he has secured six nationally competitive ACARP research grants. His supervision includes PhD projects on drone-based smart sensing (multispectral, hyperspectral, and LiDAR), underground mobile laser scanning, image-based automated material characterization, mine rehabilitation and closure, climate change, and asteroid mining. He has received six teaching awards, including the UNSW Vice Chancellor’s Award for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning (2020) and the International Tim Show Award for Innovation in Teaching and Learning (2018).

Ashish Ranjan Kumar is an Assistant Professor of Mining Engineering in the Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering at Penn State University. He completed his undergraduate studies in mining engineering at the Indian School of Mines, focusing on airflow modeling around mine ventilation fan airfoils. He held a summer research fellowship at the National Institute of Oceanography, Goa, working on reflection seismology applied to underwater seamounts. Kumar earned his M.S. and Ph.D. from the University of Kentucky, where he researched dust scrubbers. He subsequently worked as a post-doctoral scholar and co-PI on NIOSH-funded projects developing novel dust filters. During his postdoctoral tenure at Missouri University of Science and Technology, he taught six courses in Mining and Explosives Engineering. Later, as an assistant research professor, he studied underground mine fire and acid-mist suppression in copper electrowinning plants. He holds two patents on innovative maintenance-free impingement and vortex-type dust filters and has extensive expertise in mining dust suppression, multiphase computational fluid dynamics models, aerosol transport, and automation and control of mining systems.

Dr. Marek Borowski is a professor at the AGH University of Science and Technology in Kraków, Poland, and currently serves as the Associate Dean of the Faculty of Civil Engineering and Resource Management. He leads the Department of Environmental Engineering and the Mining Aerology and Industrial Ventilation research team. His core research focuses on ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration systems in underground mines and tunnels. Dr. Borowski is known for bridging academic research with industrial applications, particularly in project management and the implementation of R&D outcomes. He holds PRINCE2 certification and serves as an expert reviewer for Poland's NCBiR and NAWA agencies. Internationally, he is active in the UNECE Group of Experts on Coal Mine Methane and Just Transition and contributes to the International Centre of Excellence on Coal Mine Methane. He has authored or co-authored ten monographs and over 250 scientific papers. At AGH, he coordinates postgraduate programs in mine and tunnel ventilation. His team also works with CFD simulations to optimize HVAC systems for industrial facilities. They perform thermal imaging, energy audits, and explore renewable energy integration. Dr. Borowski's work plays a crucial role in improving safety, sustainability, and innovation in mining and environmental engineering.

Associate Professor Rudrajit Mitra holds the Syd and Felicia Peng Professorship in Mining Engineering and Management. They earned a Ph.D. in Mining Engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University, an M.S. from Pennsylvania State University, and a B.E. from the Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology. Prior to their current role, they were Head of Research at the Institute for Advanced Mining Technologies at RWTH Aachen University, Germany, and have held faculty positions at the University of the Witwatersrand (2017–2020) and UNSW Sydney (2006–2016). An active member of several professional societies including the Society of Mining Professors, SME, AusIMM, and SAIMM, they also serve on editorial boards and contribute to international conference organization. Their research focuses on improving extraction efficiency sustainably, emphasizing rock mechanics, mining systems engineering, digitalization, VR/AR, and innovations in learning and teaching. With over 130 research publications and the supervision of 11 PhD and 12 Masters students, they actively pursue interdisciplinary collaborations and support high-quality research in mining engineering.

Dr. Nagaraj joined Columbia University in May 2020 as a Professor of Professional Practice, with the mission to develop a leading education and research program in Sustainable Mineral Resource Management. He brings extensive industrial expertise and a vision for “mines of the future” that integrates smart extraction technologies, data analytics, and eco-efficient processing. Nagaraj emphasizes the urgency of transforming mining practices in light of challenges like declining ore quality, environmental impact, and high resource consumption. With a doctorate from Columbia University (1979), he began his career at American Cyanamid and held various roles at Cyanamid/Cytec/Solvay, contributing over 100 publications and 35 patents. His work spans mineral processing, surface chemistry, electrochemistry, and data analysis. Recognized as a key figure in bridging academia and industry, he has led global workshops, collaborated with major mining companies, and served as an editor for the International Journal of Mineral Processing. He has received top honors, including election to the U.S. National Academy of Engineering (2006) and the International Mining Hall of Fame (2016), along with multiple awards from SME, AIME, and Cyanamid. Nagaraj remains a passionate advocate for sustainable mining and mineral education.

Dr. Sampurna Arya currently serves as an Assistant Professor at New Mexico Tech, having joined in August 2024 after serving at the University of Alaska Fairbanks from 2018 to 2024. He earned his Ph.D. and M.S. in Mining Engineering from the University of Kentucky, completing his doctorate in 2018 and his master's in 2013. He holds a B.Tech. in Mining Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology (ISM), Dhanbad, India, awarded in 2006. His research expertise spans mine health and safety, subsurface ventilation, and geostatistics. He has a strong focus on digital transformation in mining, emphasizing automation, control systems, and AI/ML applications. Dr. [Name] also utilizes computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to model complex Mining environments. He integrates advanced data-driven technologies to optimize operational efficiency and safety in underground and surface mines. His work contributes to developing smart mining systems and modernizing traditional engineering approaches. Dr. [Name] actively engages in both academic instruction and research collaboration. His mission is to prepare future engineers to meet the demands of a rapidly evolving mining industry.

Dr. Victor Tenorio is a Professor of Practice in the Department of Mining and Geological Engineering at the University of Arizona and a member of the Graduate Faculty. He earned his B.S. in Mining Engineering from Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú and an M.S. from the University of Alaska Fairbanks. He completed his Ph.D. at the University of Arizona in 2012. His research centers around smart mining and decision support systems aimed at optimizing productivity. Dr. Tenorio has led and participated in engineering projects in Peru and Chile and was involved in Freeport-McMoRan’s Autonomous Mining Program until 2008. At the University of Arizona, he teaches courses including Introduction to Mining Engineering, Mine Examination and Valuation, and Digital Mining. He is currently developing a course on Moon Mining. In 2015, he served as program chair for the VII International Mining Industry Summit. From 2016 to 2017, he led the Executive Mining Program, an intensive certification course for non-mining professionals. Since 2021, he has coached the Wildcat Moon Miners, a student team focused on lunar mining innovations for NASA-sponsored competitions.