Governing Board

Saathi's Governing Board is comprised of individuals from different fields who bring with them varied experiences along with a passion to work in the development sector and a core belief that they can be fore bringers of change in society; A change which can affect others' lives and their own.

Altaf Shaikh – Founder Member, Vice President

Altaf started in 1986 as a volunteer with an NGO. At that time Street Children was an issue that was fairly new and one which threw up very basic questions of intervention. Nine years later he moved on to form Saathi. The relationship that began then still holds his interest. He is a project head of the Girls Project and Kria – Income Generation Programme.

Gayatri has been interested in documentation and writing and has spent time working on assignments around this. She has been in touch with the organization for 6 years, volunteering her time, skills and resources before joining the Board. She is an active member of the trustee board.

Hemarekha is a senior professional working in the field of qualitative and social research. She has been actively involved in the organization for several years, consulting on various research studies undertaken.

Mansoor with a Masters degree in Social Work (MSW) from College of Social Work started his career in 1991 working with street children with another NGO. He has a rich experience in interacting with the boys and an overview of the issue in general. He is also the head of the Youth Initiative Programme and the Home Placement Project. He also spear heads various issue based initiatives in the organization.

Neeta, holding an MSW from College of Social Work, spent her initial years working on child rights and advocacy issues. Neeta is currently a journalist and has spent many years being in the media, both print and Television.

Rashmi, holding an MA in Psychology, has spent over a decade being associated with qualitative and social research work.

Roabin got involved with voluntary organisations after the communal riots that Bombay experienced in 1993. That was a moving experience for him. He believes that there is much that can be corrected in the voluntary sector and that there is no point criticizing if one does not make an attempt to rectify it oneself. He has a full-time career in finance and investments.

Roshni, who holds an MSW from Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), started her career in 1993 working with children of prisoners for a year. She then moved on to being a faculty at TISS for two years. Roshni quit to be a part of the Saathi experience. Ten years later, she has now returned to TISS as an Assistant Professor in the Centre for Criminology and Justice, School of Social Work while continuing to be an active part of Saathi by heading the Administration department.