Cheveron Corporation Chair
Mr. Jagjeet Singh Bindra (BT/CHE/1969) established the Chevron Corporation Chair, open to the Department of Chemical Engineering at IIT Kanpur. He is currently a member of the Board of Directors of HPCL-Mittal Energy Ltd. Mr. Bindra spent 32 years with Chevron Corporation, beginning his career as a research engineer and later serving as President of Chevron Global Manufacturing from 2004 to 2009, where he led the company's worldwide manufacturing operations.
Following his retirement from Chevron, he served on the Boards of several leading global companies, including LyondellBasell Industries, Larsen & Toubro, Reliance Petroleum, Transfield Services Australia, Transocean, WorleyParsons Australia, GS Caltex Korea, and Edison International and Southern California Edison. After earning his B.Tech. in Chemical Engineering from IIT Kanpur, Mr. Bindra pursued a Master's degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Washington. He is a Distinguished Alumnus of IIT Kanpur and the University of Washington College of Engineering.
Current Occupant
Prof. Sri Sivakumar
(Sep. 2025 - Sep. 2028)
Prof. Sri Sivakumar from the Department of Chemical Engineering, IIT Kanpur, conducts research on lanthanide-based nanodevices, multifunctional nanomaterials for drug delivery and bioimaging, novel nanocatalysts, nanomaterials for solar hydrogen generation, and photonic materials. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, and completed his postdoctoral research at the Centre for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (CNST), The University of Melbourne, Australia. He is a recipient of the Prof. CNR Award for outstanding research contributions.
Former Occupant
Prof. Nishith Verma
(Apr. 2022 - Apr. 2025)
Prof. Nishith Verma , Department of Chemical Engineering, research interests are environmental remediation, nanomaterials, catalysts, and sensors. Prof Verma's research laboratory has played a pioneering role in the country to successfully integrate nanosciences with the development of novel materials as efficient and cost-effective adsorbents and catalysts in combating an array of contaminants in air and water. Prof. Verma is the recipient of the Alexander von Humboldt Research Fellowship (2004) and Fulbright-Nehru Academic and Professional Excellence Fellowship (2018). Prof. Verma has also been Raj and Neera Singh Chair professor in the Institute for the periods 2012-14 and 2015-18. He was the Head of Chemical Engineering Department, 2012-14 and Coordinator, Center for Environmental Science and Engineering, 2011 -14. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Arizona, Tucson, USA in 1995.