Joy Gill Chair
Mr. Ajit S. Gill instituted the Joy Gill Chair. This chair is open to the faculty, working in the area of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering. Mr. Ajit S. Gill (BT/EE/1969) is the President and CEO of Greenfire Bio LLC and MGFB Corporation based in Frisco, Texas, USA. He also serves on the Board of Directors of Pacylex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Previously, he was the CEO of Ohm Oncology, California, a company focused on developing novel drugs for the treatment of refractory and hard-to-treat cancers. Mr. Gill has also held leadership roles as President and CEO of Nektar Therapeutics and as Vice President and General Manager of Kodak's Interactive Systems Division. After graduating from IIT Kanpur, he earned his M.S. from the University of Nebraska and an MBA from the University of Ontario, Canada.
Current Occupant
Prof. Nitin Gupta
(Sep. 2025 - Sep. 2028)
Prof. Nitin Gupta from the Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering, IIT Kanpur, has research interests in systems neuroscience, olfaction, mental health. He earned his B.Tech. from IIT Kanpur (2004) and Ph.D. from UC San Diego. His awards include the Swarnajayanti Fellowship (2021), Excellence-in-Teaching Award (2019), Wellcome Trust/DBT Fellowship (2016), and others.
Former Occupant
Prof. Bushra Ateeq
(Apr. 2022 - Apr. 2025)
Prof. Bushra Ateeq, from the Department of Biological Sciences & Bioengineering, IIT Kanpur, is a leading cancer researcher whose work focuses on the genetic and epigenetic changes underlying cancer progression, chemotherapeutic drug resistance, cancer biology, and precision medicine. She earned her Ph.D. from Aligarh Muslim University. She is a recipient of the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize, the National Bioscience Award for Career Development, and the Sun Pharma Science Foundation Research Award. She is an elected Fellow of the Indian National Science Academy (INSA), the Indian Academy of Sciences (IASc), the National Academy of Sciences, India (NASI), and the National Academy of Medical Sciences (NAMS), India.