IIT Roorkee Hosts AHEAD2025 International Conference and Five-Day Workshop on Healthcare and Development

Roorkee, January 5, 2026: The Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee successfully hosted the AHEAD2025 International Conference on Healthcare and Development, reaffirming the Institute’s commitment to evidence-based research that informs public policy, strengthens national health systems, and delivers societal impact. Organised by the AHEAD Lab, IIT Roorkee, the conference convened leading scholars, policymakers, economists, and practitioners from India and abroad to address critical challenges shaping healthcare and development pathways.

Founded and led by Dr. Pratap C. Mohanty, the AHEAD Lab organised its seventh major academic event in 2025, reflecting its growing role in research aligned with Government of India missions in health, human development, and inclusive growth. The conference was convened by Dr. Pratap C. Mohanty, with Dr. Manish K. Asthana as Co-Convenor, and was supported by the Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF), Government of India, in collaboration with the Memory & Anxiety Research Group (MARG).

Held under the theme “Global Disruptions in Healthcare and Development: Challenges, Innovations, and Pathways for the 21st Century,” AHEAD2025 focused on policy-relevant research spanning health systems resilience, climate and environmental health, financing and risk, demographic transitions, technological transformation, and regional inequalities—areas central to India’s public health programmes, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and national development agenda.

The conference featured ten thematic tracks, covering healthcare financing, occupational and environmental health, climate change and health, health behaviour and cognition, gender and health inequities, ageing and wellness, healthcare performance, nutrition and human capital, digital health systems, and structural inequalities in development.

The inaugural session was addressed by Prof. V. C. Srivastava, Dean (International Relations), IIT Roorkee; Prof. (Dr.) Bhanu Duggal, Head, Department of Cardiology, AIIMS Rishikesh; and Prof. Smita Jha, Head, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT Roorkee, who underscored the role of academia in supporting evidence-based policymaking and socially responsive governance.

Keynote and invited addresses were delivered by Prof. Sabu Padmadas (University of Southampton, UK), Dr. Margaret Triyana (Senior Economist, World Bank), Dr. Suman Seth (University of Leeds, UK), Prof. Prakash C. Kandpal (ICCR Chair, University of Southampton), and Prof. Dibyendu Maiti (Delhi School of Economics). The conference witnessed strong participation from institutions including the World Bank, University of Notre Dame (USA), IIT Kanpur, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Banaras Hindu University, and other leading organisations, reinforcing its robust policy–academia interface.

All research papers underwent a rigorous double-blind peer-review process. The Best Paper Awards were conferred on Dr. Basant K. Panda (Population Council, India) and Tanisha (Lancaster University, UK).

During the valedictory session on December 17, 2025, the organising committee announced that the next edition of AHEAD will be held at IIT Roorkee from December 14 to 16, 2026, ensuring continuity of this global academic forum.

Complementing the conference, IIT Roorkee organised a five-day capacity-building workshop on “Large-scale Data Analytics in Health and Well-being” at the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences. Convened by Dr. Manish K. Asthana, with Dr. Pratap C. Mohanty as Co-Convenor, the workshop strengthened data-driven analytical capabilities among young researchers and professionals, supporting the Government of India’s emphasis on data-informed health and social policy.

Through AHEAD2025, IIT Roorkee reinforced its role as a national knowledge partner to government, society, and global institutions, advancing interdisciplinary research that bridges academia, policy, and societal impact in healthcare and development.