About Awakening India Foundation
Dignity, empathy and care for every life
The foundation was established in 2015. Its earliest work grew around support for underprivileged and underserved communities — ENT assistance, general healthcare, and psychiatric and psychological care for people who had very little access to any of it.
Working closely in those communities made another need impossible to ignore: the condition of the animals living alongside them. Our scope now also includes animal welfare, through feeding, rescue, sterilisation and preventive care.
Both areas are held together by the same idea — that care should reach where it usually does not, and that it should arrive with dignity.
Dr. Niyati Dhawan
Founder & President – Animal Welfare
Dr. Niyati Dhawan is the Founder and President of Awakening India Foundation, where she leads the organisation’s vision for compassionate and structured animal welfare. With more than nine years of experience in the healthcare field, she brings a strong understanding of well-being, behavioural care, and community support to the Foundation’s initiatives. Her work is driven by the belief that animals deserve dignity, timely medical attention, protection, and humane treatment. Under her leadership, Awakening India Foundation works on animal rescue, feeding programmes, sterilisation, vaccination, medical treatment, rehabilitation, adoption support, and public awareness.
Dr. Niyati also focuses on building sustainable systems rather than limiting welfare work to emergency intervention alone. She believes effective animal welfare requires collaboration between citizens, veterinarians, volunteers, organisations, and local authorities. Through Awakening India Foundation, she continues to work towards creating safer communities where animals are treated with compassion, responsibility, and respect.
Leadership & governance
The people responsible for our work
Prof. (Dr.) B. P. Tyagi
Vice President & Director – Healthcare Initiatives & Medical Advisor
Prof. (Dr.) B. P. Tyagi is the Vice President and Director – Healthcare Initiatives & Medical Advisor at Awakening India Foundation. A Gold Medalist with an MS in ENT from MGIMS, Sevagram, he has extensive experience in otolaryngology, head and neck surgery, and specialised ENT procedures. His expertise includes oncology surgery, cartilage tympanoplasty, endoscopic sinus surgery, and general ENT care. He was recognised by the Limca Book of Records for performing 55 eardrum surgeries in 17 hours and 23 minutes in 2015. At the Foundation, he guides healthcare programmes and medical outreach initiatives for underserved communities.
S. K. Tyagi
Governance & Administrative Advisor
K. Tyagi serves as the Governance & Administrative Advisor at Awakening India Foundation. A retired senior Government of India officer, he brings extensive experience in public administration, finance, procurement, governance, and institutional operations. During his government service, he held senior responsibilities involving internal divisional finance, procurement, administration, and departmental management. His experience provides the Foundation with valuable guidance on accountability, documentation, transparency, financial discipline, and structured implementation. He has also been recognised for Meritorious Service by the Prime Minister of India. At the Foundation, he supports the development of strong administrative systems and responsible organisational practices.
Suneet Kumar Singh
Director – Strategy, Communications & Outreach
Suneet Kumar Singh is the Director – Strategy, Communications & Outreach at Awakening India Foundation. A serial entrepreneur, he has experience across education consulting, academic services, advertising, digital businesses, and wedding planning. His professional background spans strategy, branding, communication, digital outreach, partnerships, marketing, and project execution. At the Foundation, he works to strengthen visibility, fundraising communication, community engagement, strategic growth, and public outreach. Suneet believes social impact becomes stronger when compassion is supported by effective systems and communication. He also focuses on using digital platforms and storytelling to increase awareness and encourage wider participation in animal welfare and humanitarian initiatives.
Parul Chandok
Director – Animal Welfare Program Lead
Parul Chandok is the Director – Animal Welfare Program Lead at Awakening India Foundation and a committed advocate for street and community animals. Alongside more than a decade of corporate experience, she has developed extensive hands-on involvement in animal welfare. After relocating to Vrindavan in 2020, she became actively involved in rescue, feeding, treatment, sterilisation, vaccination, and rehabilitation across the Mathura-Vrindavan region. At the Foundation, she helps guide animal welfare programmes, including veterinary treatment, recovery care, feeding, sterilisation, and awareness. She is particularly focused on improving emergency veterinary care and building sustainable welfare systems through community and institutional collaboration.
Ajay Sharma
Chief Editor – Digital Media & Public Affairs
Ajay Sharma is the Chief Editor – Digital Media & Public Affairs at Awakening India Foundation. He is a senior journalist, television anchor, author, documentary filmmaker, media strategist, and political analyst with nearly two decades of experience. He began his journalism career in 2008 with Hindustan and has since worked across print, television, documentaries, digital media, and editorial leadership. He has also been associated with Doordarshan and has produced and directed around 50 documentaries. At the Foundation, Ajay leads digital editorial communication, helping highlight welfare initiatives, social issues, and community concerns through responsible storytelling, awareness, and credible public communication.
Shweta Agarwal
Animal Rescue & Rehabilitation Lead
Shweta Agarwal is the Animal Rescue & Rehabilitation Lead at Awakening India Foundation, with more than five years of hands-on experience in animal rescue, rehabilitation, adoption, and community welfare. Her work focuses on animals affected by abandonment, accidents, illness, neglect, abuse, and lack of timely medical care. She has actively coordinated rescues, treatment, recovery, rehabilitation, and responsible adoptions while promoting awareness within communities. At the Foundation, Shweta works closely with volunteers, caregivers, veterinary professionals, and local communities to support distressed animals. She believes rescue is only the beginning, and that recovery, safety, rehabilitation, and long-term care are equally important.
Who we are
A foundation built around service
We are an Indian non-profit working in animal welfare and human welfare. Rather than describing scale we cannot yet evidence, we prefer to describe our purpose clearly and let our documented work speak as it accumulates.
Vision
An India where access to care, a grounded mind, dignity and empathy help every person and animal face life with greater safety and hope.
Mission
- Reach overlooked livesWork where care rarely arrives, and stay long enough to matter.
- Enable access to careRemove cost, distance and information as barriers to essential care.
- Protect vulnerable animalsFeed, treat, sterilise and shelter animals who have no one.
- Awaken community participationInvite people to take part, because compassion is a shared practice.