Dr. P.P. Bhojvaid has over 40 years of experience in forestry field activities and research across India. He retired as the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests in Haryana, India, in November 2017. He holds a postgraduate degree in Genetics from Haryana Agricultural University, a PG Diploma in Forestry from the Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy, and a Ph.D. from the Faculty of Forestry, University of Toronto, Canada.
During his tenure with the Indian Forest Service from 1983 to 2017, he served as Deputy Conservator of Forests from 1986 to 1992, where he planned and implemented over 25,000 hectares of plantations of fast-growing species such as Eucalyptus and Poplar, and established a plantation protocol for degraded sodic soils. As Conservator of Forests and Chief Conservator of Forest, he supervised policy and planning positions within the State Forest Department. He also led research and education activities at the Forest Research Institute and FRI Deemed University from 2003 to 2004.
At TERI University, he served as a Senior Fellow in Forestry and Biodiversity, Dean of the Faculty of Applied Sciences from 2005 to 2008, and Vice Chancellor from 2008 to 2010, where he engaged in research and development projects on plantation forestry, climate change, biodiversity, restoration forestry, and sustainable development policies. From 2012 to 2015, he was the Director at the Forest Research Institute Dehradun, where he led research, development, education, and extension activities, and provided advisory services on sustainable forest management.
As MD Forest Corporation Haryana, Chief Wildlife Haryana, and PCCF and HoFF Haryana from 2015 to 2017, he led various activities, policy, and regulation issues in the corporation, wildlife wing, and the forest department.
Post-retirement, he served as Joint Advisor at NHAI from 2018 to 2022 and as an Advisor at IORA Ecological Solutions from 2022 to 2024.
Dr. Bhojvaid's professional memberships and affiliations include being an Expert Panel Member for the UPSC Civil Services Personality Test since 2014, a Member of the Academic Council at TERI (Deemed University) in New Delhi, a Member of the Chhattisgarh Biofuel Development Agency in Raipur, and a Member of the Academic Council at FRI (Deemed University) in Dehradun. He is also a Member of the Research Degree Committee and Screening Committee for Ph.D. at FRI (Deemed University) in Dehradun, and a Visiting Faculty at various institutions including the Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy, State Forest Services College, Wildlife Institute of India, and Forestry Training & Community Development Institute in Haldwani. He has coordinated the Global Environment Facility Core Group at FRI, Dehradun, and is a Member of the Committee on Medicinal Plant Garden at The President House in New Delhi. Additionally, he has been the Secretary of the Medicinal Plants Cell at FRI, Dehradun, and a Member of the State Medicinal Plant Board for the Union Territory of Chandigarh and Uttaranchal State, as well as the Commonwealth Forestry Association, India Chapter.
His consultation services include work on production forestry and climate change mitigation in India for the British High Commission in New Delhi in 2007, strategy development for market opportunities for Australian forest products in India for Salwood Asia Pacific Private Limited, Australia in 2007, status and management of medicinal plants in Western Haryana for the Forest Department of Haryana in 2004, production and consumption of NWFP from Indian forests for an FAO-sponsored consultation at the Forest Survey of India in Dehradun in 2003, status and management of medicinal plants in Morni Hills, Haryana for the Forest Department of Haryana in 2002-2003, carbon sequestration and biodiversity conservation in Uttaranchal Hills for UNDEP-GEF in 2001-2002, utilization of degraded lands along railway tracks by afforestation for RITES, a Government of India undertaking in 1999-2000, and restoration of sodic soils in Haryana for IRDC, Canada in 1994-1995.
Dr. Bhojvaid has authored a book, edited two others, and has more than 50 publications in refereed national and international journals. He has also contributed over 25 articles to the Daily World Newspaper published from Chandigarh.