Founders
Drive On My Own Foundation is a section 8 company, dedicated to empowering persons with disabilities.
Dr. Anita Sharma
Anita has lived with polio since infancy. She knows from experience how much a person's life depends on being able to move freely, and that understanding is at the centre of DOMO's work. The idea for DOMO came from a single conversation. At an event on disability, a woman told Anita that she wanted to learn to drive and be independent, just like her. Anita drives her own hand-controlled car, and she saw in that moment how many people were waiting for the same chance. Drive On My Own Foundation grew from there. Anita holds a Ph.D. in Strategic Management from the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Indore.
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She has held academic roles at IIM Amritsar, Thapar University and Banasthali Vidyapith, IIT Patna, IMT Ghaziabad, IIFT New Delhi. She has also completed an Executive Education programme in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion from Cornell University. As an equity, diversity and inclusion consultant, she has delivered talks / worked with companies including Tata Motors, Godrej, Infosys, Collins Aerospace, Asian Paints, Adani Group and Xiaomi India. She has also advised educational institutions and government bodies on accessibility, inclusive leadership and disability-inclusive policy. Anita is India's first woman with a disability to skydive. She is a TEDx speaker and shares her experiences through talks, lectures and her YouTube channel, Drive with Anita, to show what persons with disabilities can do when the right support is in place. She believes mobility is the first step towards independence. At DOMO, her goal is to make sure persons with reduced mobility have the skills, confidence and opportunity to lead their own lives.
Atul Kaushal
Atul is a mechanical engineer, a finance professional and a person with a spinal cord injury. Since 1997, he has mentored and guided others living with spinal cord injuries. He brings that same practical commitment to DOMO. A Mechanical Engineer from Punjab Engineering College (PEC), Chandigarh, he spent 24 years with the Water Resources Department, Government of Punjab, and rose to Director of its Mechanical and Electrical Engineering Design Wing. After his government career, at the age of 50 years, fulfilling a life dream, overcoming challenges posed by disability, age, catheter and stoma, Atul earned an MBA in Finance from the UBC Sauder School of Business in Canada, where he received the Asia Top Talent Scholarship. He has worked on policy with the Ministry of Citizens' Services in British Columbia and on ESG and sustainability projects with international clients. He continues to build his expertise in ESG, and sustainability reporting through programmes with Bloomberg, IIT Kanpur, IIT Madras and IIM Kashipur. At DOMO, Atul manages funding strategy, budgeting and planning. He contributes towards work on accessible mobility, infrastructure accessibility, partnerships and the Foundation's long-term sustainability. He believes accessibility should be built into systems from the start, so that every person can take part fully and independently, with dignity.
