A/HRC/36/17 Ajai Malhotra (India) Ajai Malhotra holds an M.A. in Economics from Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi. He joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1977. From 1979-1982, he handled India’s ties with Kenya and Seychelles at the High Commission of India, Nairobi, also serving as the Focal Point for India to UNEP and UNHABITAT. From 1982-1985, he was Second/First Secretary at the Embassy of India, Moscow. From 1985-1989, he was First Secretary (Political) at the Permanent Mission of India to the UN, Geneva, handling ILO, WHO, WIPO, and other UN agencies, representing India on the ILO Committee on Freedom of Association and participating in annual meetings of the UN Human Rights Commission. From 1989-1993, he was initially Deputy Secretary (UN) at the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi, handling human rights and international environmental issues and later Director (UN), supervising all multilateral work of the Ministry, except disarmament. This included guiding processes leading to the ratification by India of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1992 and UN CEDAW in 1993, and the establishment of India’s National Human Rights Commission. He was Counsellor at Embassy of India, Moscow, from 1993-1996, returning to the Ministry of External Affairs as Director/OSD in 1996. As Joint Secretary in that Ministry from 1997-1999, he guided India’s relations with the Russian Federation and Central and East European countries. From 1999-2003, he was Minister, Embassy of India, Washington DC, also serving from 2002-2003 as Chairman of the International Cotton Advisory Committee, Washington DC. From 2003-2005, he was India’s Ambassador to Romania, concurrently accredited to Albania and Moldova. From 2005-2009, he was Ambassador and Deputy Permanent Representative of India to the UN, New York. He participated in the negotiations leading to the setting up the UN Democracy Fund, the UN Peacebuilding Commission and the UN Human Rights Council. He was India’s Ambassador to Kuwait from 2009-2011 and the Russian Federation from 2011-2013, prior to retiring on November 30, 2013, after 37 years of distinguished service. Ambassador Malhotra has been on the Indian team negotiating issues such as biological diversity, climate change, desertification, education, energy, forestry, health, human rights, human settlements, intellectual property rights, international law, labour rights, ozone depletion, sustainable development, international trade, etc. He has participated in meetings ranging from the 1st UN Conference on New and Renewable Sources of Energy (Nairobi; 1981) and UNEP Session of a Special Character: Ten Years after Stockholm (Nairobi; 1982) to the Diplomatic Conference on the Intellectual Property of Integrated Circuits (Washington DC; 1989) and UN Conference on Environment and Development (Rio de Janeiro; 1992); from the WTO Summit (Seattle; 1999) to numerous meetings of the World Health Assembly, WIPO Assembly, International Labour Conference, and UN Human Rights Commission; from UN General Assembly and ECOSOC sessions (2005-2009) to NAM, G77 and Commonwealth Summits (1989-1993 and 2005-2009); from UNEP Governing Council sessions to UNESCO and UN Democracy Fund meetings. He has contributed to the evolution of the concept of ‘common concern of humankind’ and written on issues such as the rights of future generations. In 2004, he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by Western University of Arad, Romania, in recognition of his work in support of environmental causes and human development. He is presently Independent Director of the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd (ONGC), Chairman and Managing Trustee of CHIKITSA and SHIKSHA, which provide free primary health care and education/vocational training respectively to the underprivileged, Chairman of the NAB India Centre for Blind Women & Disability Studies, Chairman of the Nehru Trust for the Indian Collections at the Victoria & Albert Museum, and Distinguished Fellow and Senior Adviser on Climate Change at The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI). 13