Dr Kalpana Purushothaman is a member of the Juvenile Justice Board, Bangalore (Urban) and Adjunct Professor, Indian Institute of Psychology and Research (IIPR). She was formerly Senior Professional Counsellor and Senior Researcher, Juvenile Justice Program at the Centre for Child & the Law, National Law School of India University, Bangalore and has authored a book on child psychology for the judiciary. Dr Purushothaman was instrumental in establishing the first-of-its-kind corporate-government-judiciary and civil society partnership to set up the MAANASA Wellness Centre at the Observation Home, Bangalore, which provides a range of medical and mental health care services for children (and families) in conflict with the law. In 2022, she was nominated for the Children’s Champion Award by the Delhi Commission for the Protection of Child Rights. She was awarded the Guru Shrestha Award, Karnataka in 2019 for her exemplary role as an exceptional and inspiring teacher for young people from different socio-economic backgrounds. Dr Purushothaman also works with survivors of violence and sexual abuse across all genders and is a trained, queer-affirmative therapist.
