Prof. Manoj K Arora is a renowned academician who has been making milestone contributions to higher technical education and research for over the last thirty-five years. He was conferred PhD in Remote Sensing from Swansea University, UK. Besides, he has also been a post-doctoral research fellow in a NASA-sponsored project in the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Department at Syracuse University, USA. His areas of specialisation include Remote Sensing, Digital Image Classification, AI and Machine Learning, and Hazard and Risk Studies.

Prof. Arora received his Master’s in Civil Engineering from the University of Roorkee (now IIT Roorkee) in 1986 and a Bachelor’s in Civil Engineering from Punjab Engineering College, Chandigarh, in 1984. He was also the Director of Punjab Engineering College (Deemed University), Chandigarh, for a five-year tenure from July 2013 - October 2018 while on lien from IIT Roorkee where he served as a Professor in the Department of Civil Engineering, and later as the Dean of Academic Studies during his thirty years of service there. In his recent assignment, he served as the Vice Chancellor of BML Munjal University from November 2018 to September 2022.

Prof. Arora has an enriching experience that also extends over to countries like the UK and the US. This includes teaching in the areas of geospatial technology and computer sciences, developing and establishing new laboratories and centres, executing sponsored research and consultancy projects of national and international repute, research guidance, university administration, coordinating national level examinations GATE, JMET and JAM, and serving on several national committees of regulatory bodies, research organisations, and boards of academic institutions.

Some of his notable academic achievements include the initiation and execution of 42 sponsored research and consultancy projects with funding of over INR 90 million, the establishment of a Centre and a Research Chair with an endowment of INR 125 million, publication of 2 books and 16 book chapters, publication of more than 250 research papers in International and National Journals and Conferences and several invited talks and keynote addresses. He has guided 25 PhD theses (plus one currently registered) and 56 Master's Dissertations.

Prof. Arora has earned the Bhaskar Award – the highest national recognition from Indian Society of Remote Sensing, the Outstanding Teacher Award at IIT Roorkee, the Commonwealth Scholarship Award for PhD in UK, the Department of Science and Technology (DST) Young Scientist Award, the All-India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) Young Teacher Career Award and Post-doctoral Research award in a NASA sponsored project, USA.

He is a Fellow of Indian National Academy of Engineering, Fellow of the Institution of Engineers, Member IEEE Society and has been an active member of American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Society and the Indian Society of Remote Sensing.