Dr. Prakash Kumar Nayak is an Associate Professor and Head of the Department of Food Engineering and Technology at the Central Institute of Technology (CIT) Kokrajhar, Assam, India. With over 17 years of academic, research, and administrative experience, he specializes in food engineering, post-harvest technology, sustainable food processing, and renewable energy applications. His research focuses on drying technologies, solar-assisted food processing, process optimization, AI-assisted food engineering, and value addition of underutilized fruits, vegetables, and mushrooms. Dr. Nayak has published more than 90 research articles, book chapters, and conference papers in reputed journals, receiving over 3,000 citations with an h-index of around 30 on Google Scholar. He holds several Indian patents and has successfully executed research projects funded by national agencies. He serves as a Guest Editor and Editorial Board Member for reputed international journals and regularly reviews manuscripts for leading SCI-indexed publications. He has supervised numerous postgraduate and doctoral scholars while contributing significantly to curriculum development and academic leadership. His mission is to develop innovative, affordable, and sustainable food processing technologies that reduce post-harvest losses, enhance food quality, strengthen rural livelihoods, and promote environmentally responsible solutions for the global agri-food sector.