Giriraj Ratan Chandak (GRC) completed his medical graduation from RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, Kolkata and DNB in Biochemistry from National Board of Examinations, New Delhi. Subsequently, he did MD in Biochemistry from Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi and PhD from Osmania University, Hyderabad. He was a visiting fellow at Department of Medical Genetics, North-West Centre for Medical Genetics, Indiana University where he was trained in Medical Genetics and Genetic Counseling. He worked as a post-doctoral fellow in CCMB (1994-96) and then as scientist at Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (1996-99). He joined CCMB as a faculty in 1999 and is a Group Leader since 2006 .

Dr. G R Chandak's group is interested in understanding the genetic basis of complex disorders such as type 2 diabetes mellitus and chronic pancreatitis and its interaction with various environmental factors (epigenetic basis). The major focus is on identifying various genetic and nutritional factors (and interaction between them), which influence The Thin Fat Indian Phenotype, and various intermediate traits that predict higher risk of developing diabetes and metabolic syndrome.