- Distinguished Service Award bestowed on five alumni
- Chapter Service Awards bestowed on seven alumni
- The Silver Jubilee batch (Class of 2000) pledged Rs. 50 crores towards the Legacy Project
- Book Launch by Mr. Kanwal Rekhi
- Felicitation of Mr. Kirat Patel on becoming the First Chairman Emeritus of
IIT Bombay Alumni Association
- Alumni appreciation and gratitude programme
- Launch of IIT Bombay’s annual fundraiser ‘GO-IIT Bombay’ campaign
The Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT Bombay) observed its annual Alumni Day today at Victor Menezes Convention Centre (VMCC) on the campus. The event began with a welcome by Prof. Upendra Bhandarkar, Dean (Alumni and Corporate Relations), IIT Bombay, address by Prof. Shireesh Kedare, Director, IIT Bombay, in the presence of Prof. Ravindra Gudi, Deputy Director (Finance, Infrastructure and Administration), IIT Bombay.
Highlighting the Institute’s progress over the years and the pivotal role played by its alumni in this journey, Prof. Kedare, in his address, said, “Alumni are an important part of the IIT Bombay community. They are not only bringing in resources but also invaluable expertise and strong connections with society and industry.
This year’s Distinguished Service Award (instituted in 1999) was bestowed on Mr Mukund Kulkarni, B.Tech., 1971, Mechanical Engineering; Mr Abhay Nadkarni, B.Tech., 1981, Mechanical Engineering; Ms Suhasini Sabnis, 1982, Mathematics; Mr Shamrao Kattimani, B.Tech.,1989 and M.Tech.1991, Computer Science and Engineering and late Mr. Sushil Singh, B.Tech., 1991, Civil Engineering. Besides being achievers in their own chosen domain, the alumni have made significant and enduring contributions to the advancement of the Institute. The award consists of a certificate, a memento and an uttaria.
The Chapter Service Awards (instituted during the Diamond Jubilee year celebrations) are given to select alumni who have contributed consistently to the progress of their Chapters and the Institute. The awardees for this year include Mr. Alkesh Shah, B.Tech., 1985, Electrical Engineering (Chapter: IITBHF, Boston); Mr. Amit Shiwalkar, B.Tech., 1996, Electrical Engineering (Chapter: IITBHF, Southern California); Mr. Deepak Iyer, B.Tech., 1997, Electrical Engineering and Materials Science (Chapter: IITBHF, Houston); Mr. Hrishikesh Sathawane, B.Tech., 1997, Engineering Physics (Chapter: IITBHF, SF Bay Area); Mr. Arpit Kothari, B.Tech., 2016, Chemical Engineering (Chapter: IITBAA, Indore); Mr. Shubham Jain, B.Tech., 2016, Computer Science and Engineering; and Ms. Karen Nimmy Stephen, M.Tech., 2018, Electrical Engineering (Chapter: IITBAA, Japan).
During the alumni contribution and acknowledgement segment of the event, Mr Ravishankar Gedela, CEO of the IIT Bombay Development and Relations Foundation (IITB-DRF), on behalf of the Institute, expressed gratitude to all the major donors of the year whose generous contributions benefited IIT Bombay in a significant way. Recognising the alumni community for their continued support and commitment to giving back, IIT Bombay honoured its top donors of 2025 by unveiling a Donor Wall on the occasion.
Acknowledging their selfless support, Prof. Kedare remarked, “The contributions by these donors have helped the establishment of Centres of Excellence and Chair Professorships, as well as facilitated the enhancement of infrastructural facilities on campus and played a key role in student development. We are looking forward to more meaningful involvement of our Alumni in the future journey of IIT Bombay.”
A key highlight of the event was the book launch by Mr Kanwal Rekhi, a distinguished IIT Bombay alumnus and a globally renowned entrepreneur and mentor. His book, The Ground-breaker: Risks, Rewards and Lessons from a Legendary Entrepreneur, published by HarperCollins, reveals his inspiring journey from IIT Bombay to Silicon Valley. Released in late 2024/ early 2025. The book reflects on his formative years at IIT Bombay, his entrepreneurial path and his continued commitment to mentoring and nurturing future founders.
On the occasion, IIT Bombay also felicitated Mr. Kirat Patel (B.Tech., 1975, Mechanical Engineering, IIT Bombay) on becoming the first Chairman Emeritus of the IIT Bombay Alumni Association. The felicitation took place in the presence of senior IIT Bombay Alumni, including Mr. Ashok Kalbag, Mr. Narayan Sundaresean, Mr. Sudhir Nikam, Mr. Dhananjay Saheba, Ms. Zenobia Driver and Mr. Mohan Kavrie.
The team of the IIT Bombay Alumni Association delivered a presentation on the activities carried out during the year 2025.
Mr. Shaji Varghese, CEO, Society for Innovation & Entrepreneurship (SINE), spoke on the recently launched Y-Point Venture Capital Fund, India’s first incubator-linked deep tech VC fund. In his presentation, Mr. Shaji elaborated on how this landmark initiative aims to redefine the trajectory of India's deep tech startups by providing crucial capital at an early stage of their journey.
The event witnessed the launch of the fifth edition of IIT Bombay’s fund-raising campaign ‘GO-IIT Bombay’ for the year 2025-26. The campaign is a concerted effort by the Institute to engage a wide spectrum of its alumni community. The Institute aims to harness the power of collective giving and welcomes all contributions towards the various causes that will propel IIT Bombay on its continued journey of excellence.
The Silver Jubilee Batch (class of 2000) has pledged a sum of Rs.50 crores towards its Legacy Project. A Legacy Project is a project adopted by the batch celebrating its Silver Jubilee anniversary, for the betterment of the Institute and of the people associated with it, as a way of giving back to the alma mater and leaving behind a lasting legacy and remembrance of their silver jubilee reunion.
The funds raised by the Class of 2000 will help the Institute support key academic projects and the research landscape at IIT Bombay. The funds raised will also help drive IIT Bombay's ambitious 2030 vision of ranking among the world's top 50 universities and foster a legacy of excellence on the global stage.
Several Institute functionaries, alumni and their family members, faculty, staff and students attended the function.