IIM Bangalore’s convocation: The Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIM-B) has on Mar 28 hosted its 50th convocation with Dr S Somanath and Dr Vikram Sarabhai, professor and former chairman of ISRO, as chief guests. During the convocation, the Institute awarded various degrees to students including PhD, MBA programmes, post graduate programme in Business Analytics (PGPBA) and Post Graduate Programme in Management (PGP). One PhD scholar was conferred with the Institute award for excellence in research, while gold medals were awarded for the best all round performance, first rank and second rank.
IIM Bangalore Placements 2025: Record 650+ offers
The world’s biggest problems are also its biggest opportunities, and technology is the key to solving them, said Dr S Somanath, Dr Vikram Sarabhai Professor at Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and former Chairman of ISRO, while addressing the 50th Convocation of IIM-Bangalore (IIMB) on Friday. A total of 798 students graduated with eight of them winning gold medals at this year’s convocation.
MDI Gurgaon Celebrates Convocation 2025; Announces New Centre to Drive Financial Research
Dr Somanath highlighted that technological evolution is now exponential and global, driven by AI, robotics, virtual reality, blockchain, and quantum sensing. These advancements, he noted, are not just enhancing industries but are also reinventing business models.
“In the coming years, robots may replace devices, digital connectivity will surge, and scarcity in power, water, and healthcare will give way to abundance. While developing nations may benefit, developed countries could face challenges due to shifting skill demands, migration, and economic disparity,” he said, urging the students to be creators of technology rather than mere adopters, stressing that India must drive innovation to remain competitive.
“As a country, we are still largely adopting technology rather than creating it. If we want to lead, we need more institutions fostering professionals who can drive technological advancements. It is your responsibility to bridge this gap,” Somanath told the graduating students.
The institute awarded degrees to 798 students across various programmes in the presence of IIMB’s Board of Governors, faculty, alumni, and staff. The graduating batch included – 18 Doctoral Programme (PhD) students, 80 from Post Graduate Programme in Enterprise Management (PGPEM), 82 from Executive Post Graduate Programme in Management (EPGP), 72 from Post Graduate Programme in Business Analytics (PGPBA), 529 from Post Graduate Programme in Management (PGP) and 13 from Post Graduate Programme in Public Policy and Management (PGPPM) (10 received degrees, three received diplomas).
29-year-old Parth Tiwari, during his course at IIMB, also got featured in the Director’s Merit List. Tiwari was an elected member of the student academic committee. His team was also among the top eight out of 154 teams globally to qualify for the final round in the Cornell EMI Corning Case Competition 2024. Parth hails from the town of Mungeli in Chhattisgarh. His father is a government school teacher, and his mother is a homemaker. He aims to be a leader in the aerospace and defense industry.
Siddharth’s family is based in Sambalpur, Odisha. His father is a Chartered Accountant, and his mother is a homemaker. His twin brothers are college graduates. Pujari, aged 29 years, is a sports enthusiast, who represented IIMB in Sangharsh (IIML) and Sangram as part of the Institute’s Badminton team, and secured gold in Spardha and Executives’ Cup, silver in Shaurya (Men’s Singles), and bronze in Ekatva (Mixed Doubles) at IIMA. He shares that his plans revolve around leveraging his MBA education to the electronics and semiconductor sector.
Ashish comes from a family of farmers from Uttarakhand. His father had served the Indian Army and his mother is a homemaker. His younger brother trades agricultural commodities and oversees the family’s farming activities. (Image: IIM Bangalore)Ashish aspires to produce quality research in the field of operations management. “My focus areas are energy storage, energy markets and sustainability. I wish to continue my research in the areas of supply chain management, inventory management and optimization.” Ashish is the recipient of the Doctoral Student Research Paper Award 2024.
Avais Patwegar, Post Graduate Programme in Public Policy and Management (PGPPM), Gold Medallist – Best Academic Performance
Dr. Avais Patwegar, aged 38 years, is an Indian Corporate Law Service (ICLS) Officer from the 2014 batch of UPSC Civil Services. (Image: IIM Bangalore)Hailing from Maharashtra, Avais Patwegar comes from a family of doctors. He is a medical graduate himself, after which he pursued civil services. His family consists of his wife, who is an IT professional and their child. He is a poetry, photography and calligraphy enthusiast. Sharing his plans, he says, “Going ahead, I would like to leverage the knowledge and management expertise to enhance my effectiveness in public service.”
Rathani’s father was a banking professional who later turned businessman, his mother is a retired insurance professional, and his wife is a senior software engineer and cloud security expert. He also has a sister, who is a chartered accountant by profession. He says that he plans to apply the knowledge and insights he has gained to head data-driven business functions, particularly at the intersection of technology and AI, within large enterprises.
Manthan Dhabriya, Post Graduate Programme in Management (PGP), Gold Medallist – First Rank Holder
Manthan Dhabriya, aged 27 years, is a Chartered Accountant and holds a B Com degree from Narsee Monjee College of Commerce and Economics, Mumbai.Dhabriya has cleared all three levels of CFA and received multiple scholarships while at IIMB, including the DML Scholarship for being featured in the Director’s Merit List and the Mold-Tek Scholarship for being among the top three performers in the DML. Manthan aspires to build a career in finance, helping innovative and impactful businesses scale while delivering superior risk-adjusted returns to investors.
Born and raised in Mumbai, Manthan comes from a family with roots in Rajasthan. His father runs a tax and audit consultancy firm in Mumbai, while his mother is a homemaker. He has two sisters – one is a practicing Company Secretary and the other, a dentist. As per Media Report
