Batch of 1932. He was one of the first six students of Modern School to be enrolled at its inception in 1920. After completing schooling at the Royal Indian Military College, he was commissioned in the 1st Rajput Regiment. During his distinguished career in the Army, he held several notable command and staff appointments. As Assistant Adjutant and Quarter Master General of the Srinagar Division during the Indo-Pak War of 1947, he was instrumental in the planning of the Battle of Zoji La. He was recalled to active duty as a Major General at the outbreak of the Sino-Indian War of 1962 at the request of the then Prime Minister. A renowned philanthropist, he founded and provided unstinting support to Cheshire Homes in India, and the World Memorial Fund for Disaster Relief and also served on several boards and trusts including the President, Board of Trustees, Modern Schools.
Class of 1953. After pursuing the Premedical Course at Delhi University, which he cleared with distinction, he earned a competitive seat at Grant Medical College, Bombay. He got commissioned into the Army Medical Corps on February 28, 1961. He holds a diploma in Clinical Pathology and MD in Pathology & Bacteriology from Poona University. Later, he earned FRCPath from the UK. During his 35 years of distinguished service, he held many appointments. Renowned in the department of pathology in Military Hospitals, he held various academic designations. In 1992, he was appointed Dean and Deputy Commandant of AFMC Pune and was subsequently elevated to Commandant of the College. In 1995, he was nominated President's Honorary Surgeon, and in 1996 the Director General of Armed Forces Medical Services.
Class of 1958. He began his journey with a 2nd all-India rank in the UPSC exams. Though he qualified for IFS, his desire to give back to the nation led him to opt for a role in the Indian Administrative Service. Remembered as an honest, hardworking, and dedicated civil servant, he worked closely with the then Haryana Chief Minister to propel tourism in the state, in his capacity as Director Tourism for the Government of Haryana. Mr. Pahwa later went on to serve as Secretary, the Ministry of Tourism and played a key role in transforming India’s tourism sector. He pioneered the concept of ‘Highway Tourism’ within India and received many accolades for it. He also worked at the Ministry of Urban Development and was part of various landmark infrastructure projects such as the development of the metro rail in India.
Batch of 1959. He got commissioned on Jan 14, 1963, in the 83 course. He rose to the rank of Gp Captain in 1985 and subsequently to Air Cmde in 1989. An alumnus of the National Defense Academy and Defense Services Staff College, during his forty-four years of flying and managing helicopters, he has operated them in practically every role. An outstanding aviator, he is an exceptional helicopter pilot. He was an Aircrew Examiner of the IAF and the DGCA. While serving as Air Officer Commanding - Air Force Station Palam, he was selected as the Chairman and Managing Director of Pawan Hans Helicopters Ltd. For his distinguished role in the 1971 Indo – Pak war, he was awarded the Vir Chakra, an Indian gallantry award presented for acts of gallantry in the presence of the enemy on the battlefield.
Batch of 1962. He is an Advisor, and Senior Consultant, at the Department of Paediatrics, Max Smart since September 23, 2021. In a career spanning over 4 decades, he offered exemplary care and medical help to infants, children, and adolescents. He completed his graduation and earned M.D. in Paediatrics from Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi. He completed two-year residency training at Children’s Hospital Medical Centre, Harvard University, Boston, U.S.A, and then a two-year fellowship in infectious disease also from Harvard University Boston. He has served as Chief Advisor and Senior Consultant of paediatrics at Rainbow Children’s Hospital, Delhi. He served as the President of the Indian Academy of Pediatrics, Delhi Branch, and was a member of the Central Executive Board of the Indian Academy of Pediatrics.
Batch of 1965. A graduate of the Indian Institute of Technology and Harvard Business School, he began his journey at IBM by heading its Financial Services Group for the ASEAN region and followed that with 18 years as CFO & COO at a leading paper, chemicals & engineering group. Further, as the founding CEO of Essar Telecom, in the nascent stages of India’s telecom revolution, he pioneered consolidation within the industry with a merger with Hutchison Whampoa. He went on to serve as the Founder Chairman of Mahindra Aerospace and helped pioneer the design, engineering, and manufacturing of utility aircraft in India and Australia. In an endeavor to give back, he founded BeanStalk Advisory to mentor young businesses to scale up.
Batch of 1965. He is a noted Indian designer, scenographer, and art curator. He is a leading design professional noted internationally for his innovative contribution to preserving the Indian Subcontinent’s rich cultural heritage. He championed the cause of creative and cultural Industries for the region, which reflects in the setting of Rajeev Sethi Scenographers Pvt. Ltd. (RSSG) and the Asian Heritage Foundation (AHF). He collaborated with the Smithsonian in various cultural representations including the Silk Road Programme. The founding Member of the Governing Council of INTACH and the National Crafts Museum, he also served as the director on the Board of the Central Cottage Industries and the National Children’s Museum. He has held several important positions in a career traversing over 5 decades. He was honored with the Padma Bhushan in 1986.
Batch of 1968. He is the former Vice Chancellor of Birla Institute of Technology, Ranchi, and has also served as the Vice Chancellor of Lucknow University. He completed his MSc. in Chemistry from IIT Delhi and earned a Ph.D. from the University of Florida. He is a post-doctoral Research Associate at the prestigious Uppsala University, University of Florida, and Princeton University. He undertook the role of Chairman of Gate in 2006 and then Institute Chair Professor in 2012. He has served on various national and international committees and bodies including as a member of the Board of Directors of IDBI Intech. He has authored 91 research publications in noteworthy journals and has delivered 92 talks on a wide range of subjects. His distinctive work earned him the Fifth Lowdin Lectureship by the Quantum Theory Project, University of Florida, USA in 2010.
Batch of 1975. He began his professional journey with ITC in 1980 as a management trainee. He was instrumental in the commissioning of ITC Kakatiya, Hyderabad, a property he also headed as General Manager. In 2000, he took charge of ITC Maurya in New Delhi, as Vice President and General Manager. He later moved to the divisional head office to head a cross- functional team as Vice President-Operational Support & Quality. Till recently, as Executive Vice President at ITC Hotels, he oversaw quality benchmarking, project completion, and pre-opening operations. He has successfully launched ITC Gardenia in Bengaluru, ITC Grand Chola in Chennai, Welcomhotel in Jodhpur, and ITC Grand Bharat in Gurgaon. He is currently working on restoring a heritage home as a visitor's center in the Western Himalayas.
Batch of 1980. A leading contemporary artist, she developed a vast multimedia repertoire over the last 25 years of practice and is best known for her lyrical and conceptual strength. A Master in Anthropology, she received her art training at the Ecole D’Art Visuels, Lausanne, and Art History at the University of Cambridge. Her work has been displayed at several prestigious festivals and foundations and is with collectors in India, the UK, Switzerland, Sri Lanka, Japan, Holland, the USA, Spain, and France. She has earned several accolades including the Raza National Award in 2005, and the Moscow Foto Award in 2013. In 2014, she received the Celeste Contemporary Art Prize Nomination. Last year she was awarded the Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant. Her latest video 'Death will come like a shadow' won the best micro short film prize at the Indo-French Film Festival 2022.
Batch of 1981. A leading senior counsel of the country, he is a highly sought-after senior counsel before the Supreme Court of India. He graduated from St. Stephen’s College with a merit ranking in the University in 1987 and was awarded the Sukhdevi Girdhari Lal Grover Prize. He completed his LLM from the University of Cambridge. In 1998, he was appointed standing counsel for the Central Government in Delhi High Court. In July 2002 at the age of 38 years, he was designated as a Senior Advocate by the Delhi High Court. He served as the Additional Solicitor General of India, at the Supreme Court of India from 2014 to 2017. He delivered an address in the 6th Palkhivala Lecture as part of the Nani Palkhivala Birth Centenary Celebrations on ‘Dignity in the Constitutional Context: A Judicial Overview’
Hon’ble Mr. Justice Rajeev Mishra, Class of 1987, Modern School, Barakhamba Road is a sitting Judge at the Allahabad High Court. He began his journey with a Bachelor in Political Science from Delhi University and thereafter completed his LLB from A.P.S. University in Rewa. Subsequently, he enrolled as an advocate with UP Bar Council in 1993. He has worked in the field of civil & revenue law for more than 20 years. He was also the special counsel for Saharanpur Municipal Corporation, Sugarcane & Seeds Development Corporation, Mathura Refinery, and IFFCO. In 2017, he was appointed as an Additional Judge of Allahabad High Court at the age of 48 years, and in 2019 he became a Permanent Judge.
Batch of 1991. The promoter, Chairman & Managing Director of Max Healthcare Institute Limited, he is credited with the remarkable transformation of the company. His excellent restructuring abilities helped Max Healthcare to become the second-largest publicly-listed hospital chain in India. Under his able leadership, FICCI awarded Max, 'The Excellence in COVID-19 Management’ for leading the battle against Covid. He forayed into healthcare in 2010 by acquiring Radiant Life Care. Radiant commissioned the long-distressed BLK Hospital and subsequently, overtook the operations of Nanavati Hospital in Mumbai in 2014. A member of the General Council of NATHEALTH, he is one of the leading voices for private healthcare in India. In 2021, he was awarded the EY Entrepreneur of the Year under the Business Transformation category.
Batch of 1995. A Nari Shakti Puraskar award winner, she is a marathon swimmer with several records to her name. Titled, the ‘Mermaid of Modern School’, she was adjudged the best swimmer with all new meet records at three consecutive School National Games. Representing India, she won a medal in the 400 meters individual medley at the 1996 Asia Pacific Age Group swimming championships in South Korea. She is the first Indian to swim around Key West in Florida and to complete the Lake Travis Solo in Texas, and the Tex Robertson Highland Lakes Challenge, where she swam across five lakes in five days. In 2018, she became the first Indian Swimmer to swim the Lake of Constance Germany. Currently an associate professor at Lady Shri Ram College, she holds three records in the Limca Book of Records