New Delhi: The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Delhi, conferred the 2017 Distinguished Alumnus Award on four leaders and eminent citizens for exceptional achievement and contribution to the society. These visionaries are: Prof. Soumitra Dutta, Dean, Cornell SC Johnson College of Business, Cornell University; Mr. Sunil Sood, Managing Director & CEO, Vodafone India Limited; Mr. Saurabh Mittal, Founder and Chairman, Mission Holdings; and Dr. Kiran Bedi, Lieutenant Governor of Pondicherry.
Distinguished Alumni Award is IIT Delhi’s most prestigious award. The award recognizes alumni who have achieved greatness in their chosen field and reached the pinnacle of success. With only 72 awardees in over 50 years of IIT Delhi’s history, prior awardees have included Vinod Khosla, billionaire venture capitalist; Raghuram Rajan, Former Governor of RBI, Jayant Sinha, Minister for Civil Aviation, among others.
Prof. Soumitra Dutta received a Bachelor of Technology Degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science in 1985 from the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi followed by Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) from University of California, Berkeley.
Mr. Sunil Sood received his Bachelor of Technology degree in Textile Technology from IIT Delhi in 1982. He is also alumnus of the IIM C and the Harvard Business School.
Mr. Saurabh Mittal received his Bachelor of Technology degree in Electrical Engineering from IIT Delhi in 1995 where he graduated as the Best Graduating Student and was awarded the Alok Saxena Memorial award. A self-made billionaire entrepreneur, Saurabh is the Founder, Chairman of Mission Holdings, his wholly owned Singapore-based global investment company. Mission Holdings invests in financial services, media, real estate and technology firms, partnering with them to grow them into sector leaders and international powerhouses.
Dr. Kiran Bedi received her Doctorate in Philosophy (Ph.D.) from Department of Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi in 1993. In honouring Dr. Kiran Bedi, IIT Delhi recognizes the outstanding contribution made by him in Public Services and Policy. Through his achievements, Dr. Bedi has brought glory to the name of the Institute.
