PNN
Noida (Uttar Pradesh) [India], August 11: Twenty-eight years ago, IMS Noida opened its doors with a modest campus and an ambitious idea: that education, done right, could shape not just careers but character. On August 8, that idea returned through the same gates in the form of 28 alumni who now lead companies, courtrooms, newsrooms, and creative studios across India and beyond. The institute marked the occasion with the IMS & DIA Alumni Leadership Honours 2026, a landmark evening themed "28 Years, 28 Leaders," bringing together CXOs, entrepreneurs, legal luminaries, media professionals, and design innovators - all of whom trace their journeys back to a single campus in Noida.
The evening was more than a felicitation ceremony; it was a homecoming. Alumni spanning the institute's earliest batches from the early 2000s to graduates as recent as 2025 shared the same stage, forming a living timeline of what the institute has quietly built over nearly three decades.
"We didn't set out to build just an institution; we set out to build people who could go anywhere and lead. Every one of our alumni carries a piece of that vision forward, and this evening was our way of saying: you were the point all along," said Rajeev Kumar Gupta, President, IMS Noida.
A Legacy Written by Its Own Graduates
Among those who returned was Piyush Gaur (BALLB, 2004-09), one of the institute's earliest law graduates, who now serves as Senior Counsel at the Central Administrative Tribunal, New Delhi - a marker of how far the very first cohorts have travelled. From the same law program, Gaurav Mishra (2008-13) now serves as Central Government Standing Counsel at the Ministry of Law & Justice, while his batchmate Tarun Khanna runs his own practice as Founder & Managing Partner of Lex Lawgical.
The institute's PGDM and MBA cohorts were represented by alumni including Ranjeet Kumar (2009-11), now Assistant Vice President - HR at AU Small Finance Bank, and Narendra Kumar Mishra, from the same batch, now Senior Advisor for Government Affairs at Caterpillar Inc., proving that the institute's early management graduates have gone on to shape both Indian and global organizations.
Journalism and media found their voice through alumni such as Abhinav Gupta (BJMC, 2010-13), now News Editor at Moneycontrol, and Pradeep Tiwari (2010-12), News Editor at Nav Bharat Times - two names now familiar to millions of readers, both first trained to ask questions on this very campus.
Also present was Dr. Yogendra Singh (MBA, 1999-2001), whose journey reflects just how deep the institute's ties to its alumni run. He currently serves as Managing Director of Singari Industries Ltd. and President of the National Management Association (NMA) and previously served as Professor & Head at JSS Academy of Technical Education, Noida. Today, he also holds the position of President of the IMS Noida Alumni Association - the very body that helped bring this evening's gathering of leaders together.
Representing the newest chapter of this story was Amit Kumar Tiwari (BBA, 2022-25), among the most recent graduates on the list, who now runs his own venture, Shree Mahadev Traders - a reminder that the spirit of the founding vision is very much alive in the institute's youngest alumni too.
These were only a handful of the 28 leaders honoured that evening - individuals who studied law, management, journalism, design, and technology on the same campus, and who now sit at the helm of banks, courts, newsrooms, global manufacturers, and their own enterprises.
A Celebration Built Around Its People
The evening opened with a Saraswati Vandana and lamp-lighting ceremony, followed by addresses from Rajeev Kumar Gupta (President) and Chirag Gupta (Vice President), along with messages from the institute's Advisor and Dean. Each honoured alumnus was felicitated with a memento, a photo frame, and a certificate of recognition, followed by a cultural program, high tea, and dinner. Video stories captured from the alumni themselves were woven into the evening, turning individual journeys into a single, shared narrative of the institute's history.
Looking Ahead
For an institute marking 28 years, the decision to celebrate through its alumni rather than through buildings or numbers was a deliberate one. It reflects a belief that has guided IMS Noida since its founding: that an institution's truest legacy is not what it builds, but who it sends into the world. As IMS Noida and IMS DIA look toward their next chapter of growth, the evening stood as both a tribute to the alumni who came before and a promise to the students walking the same corridors today that this campus will keep producing leaders for decades to come.
About IMS Noida & IMS DIA
IMS Noida and IMS Design & Innovation Academy (IMS DIA) are constituent institutions of the Unison Education and Research Foundation, offering programmes across management, law, journalism, computer applications, and design. For 28 years, the institute has built its reputation on the achievements of its alumni across industries in India and abroad. For more information on programmes and admissions, visit: https://admission.imsnoida.edu.in/
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