The Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad (IIMA) recently welcomed the 59th class of the Post Graduate Programme in Management (PGP) and the 23rd class of the Post Graduate Programme in Food and Agribusiness Management (PGP-FABM). The PGP and PGP FABM Class of 2024 comprises 444 students (397 in the PGP and 47 in the PGP-FABM) from diverse backgrounds, disciplines, ages and experiences.
The Director, Dean (A & ER), Chairpersons of other programmes, and faculty members attended the ceremony, which was held at the Institute’s famed Ravi J Matthai auditorium. After 2019, this was the first formal inauguration.
The whole IIMA community, from teachers to staff, exuded excitement and enthusiasm as they welcomed the newest class to the Institute after a two-year absence.
In his inaugural address, Prof Errol D’Souza, Director of IIMA, spoke about the importance of culture as an intrinsic value and advised students to use it for character building, self-actualisation and to set a long-term vision during their two-year program.
“It requires you to be aware of your biases, your prejudices, and understand that you are privileged. The fact that you are in an Institution like this makes you privileged and therefore you need to use those privileges wisely. It requires you to have a sense of service, when you do something, it is not just for yourself, it is for your friends and family, and the world at large. And that is the culture that we hope you will imbibe at this Institute,” he said.
As many as 66.5% of the 397 PGP students are engineers while 33.5% come from non-engineering fields like the arts, sciences and business. The class’s average age of 23 years has not altered. There are 47 students in the PGP – FABM class with backgrounds in food, agriculture and related fields. The average age of this group has risen from 22 to 23 years over the previous two years. In the PGP and PGP-FABM classes, women make up 23% and 38% of the pupils, respectively.
Prof Kirti Sharda, Chairperson of the PGP, said, “The PGP Programme at IIMA has created outstanding business leaders and managers, and remarkable entrepreneurs who have been trailblazers in their respective fields.”
Prof Sharda said it is, “Equally inspiring have been the journeys of some of the finest minds across PGP batches who crafted very interesting careers in the world of sports, writing, academics, government and policy, and not-for-profit ventures. We hope that the incoming students experience a transformational and enriching journey with the opportunities provided by the PGP programme.”
Addressing the new batches, PGP-FABM Chairperson, Prof Vineet Virmani said, “As the institute’s only two-year programme in management offering a specialization, PGP-FABM equips students with skills that go beyond general management and prepares them for careers in industries ranging from food marketing to agri-technology to agri-entrepreneurship. I am excited to welcome the PGP-FABM class of 2022-24, which is an eclectic mix of students coming from some of India’s top colleges in the field of agriculture, dairy, food and horticulture studies. With most of the batch in the age group of 21 to 25 years, it is a good mix of enthusiastic fresh graduates and experienced professionals.”
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