ICRISAT alumni meet cements memories
The alumni meet was attended by more than 100 members along with their families. Photo: S Punna, ICRISAT
It was a fun-filled day for the ICRISAT alumni as more than 100 members along with their families got together to play games, reminisce, and enjoy a sumptuous meal.
“I hope you enjoyed coming back today to this fantastic facility which you helped build. What a fantastic job you have done in building this facility, not just on the infrastructure but also the community,” said Dr Peter Carberry, Director General, ICRISAT, welcoming the members of the ICRISAT Alumni Association (IAA).
Recalling his research scholar days at ICRISAT from 1982, Dr Carberry, now Chair of the Alumni Association, assured help at the organizational level to IAA in achieving its objectives.
Dr Sivakumar, President, IAA, highlighted the need for establishment of the IAA Endowment Fund, while sharing updates and future plans of the association.
This is the fifth such gathering of alumni members since 2011.
“We really relished the baked products and dishes made out of Smart Food. As former staff of ICRISAT we are really proud to see mandate crops of ICRISAT being used innovatively,” Dr Sivakumar added.
Ms Fiona Bourdin-Farrell, Director, Human Resources, ICRISAT, emphasized on the need to strengthen the alumni as it is a great asset to the organization for interactive and collaborative activities.
Mr PN Murthy, Secretary, IAA, shared details on the activities of the past year – development of the database of IAA members, and development of the IAA weblink on ICRISAT website.
Dr S Nigam and Mr P Rama Krishna, led the prayers for the departed Alumni [Between December 2017 and January 2019] – Dr YL Nene; Dr Belum VS Reddy; Ms C Geeta; Dr DG Faris; Mr Zama Sha Khan; Mr BSR Murthy; Mr B Venu Gopal; Mr M Koti Reddy; Mr U Devadaanam; Mr Ramalingeshwar Rao; and Ms. Jane Banda (East & Southern Africa Program).
Dr Suresh Pande, Dr Stan King, Mr Hameed, Mr N Ramani, Mr K Ravi Shankar and Ms Lydia Flynn looked back upon some of their best career moments and shared them with the rest of the gathering.
