There were celebrations at the Manipal Institute of Technology campus as the news of formal announcement of appointment of its alumnus Rajeev Suri as the CEO Nokia trickled in.
The students were all thrilled as only a few months ago Satya Nadella, who was one year senior to Suri in Electronics and Communication engineering branch, was named the Microsoft head.
Electronics & Communication, MIT, HOD Dr Prabhakar Nayak told Deccan Herald that he is overwhelmed as any other teacher, who feels thrilled when his or her students reach the top spot.
He said that he taught Suri Transducers and Instrumentation subjects. Suri was a bright student and was always eager to know things.
Dr Narasimha Bhat, who had taught Suri, said Suri was never dependent on anyone for his work. He was intelligent in grasping knowledge, he added.
MIT Director Dr Vinod V Thomas said: “Two of the Top Fortune 500 companies being led by MIT alumni is indeed a noteworthy achievement.”
“We are overwhelmed to hear about Rajeev Suri’s appointment as the CEO of Nokia. Their contribution as leaders will not only motivate the students belonging to Manipal University but also students in all colleges across India,” Dr H S Ballal, Pro Chancellor, Manipal University, said.
Suri’s batchmate G Muralidhar Bairy, an associate professor in Bio-medical Engineering, recalled that Suri was a brilliant student and had scored 76 per cent (distinction) in the examination. “We both spoke every time after the classes and Suri is very friendly and down to earth,” he said. Bairy was in ‘A’ section, while Suri was in ‘B’ section.
Apoorv Anand, a final year Electronics and Communications (E&C) student, said: “It’s a fantastic achievement by an alumnus of this institution as Rajeev Suri has showed us a model path one can walk in life.”
High-profile alumni
“Two great high profiles (Satya Nadella and Rajeev Suri) have made the institution proud and thereby stand out as a motivational factor,” he added.
