‘Future leaders must blend competence with compassion’
PNS
Ranchi
The Xavier Institute of Social Service on Monday welcomed its PGDM Batch of 2026-28 during an inaugural ceremony held at the Fr Michael Van den Bogaert Auditorium. More than 300 students from the Human Resource Management, Rural Management, Financial Management and Marketing Management programmes participated in the event.
The ceremony was attended by chief guest Manish Ranjan along with Fr Ajit Kumar Xess SJ, Chairman of the Governing Board, XISS; Dr Joseph Marianus Kujur SJ, Director, XISS; and other dignitaries from academia, industry and government.
Welcoming the new batch, Dr Kujur urged students to combine professional excellence with compassion, integrity and social responsibility. Addressing the gathering, Dr Ranjan described admission to XISS as an important milestone and encouraged students to focus on self-discovery, leadership development and lifelong learning. Fr Xess highlighted the importance of stepping beyond comfort zones and becoming ethical leaders capable of creating a positive impact on society.
A key highlight of the programme was the presentation of the Maruti Suzuki–XISS Awanish Kumar Dev Memorial Scholarship, instituted jointly by XISS and Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. in memory of late Awanish Kumar Dev, an alumnus of the institute and former General Manager (Plant HR) at the company.
Kaushiki Upadhyay, Sarika Chourasiya and Rashmi Agarwalla of the HRM Batch 2025-27 received the scholarship, with each awardee receiving ₹1 lakh in recognition of academic excellence and leadership potential.
The programme concluded with the national anthem, followed by an interaction between parents, institute officials and programme heads.
