The Mayo College Sesquicentennial 2025

As Mayo College Ajmer celebrates its sesquicentennial in 2025, it is worth reflecting on one of its contributions to independent India — the remarkable line of Mayoites in diplomacy. The college, long admired for producing balanced, confident, and cultured individuals, has given India not only generals, administrators, and entrepreneurs, but also a cadre of diplomats who carried India’s voice with distinction across continents. Their shared schooling in Ajmer’s wide fields and classrooms imbued them with poise, discipline, and curiosity qualities that later shaped their diplomatic temperaments.

The Pioneer Generation

As India prepared for independence, it institutionalised a professional Foreign Service, on 9 October 1946 . A few Mayoites were among the earliest to take up the challenge of representing a young nation to the world.

The first among them was Lt. Col. M.K. Shardul Bikram Shah of Tehri, who joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1947. A soldier-diplomat, he had earlier served as Military Attaché to General Roy Bucher, the last British Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Army. His transition from the military to diplomacy reflected the evolving character of India’s foreign policy, disciplined yet adaptable, firm yet courteous. In his distinguished career, he served as India’s Ambassador to Ireland, Laos, Ghana, Finland, Spain, and Turkey, and as Chief of Protocol in New Delhi. His postings across three continents embodied the pioneering spirit of India’s first generation of diplomats and of Mayo itself.

Joining the service just a year later, in 1948, was Ambassador Narendra Singh Sarila, another trailblazing Mayoite. Before entering the IFS, he had served as Aide-de-Camp to Lord Mountbatten, the last Governor-General of India, giving him a rare vantage point at the dawn of Indian independence. In the Foreign Service, Sarila went on to serve in Spain, Brazil, Libya, Switzerland, and France, gaining renown for his intellectual depth and elegant diplomacy. His later writings on India’s partition and diplomacy, especially The Shadow of the Great Game, reflected a keen historian’s eye and the analytical training that Mayo had long instilled.

The Diplomat-Scholar: K. Natwar Singh

Ambassador Kunwar Natwar Singh, joined the IFS in 1953. Few Mayoites have combined diplomacy, scholarship, and politics as effectively as he did. In a distinguished career, he served as High Commissioner to Zambia and Ambassador to Poland and Pakistan, besides playing a central role in the Non-Aligned Movement and the Commonwealth Summits hosted by India. For his exemplary leadership as Secretary-General of the Non-Aligned Summit (1983) and Chief Coordinator of the Commonwealth Summit, he received the Padma Bhushan. Natwar Singh later transitioned seamlessly to politics, becoming Minister of State for External Affairs (1986–89) and later Minister for External Affairs (2004–2005). His numerous books and essays blending history, diplomacy, and memoir continued to inform and inspire.

The Expanding Footprint

After a hiatus of nearly a decade, Amb PMS Malik, who joined Mayo in 1949, entered the IFS in 1962. A true proponent of teh strength of the Global South he was the first resident Ambassador to Bahrain and then to Cuba, Tanzania, Malaysia, and Myanmar. During India's Chairmanship of the NAM he was the DPR for NAM at the Mission to the UN. When economic liberalisation came to India in 1991, he was the lead of the economic diplomacy outreach and retired as Special Secretary, Economic Relations at the MEA

Ambassador Jitender Dalat Singh joined the Foreign Service in 1963, serving later as Ambassador to Norway and in senior positions in the Ministry of External Affairs. He was followed by Ambassador Inderjit Singh Masuda (IFS 1965), who had a notably diverse diplomatic career, serving as Ambassador to Madagascar, Oman, the UAE, and Morocco, representing India at a time when it was building its partnerships across Africa and the Arab world.

In 1976, Ambassador Sanjay Singh joined the IFS, later becoming Ambassador to Iran at a particularly critical juncture in West Asia. His deep understanding of the region and his tenure as Secretary (East) in the Ministry of External Affairs reflected the continued Mayoite presence in shaping India’s global outlook.

The 1980s: A Diplomatic Renaissance

The 1980s saw a burst of Mayoites entering the Foreign Service, reflecting both a generational renewal and a widening of India’s global engagement.

Ambassador Gurjit Singh (IFS 1980) built a reputation as one of India’s leading experts on Africa and developmental diplomacy. His career spanned ambassadorial postings in Ethiopia and Djibouti (with concurrent accreditation to the African Union), Indonesia and Timor-Leste (with ASEAN), and Germany. He also served as India’s Sherpa for the early India-Africa Forum Summits, helping design the architecture of South-South cooperation with Africa. An author of several books on India’s foreign policy, Africa, and Asia, he epitomises Mayo’s commitment to intellectual inquiry and service.

Two more Mayoites joined the same decade in 1982 — Ambassador Sunil Lal and Ambassador (Dr.) J.N. Misra. Lal went on to serve as India’s envoy to Spain and Brazil, while Misra represented India in Laos and Portugal, contributing to cultural and educational diplomacy in Southeast Asia and Europe.

The last known Mayoite to join the IFS — and among the most accomplished — was Ambassador Harsh Vardhan Shringla (IFS 1984). His stellar career included postings as High Commissioner to Bangladesh, Ambassador to Thailand and the United States, and ultimately Foreign Secretary (2020–2022). Shringla played a pivotal role in steering India’s diplomacy during the COVID-19 pandemic and was the Chief Coordinator for India’s G20 Presidency in 2023, a landmark in India’s diplomatic history. His tenure embodied efficiency, clarity of purpose, and composure — attributes traceable to Mayo’s emphasis on character and leadership. He is now a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha.

The Political and Honorary Diplomats

Three other eminent Mayoites contributed significantly to India’s diplomatic profile, though they were not career members of the Foreign Service.

Major Jaswant Singh, a distinguished soldier-statesman, served as Minister for External Affairs (1998–2002). During his tenure, India conducted its nuclear tests and asserted a new global stature. His thoughtful diplomacy balanced firmness with civility, earning him international respect.

‘Bapji’ Gaj Singh of Jodhpur, President of the Mayo College Governing Council, served as High Commissioner to Trinidad and Tobago (1978–1980). His tenure revitalized India’s cultural and economic engagement with the Caribbean, highlighting the global connections of India’s princely and educational heritage.

Brigadier Sawai Bhawani Singh of Jaipur, a decorated soldier and alumnus of Mayo, was appointed as India’s first High Commissioner to Brunei (1994–1997). His personal rapport with the Sultan, built during their military training years, helped forge strong ties with the newly independent Sultanate.

A Legacy and a Pause

Interestingly, since 1984, there has been no record of Mayoites entering the Indian Foreign Service, suggesting that younger generations have diversified their professional aspirations toward business, technology, the arts, and entrepreneurship. Yet, the tradition of diplomacy remains a proud and integral part of the Mayo legacy.

The Mayoite Diplomatic Ethos

The Mayoites who served India’s diplomacy since independence shared a certain distinctive ethos, a blend of confidence without arrogance, courtesy without servility, and patriotism without parochialism. Whether in Europe, Africa, or Asia, they reflected India’s self-assurance as a civilizational power engaging the world on equal terms.

Through their careers, they witnessed and shaped India’s journey, from independence to development, from non-alignment to globalization, from the search for identity to leadership in the Global South.

As Mayo College turns 150, its diplomatic alumni stand as enduring symbols of its founding ideals, character, discipline, service, and global vision proving that an institution founded for princes in 1875 became, in time, a cradle for statesmen who carried India’s destiny into the world.

Gurjit Singh is the Former Ambassador to Germany, Indonesia, Ethiopia ASEAN and the African Union .

(Views expressed are personal)