57TH ANNUAL OLD BOYS’ REUNION

OBA Reunion Day 2026
A homecoming for every Kazhak.

The stories and photographs of OBA Day 2026, brought together for the newsletter team.

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Hosted by the Batch of 1999
Fiesta ’99 · 18 July 2026

Old Boys, teachers and families gathered in the school auditorium — Back together at Sainik School Kazhakootam.

855Reunion participants

10Alumni award presentations

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START HERE / SHORT NEWSLETTER VERSION

One-page brief

462 words · Covers the reunion and pre-reunion LAKSHYA programme

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OBA Reunion Day 2026

Sainik School Kazhakootam welcomed 855 participants — 549 Old Boys and 306 guests — for its 57th Annual Old Boys’ Reunion on 18 July 2026. Hosted by the Batch of 1999 as Fiesta ’99, the gathering brought alumni, teachers, staff and families together. Rear Admiral P. A. A. R. Sadiq, NM, was Chief Guest, with Major General Arun C. G., SM, VSM, ADG NCC, Kerala and Lakshadweep, as Guest of Honour. Online registration and QR-based entry supported arrivals.

The morning included OBA flag hoisting, homage at the Hut of Remembrance, the Guard of Honour and wreath-laying at the Stupa of Remembrance. Guruvandanam honoured former teachers, while the commemoration meeting recognised achievement and service. Amarveer, an audio-visual tribute, remembered alumni who lost their lives in military service.

Seven PC Satish Chandran Memorial Lifetime Achievement Awards and three Fg Offr MP Anil Kumar Memorial Achiever of the Year Awards were presented. The OBA Executive Committee instituted two NCC rolling trophies in memory of Col N. J. Nair, AC, KC, and Capt R. Harshan, AC. Funded by the Batches of 1967 and 1997, they were presented to the NCC Directorate.

The literary programme featured Being NBN, compiled by Pradeep Nair B in memory of his father, N. Balakrishnan Nair, and Kazhak Ormakal by former teacher Sudhalekshmi Miss. Smash ’99, the indoor badminton court gifted by the Batch of 1999, was inaugurated. School-mess lunch, alumni-versus-cadets sport and children’s activities added to the day’s fellowship.

At the Special General Meeting, members unanimously approved a bylaw amendment and an Election Standard Operating Procedure enabling electronic voting, paving the way for the OBA’s first online Executive Committee election. The Millennium Batch of 2000 presented its plans for the 2027 hosting year, covering learning resources, cadet development, sport, wellness, Guruvandanam and cultural activities, to be developed with the OBA and school authorities.

The official OBA Reunion Dinner, organised and hosted by the Executive Committee at the Southern Air Command Officers’ Mess, brought together 311 participants. Included in the official reunion programme for the first time, it extended the day’s opportunity to reconnect.

The hosting year also included Project Lakshya mentoring and GTO training, Project Udaan entrance guidance, a staff medical camp, community meals in memory of Gokul, LitFest, the Kazhak rap and short-film invitation, and Jashn. The first NDA/NA Cadets’ Homecoming was an OBA Executive Committee initiative conducted by the Batch of 1999.

Pre-reunion Project LAKSHYA: On 11 July, the Batch of 1999 organised an interaction with Lt Cdr Dilna K, Shaurya Chakra, Lt Cdr Roopa A, Shaurya Chakra, and Everest summiteer Mrs Zuhra C. Their experiences and a lively question-and-answer session inspired cadets. School leaders, staff, batch and OBA representatives attended, and the school and hosting batch jointly presented mementos. The guests’ alumni-family connections made the occasion especially meaningful.

01 / THE STORY

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Project LAKSHYA (Pre-OBA Day)

Project LAKSHYA brings inspiring achievers to the cadets

On 11 July 2026, a week before OBA Reunion Day, the Batch of 1999 organised an inspirational interaction at Sainik School Kazhakootam under Project LAKSHYA. The programme brought cadets together with Lieutenant Commander Dilna K, Shaurya Chakra, Lieutenant Commander Roopa A, Shaurya Chakra, known for their historic circumnavigation expedition, and Everest summiteer Mrs Zuhra C.

The guests shared experiences of courage, perseverance and teamwork, followed by an engaging question-and-answer session with the cadets. Sainik School Kazhakootam and the Batch of 1999, OBA, jointly presented mementos to the speakers.

Principal Col Dhirendra Kumar, Administrative Officer Cdr Abraham Philip, faculty and non-teaching staff, representatives of the Batch of 1999 and the OBA Executive Committee, and the school’s cadets attended.

The occasion also highlighted the school’s wider family connections: Lt Cdr Dilna K is the wife of Cdr Dhanesh of the Batch of 2007, while Mrs Zuhra C is the wife of Mr Sirajudeen of the Batch of 2002. Their achievements brought inspiration close to home and made this pre-reunion initiative especially meaningful for the cadets.

Collage of the Project LAKSHYA achievers interaction and cadets on 11 July 2026 — Project LAKSHYA · Inspirational interaction, 11 July 2026.

02 / THE PICTURE DESK

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03 / TAKE IT TO THE LAYOUT DESK

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ONE-PAGE WORD DOCUMENTBrief newsletter reportThe concise version covering all main topics → WORD DOCUMENTMaster newsletter reportEditable article for the newsletter → TEXT FILEPhoto shortlist & captionsFilenames, captions and original Drive links → WORD DOCUMENTEditorial notes & fact checkSources, checks and unresolved details → TEXT / MARKDOWNDetailed photo notesSelection guidance and caption checks →

LOGOS FOR THE NEWSLETTER

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SSKZM OBA

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Fiesta ’99 · Batch of 1999

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04 / BEFORE PUBLICATION

Editorial checks

Book title: SUBI8724.JPG shows a wrapped book. Confirm that it is Kazhak Ormakal before naming the title in its caption.

Names & credits: Confirm the people receiving awards, trophy dedications and photographer credits. Each photo includes its own check note.

Coverage: The selected album covers the campus reunion. The school-mess photographs show lunch; they should not illustrate the evening OBA dinner.

Read the article’s source and fact-check notes

Fiesta 99 Editorial Notes and Fact Check

Research record | 28 October 2026

The master is an editable revision of the recovered Version 4. It is ready for editorial adaptation; programme-only details below still need confirmation before publication. No speeches, match results, individual reactions or ceremony participants have been invented.

Sources and evidence

S1 OBA Annual Report 2025–26

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1wVrQ06Z184kcqwFVTbzTDnX8KLmzozy-dt46qyFDLkw/edit

Sections 6.1, 6.2, 6.6, 6.8 and 6.13; Annexure B. Retrospective organisational record.

S2 OBA Reunion Day 2026 Financial Report

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1q4von7-gW-GApaAURcw3JUsNl0eKwxPXnTtKhA83Ibk/edit

Attendance Summary. Retrospective counts; two duplicate day payments were deduplicated for attendance.

S3 57th AGBM Record of Proceedings

https://docs.google.com/document/d/17oyWAUJ4UQCd10kQh02hh8u9YxPfTU-9Z-7jQSzG3Sk/edit

Meeting on 20 September; record dated 30 September 2026. Part B items 3 and 4 corroborate reunion and first online election.

S4 Official Fiesta website

https://fiesta.kazhaks.com/

Mixed evidence: initiative status cards include updates, but most programme entries still use future tense. A schedule does not prove completion.

S5 Recap OBA Day 2026 chat and supplied handover

Chat ID 6ae19cfb-9294-83ee-9510-eb1354a5b180

Version 4 recovered from response d695b8ec-9270-46c0-adc2-27ff71744602. Original preserved without editorial alteration.

S6 Reunion photographs folder

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1gI1wd3HXWabTtwzZdleno9CSW3r8YLIa

First 100 file records inventoried only. Folder may contain more; files include copies. Images have not been visually identified or credited.

Confirmed details and attribution

Date and event: Saturday, 18 July 2026; 57th reunion at Sainik School Kazhakootam, hosted by the Batch of 1999. S4 and S5; S1 confirms the hosting batch and completed reunion.

Attendance: day 549 Old Boys + 306 guests = 855; dinner 227 + 84 = 311 (S2). Do not add 855 and 311 as unique people: the groups overlap.

Guests: Rear Admiral P. A. A. R. Sadiq, NM, Chief Guest; Major General Arun C. G., SM, VSM, Guest of Honour and ADG NCC Directorate (Kerala and Lakshadweep). S1 section 6.1.

Dinner: first formal inclusion in official programme (S1). EC organisation and hosting are explicit in S5. Venue wording agrees between S4 and S5; obtain the mess invitation or bill to settle its precise formal designation.

NCC trophies: OBA institution, sponsorship by 1967 and 1997 Batches, ₹65,000 each and presentation to NCC Directorate confirmed in S1 section 6.8. Do not imply that each batch sponsored a specifically named trophy without further evidence.

Online registration and QR entry for the campus function and dinner: S1 section 6.1. July SGM unanimous approval of electronic voting: S1 section 6.2. September AGBM and online election outcome: S3.

Homecoming: OBA EC initiative, first edition conducted by the 1999 Batch (S1 section 6.6). Retain both credits.

Batch projects: S1 section 6.13 records Udaan webinar, court construction, community meals, Amarveer, employee medical camp and Lakshya. S4 marks Smash ’99 inaugurated on 18 July, and Jashn completed; this is an organiser website update, not independent ceremony evidence.

Award recipients

Names, roll numbers, batch labels and award categories below follow S1 Annexure B. Brief descriptions paraphrase the citations and are available for a separate newsletter awards panel. They are not independent verification of every biographical claim.

PC Satish Chandran Memorial Lifetime Achievement Awards

Late Shri Sampath Kumar Thothathri (507/1970). Entrepreneurship and environmental technology using diatom algae.

Sri G. Jayakumar (892/1978–79). Long service to OBA administration, records and alumni links.

Shri Benny John (1098/1981). Public service in the Indian Revenue Service.

Lt Gen M. Unnikrishnan Nair, PVSM, AVSM, SM (Retd) (1055/1981). Army communications and national cyber security.

Lt Col Korath V. Mathew (Retd) (1099/1980–81). Military service and public digital services.

Air Marshal R. Radhish, PVSM, AVSM, VM (Retd) (1130/1981). Military aviation, command and training.

Air Commodore B. S. Krishna Kumar, KC (Retd) (1076/1981). Helicopter operations and rescue service.

Fg Offr MP Anil Kumar Memorial Achiever of the Year Awards

Lineesh N (2758/1998). Support for school hockey, coaching and equipment.

Dr Binoy D S (2425/1993). Handball coaching at Services and national levels.

Dr Cecil Kunnappilly (2785/1997). Emergency medical intervention aboard a flight on 17 January 2026.

Naming checks: S1 elsewhere uses Jayakumar (892/1979), while the citation says 1978–79. The citations use 1980–81 for Korath V. Mathew. Cecil’s surname also appears as Kunnapilly in the membership annexure. Use Annexure B provisionally and obtain recipient confirmation for the final awards panel.

Checks before publication

Opening ceremonies

Confirm actual flag hoisting, homage, Guard of Honour, wreath-laying, Guruvandanam location and retiring-staff felicitation from photographs or the organiser’s final report. Master describes the programme without claiming a precise minute-by-minute sequence.

Books

S4 and S5 support titles and authors, but S4 is a launch announcement. Confirm both launches occurred; identify who released and received each book; check Sudhalekshmi or Sudhalakshmi against the cover. Confirm whether Pradeep’s title-page credit is author, editor or compiler. Master says literary programme, not completed release ceremony.

NCC presentation

Overall presentation is confirmed by S1. Confirm individual presenters, receiving officer, exact trophy names and award categories with NCC documentation. Master omits unverified handover choreography.

Smash 99

The organiser website says inaugurated on 18 July. Verify inaugurating dignitary and any plaque wording. The master omits the claim that the Chief Guest inaugurated it until confirmed.

Amarveer and next of kin

The project is confirmed. Screening on the day and felicitation of next of kin are programme items; identify actual attendees before adding completed-event wording or captions.

Games and lunch

Do not convert every scheduled sport into a completed match. Obtain actual events, standout moments and results. The pork menu is an announcement; the master avoids claiming specific food was served.

Other contributions

Prabhasudhan (3577/2004) announced ten library copies of Greedy Primates. Add a completed-donation sentence only after a receipt, photograph or organiser confirmation.

LitFest and Jashn

Retain proportionate hosting-year context. Confirm LitFest dates, submissions and results before describing winners; confirm Jashn date. Do not imply all related initiatives occurred on 18 July.

Speeches and dinner

Obtain recordings or approved summaries for meaningful speech content. Confirm mess designation and evening details; do not invent conversations or entertainment. Scheduled dinner time 7.30–10.30 pm is not proof of actual timing.

Photographs

Select actual files from S6, identify all named people, obtain photographer credits and check the images correspond to the described event. No photographs have been inserted into this draft.

Editorial decisions

Preserve Version 4 as the historical baseline. The revised master removes inflated language, invented scene-setting and unsupported completed-event claims. It retains the dinner as EC-hosted, separates the July SGM from the September AGBM and corrects Homecoming attribution. Awards may sit in a separate panel to keep the main feature readable.

For a shorter feature, first reduce the hosting-year projects to two paragraphs and move the SGM detail to a small accompanying item. Keep attendance, guest names, school gift, teachers and books, trophy sponsorship and dinner attribution. Final length depends on photographs and newsletter layout.