Vijay Stokes at his Apple Orchard in Kotgarh

At age nine years and two months, he joined BCS in October 1948. On returning to school in March 1949, he was admitted to KG at age 9 years and nine months. Through two, half-yearly double promotions he was in Shell in 1954.  Vijay excelled in academics, but was not interested in Sports – he did participate as the oldest person in C teams – but did get the under 15 Victor Ludorum in swimming.

After leaving BCS in 1954, he matriculated privately from Panjab University (1955), and then went on to receive his ISc (1957) and BSc Engg (HONS) Mech (1961) degrees from Banaras Hindu University, and MSE (1962) and PhD (1963) degrees in Mechanical Engineering from Princeton University. At Banaras he also studied Hindustani Classical Music (Flute, 5 years; violin, 2 years).

He was on the faculty of the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, (Assistant Professor, 1964-1969; Associate Professor, 1969-1972; Professor, 1972-1978) where he served as the Head of the Mechanical Engineering Department (1974-1977) and as the Convener, Interdisciplinary Programme in Nuclear Engineering and Technology (1977-1978). On leave from IIT Kanpur, he was a Visiting Unidel Associate Professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Delaware (1970-1971), and was a Senior Staff Engineer with Foster-Miller Associates, Inc., in Waltham, MA (1971-1972).

He joined GE Corporate Research and Development in 1978, where he worked on a variety of problems including the analysis of a novel washing machine, and the analysis of a process for making amorphous metal ribbons. But his most lasting contribution was his 15year focus on mechanics issues relating to the use of plastics in load-bearing applications. He retired from GE in 2002.

Dr Stokes is the author or co-author of 91 journal publications and 68 papers in conference proceedings, and holds 28 US Patents. He has written two books, Theories of Fluids with Microstructure – An Introduction and Introduction to Plastics Engineering; has co-edited Constitutive Modeling for Nontraditional Materials; and has edited Mechanics of Plastics and Plastic Composites; Plastics and Plastic Composites: Material Properties, Part Performance, and Process Simulation; and Use of Plastics and Plastic Composites: Materials and Mechanics Issues. He also guest-edited eight special issues of Polymer Engineering and Science and three issues of Polymer Composites. He has been on the Editorial Boards of Polymer Engineering and Science, the Journal of Thermoplastic Composite Materials, the ASME Journal of Engineering Materials and Technology, Composites Engineering, and Mechanics of Time-Dependent Materials.

Dr Stokes is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, a Fellow of the Institution of Engineers (India), a Fellow of the Society of Plastics Engineers, and a Fellow of IIT Kanpur. He received two major awards from GE Corporate Research and Development: the 1990 Dushman Award for a team effort on developing a comprehensive mechanical technology for plastic parts; and the 1997 Coolidge Award for sustained, high-quality individual technical contributions.

After retiring from GE in 2002, he modernized the apple orchard started by his grandfather in the 1920s. This massive, 20-year effort to create a ‘World-class, Science-Based Apple Orchard’ involved felling prime apple trees on 50 acres, re-terracing the mountain side, scientifically planting apple trees on clonal rootstock imported from the US, and using modern pruning practices to develop more productive trees. The status of these activities till 2009 are summarized in the 38-page paper, “Rejuvenation of Apple Orchards: Experiments at Harmony Hall Orchards,” published in the June 2010 issue of the Vidhanmala, a magazine published by the Himachal Pradesh Vidhan Sabha.

For over 35 years he has been documenting the local language, culture, and music and dance of the area he grew up in. This effort includes characterizing the phonology of, and developing a script for, the local language, and making digital recordings of the three genres of folk music. Some of his insights into the local culture have been summarized in the 42-page paper, “Vanishing Cultures as of Himachal: The Example of Ilaqa Kotgarh,” in the June 2012 issue of the Vidhanmala.

He has critiqued various aspects of the Indian education system, articles on which include “150 YEARS OF BISHOP COTTON SCHOOL − An assessment of the past … and the future?” written at the Sesquicentennial of BCS; TOP ARTICLE “More Can Mean Less,” in The Times of India − a critique of rapid expansion of the IIT system; and two article in the Hill Post: “The Dire State of Our Universities”, which chronicles the continuing decline of the Indian higher-education system, and “Our Failing School Systems” which warns of an impending existential threat to our K-12 school system.

Ten acres of land inherited by him in Ilaqa Kotgarh is being donated to a charitable trust, the Satyanand Stokes Memorial Trust: On 2 acres will be a museum complex comprising the SN Stokes Museum, a Museum of Pahari Culture, a multipurpose hall in which regulation Badminton and Volleyball can be played, a recording studio, seminar rooms, guest rooms, and a cafeteria; and on 8 acres will be a world-class apple orchard.