Soni was born into Ravidassia family with roots in Makrana,Rajasthan,where in the mid-1800s they mined marble. His grandfather,Nanig Ram,was well known for marble-cutting and stonecraft,contributing to several important colonial projects in New Delhi,such as Viceregal Place,Durbar Hall,Legislative Chamber,etc. His father,Bankey Lal Soni,became an honorary magistrate and later a municipal commissioner (1948-1950). His mother,Kishan Devi,was from a renowned footwear industry family in Agra.[6] Soni received his higher education from some of India’s and the world’s most reputed institutions. He studied at the University of Allahabad and the University of Delhi,where he pursued his formal degrees and laid the foundation for his later diplomatic and academic career. He later went on to attend Balliol College at the University of Oxford,where he specialised in international affairs and graduated with distinction.[7]
Career
Soni joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1967 and served at several of India's diplomatic posts. Soni joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1967.In a period between 1967 and 1986,he held positions in Indian diplomatic missions in Moscow,Cairo,Kuala Lumpur,London,and the Ministry of External Affairs and Commerce in New Delhi. Then from 1994 to 1997,he served as India's High Commissioner to Jamaica,the Cayman Islands,and the Turks and Caicos Islands,as well as Ambassador to Haiti and the Dominican Republic. He was appointed as India's Head of Missions and Ambassador to Ukraine,Georgia,and Armenia,serving in that role from 1997 to 2002.[8]His most challenging assignment was as High Commissioner in Suva (Fiji),a Pacific Island country in the early 1990s,when Fiji was experiencing ethnopolitical instability. At that time in Fiji the interests of India and ethnic Indians were at stake.[9][10] Soni also served as a senior member/adviser to the three leading Indian business chambers,CII,FICCI,and ASSOCHAM.[11]For several years,he also chaired meetings with visiting heads of state,government,and ministry. Notably,in May 2010,he led a 60-member Indian business delegation as part of the Indian President’s entourage on state visits to South Africa and the Seychelles.[12][13]
Publications
Soni penned down a book named 'Untold Story of Lutyens’Delhi –A Journey to the Modern Incarnation of the City Through the Generations'. This book details the history of the decision to move India's capital to New Delhi and how it was planned,developed,and constructed at the start of the 20th century.[14][15]
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