Eighteen distinguished personalities have received this year’s Swadhinata Padak (Independence Award), the highest civilian honour in the country.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina handed over the award at a function organised by the Cabinet Division at Osmani Memorial Auditorium in Dhaka city on Sunday.
Twelve of the award recipients got it in the category of independence and liberation war; and the remaining six others each in that of culture, agricultural journalism, medicine, social service, literature and food security.
Those who got the award in the independence and liberation war category are:
- Quazi Zakir Hasan (posthumous)
- Shaheed SMA Rashidul Hasan (posthumous)
- Shankar Govinda Chowdhury (posthumous)
- Air Vice-Marshal Sultan Mahmud Bir Uttam
- M Abdur Rahim (posthumous)
- Bhupati Bhusan Chowdhury alias Manik Chowdhury (posthumous)
- Shaheed Lieutenant Mohammad Anwarul Azim (posthumous)
- Humayun Rashid Chowdhury (posthumous)
- Shaheed Amanullah Mohammad Asaduzzaman (posthumous)
- Shaheed Motiur Rahman Mallik (posthumous)
- Shaheed Sergeant Zahurul Haq (posthumous)
- Amzadul Haq
Cultural Affairs Minister Assaduzzaman Noor got the award in culture, Channel-i director Shykh Seraj in agricultural journalism, Prof Dr AKMD Ahsan Ali in medicine, Professor AK Azad Khan in social service, Selina Hossen in literature and Dr M Abdul Mazid in food security.
Cabinet Secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam, reports UNB, read out the citations at the programme.
Among others, cabinet members, MPs, secretaries, diplomats, the award recipients were present on the occasion.