The 5th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas ended in New Delhi on Tuesday with the conferment of the Pravasi Samman Awards to 15 people of Indian origin by President A P J Abdul New Delhi's Vigyan Bhavan.
The awardees are:
- Gopal Raju (US) for his contribution in the field of media.
- Lord Diljit Rana, MBE and member of the House of Lords, for furthering India's interests and enhancing the understanding of India.
- Dave Sukhdip Singh Hayer (Canada) for his contribution in the field of public Service.
- Dr M Anirudhan (US) for his outstanding contribution towards furthering Indo-US relations and dedicated service to the Diaspora.
- Billy Nair (South Africa) for his exemplary role in the fight against apartheid and for his dedicated service to the community.
- Pheroze Nowrojee (Kenya) for his immense contribution to the community.
- Nirmal K Sinha (US) for his contribution to India's causes and services to the Diaspora.
- Dr K R Somasundram (Malaysia) for his public service and contribution to the Diaspora.
- Kenneth Benjamin (Jamaica) for enhancing the understanding of India in the Caribbean region.
- Sibabrata Roy (Germany) for community service.
- Syed M Salahuddin (UAE) for his contribution in the field of business philanthropy and culture.
- Dr B R Shetty (Abu Dhabi) for his business acumen and services to the Diaspora.
- Moti Tikaram (Fiji) for his outstanding achievements in the field of legal and juridical services and contribution to the community.
- Abdul Magid Abdool Karim Vakil (Portugal) for his contribution to the field of business and enhancing the understanding of India.
- Dr P Jayaraman (US) for his dedication towards the dissemination of Indian culture and his outstanding contribution to the Diaspora.
Two of the awardees -- Billy Nair from South Africa and Sibabrata Roy from Germany -- were unable to make it for the presentation.
Earlier, President Kalam, who received a thunderous applause from the 2,500 delegates and guests in the auditorium, walked up to hug a visually handicapped musician who led a team of young schoolgirls while singing the national anthem and then a song based on a poem written by the President.
The annual three day summit was started in 2002 to give the Indian Diaspora a platform to interact and to forge and revive ties with the land of their origin.
