British Indians are prominently featured in King Charles III's 2024 New Year Honours List, where nearly 30 healthcare professionals, philanthropists, and community activists of Indian origin are acknowledged for their remarkable contributions.
The New Year Honours List 2024 specifically recognises individuals across the UK for their selfless service to others. Over 1,200 recipients have been awarded for exceptional achievements, with a focus on those who have generously contributed to the welfare of others. Among the awardees, 66% have demonstrated outstanding work in their communities, whether in a voluntary or paid capacity, and 48% are women.
The recipients are diverse, including dedicated community champions, sports role models, arts pioneers, healthcare workers, and advocates for young people. The Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, emphasised the importance of honouring individuals from all parts of the UK, ensuring the recognition of their fantastic contributions to the country.
The honours system, inclusive of all of UK society, recognises 1,227 people in various categories:
1,073 at BEM, MBE, and OBE levels, with 377 at BEM, 460 at MBE, and 236 at OBE.
66% of the recipients have excelled in their communities.
63.4% of the recipients reside outside London and the South East.
588 women, representing 48% of the total, are recognised.
Ethnic diversity is also acknowledged, with 13.8% of successful candidates coming from minority backgrounds:
7.4% from an Asian ethnic group.
4.8% from a black ethnic group.
0.8% from a mixed ethnic background.
0.6% from another ethnic background.
Sir Sajid Javid, the former cabinet minister whose decision to quit Boris Johnson’s government triggered a wave of resignations that ultimately led to the then prime minister stepping down, has received a Knighthood in the New Year honours. The MP for Bromsgrove, who served Johnson as chancellor and later as health minister before quitting in July 2022, became a Knight Bachelor.
In a notable inclusion, a senior British Sikh medical professional, Dr Amritpal Singh Hungin, with over 30 years of general practice experience, has been knighted for his services to medicine. He joins the ranks of nearly 30 Indian-origin healthcare professionals, philanthropists, and community activists recognised for their selfless service to society.
Dr.Hungin, also known as Professor Pali Hungin, has a distinguished career, including serving as the founding dean of medicine at Durham University and as a former president of the British Medical Association (BMA).
The honours list features other distinguished individuals, including recipients of the Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) like Dr Chandra Mohan Kanneganti and Dr Mala Rao, and Order of the British Empire (OBE) recipients such as Baldev Parkash Bhardwaj, Dr. Dipankar Datta, Munir Patel, Dr Shriti Pattani, Rajwinder Singh, and Vinaichandra Guduguntla Venkatesham.
Notable British Indian awardees at the MBE level include Dr Sanjay Bhandari and Jayshree Rajkotia. Additional MBE recipients of Indian origin include Tajinder Kaur Banwait, Dr Manav Bhavsar, Nilesh Bhasker Dosa, Dr Dinendra Singh Gill, and Dr Gian Parkash Gopal.
The list further acknowledges individuals like Jasdeep Hari Bhajan Singh Khalsa, Dr Meenakshi Nagpaul, and Satish Manilal Parmar, demonstrating the diverse contributions of the Indian-origin community across various fields.
New Year Honours List 2024
Knighthoods
Professor Amritpal Singh HUNGIN OBE DL Emeritus Professor of General Practice, Newcastle University. For services to Medicine (Stockton on Tees, County Durham)
The Rt. Hon Sajid JAVID MP Member of Parliament for Bromsgrove. For Political and Public Service (London, Greater London)
Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE)
Dr Chandra Mohan KANNEGANTI General Practitioner, Goldenhill Medical Centre, Stoke-on-Trent. For services to General Practice (Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire)
Dr Mala RAO OBE Senior Clinical Fellow, Imperial College London. For services to Public Health, the NHS, and to Equality and Diversity (Colchester, Essex)
Bidesh SARKAR Chief Financial Officer, Department for Business and Trade. For Public Service (London, Greater London)
Order of the British Empire
Naguib KHERAJ Chair, Rothesay Limited. For services to Business and to the Economy (London, Greater London)
Baldev Parkash BHARDWAJ For services to the community in Oldbury, West Midlands (Oldbury, West Midlands)
Dr Dipankar DATTA Chair, South Asia Voluntary Enterprise. For services to Charity (Newton Mearns, Renfrewshire)
Dr Shriti PATTANI Lately President, The Society of Occupational Medicine. For services to Occupational Health (London, Greater London)
Rajwinder SINGH Principal Project Sponsor, Prison Infrastructure Team, Ministry of Justice. For Public Service (Leicester, Leicestershire)
Dr Sabesan SITHAMPARANATHAN FREng Founder and President, PervasID and Enterprise Fellow, Girton College, University of Cambridge. For services to Innovation Technology (Cambridge, Cambridgeshire)
Ushaben Ladwa THOMAS Race Adviser, Welsh Government. For services to Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic Communities (Cardiff, South Glamorgan)
Vinaichandra Guduguntla VENKATESHAM Chief Executive Officer, Arsenal Football Club. For services to Sport (Hertford, Hertfordshire)
Zehra ZAIDI For services to International Development, to Humanitarian Action and to Community Cohesion (Longhope, Gloucestershire)
Taslima Parveen AHMAD Founder, Creative Design and Manufacture UK. For services to Disadvantaged People and to the Minority Ethnic Community (London, Greater London)
Shabnam AHMED BUTT Lead for Adult Safeguarding, Camden London Borough Council. For services to Social Care (London, Greater London)
Tajinder Kaur BANWAIT Founder, Urban Apothecary London. For services to Business and to the Beauty Industry (Huddersfield, West Yorkshire)
Dr Sanjay BHANDARI Chair, Kick It Out. For services to Sport (Potters Bar, Hertfordshire)
Dr Manav BHAVSAR Lately Clinical Lead, Critical Care. For services to Healthcare, particularly during Covid-19 (Londonderry, County Borough of Londonderry)
Nilesh Bhasker DOSA Founder, icanyoucantoo. For services to Social Equality (London, Greater London)
Dr Dinendra Singh GILL For services to Pre-Hospital and Trauma Care in Wales (Cardiff, South Glamorgan)
Dr Gian Parkash GOPAL Founder, Oxford Hindu Temple and Community Centre Project. For services to the Hindu Community and to Multi-Faith Cohesion in Oxfordshire (Abingdon, Oxfordshire)
Permjit GOSAL (PAM GOSAL) MSP Member of the Scottish Parliament for West Scotland. For services to Business, to Racial Equality and to Charity in Milton Keynes (Dunbartonshire)
Zahid HAMID Lately Member, Peak District National Park Authority. For services to National Parks (Sheffield, South Yorkshire)
Anoushé HUSAIN Ambassador, Ehlers Danlos Support UK, LimbPower and Disability Champion. For services to People with Disabilities (London, Greater London)
Azara ISSIFU Independent Family Group Conference Coordinator, London Borough of Camden. For services to Children and Families, and to the community in the London Borough of Camden (London, Greater London)
Dr Muhayman JAMIL Founder, Wheels and Wheelchairs. For services to People with Disabilities (London, Greater London)
Rizwan JAVED Station Assistant, MTR Elizabeth Line. For services to Vulnerable People (London, Greater London)
Jasdeep Hari Bhajan Singh KHALSA Founder, The Sikher Project. For charitable services to the Sikh Community (London, Greater London)
Huda Yassin MOHAMED Female Genital Mutilation Specialist Lead Midwife, Whittington Health NHS Trust. For services to Midwifery (London, Greater London)
Dr Meenakshi NAGPAUL (Meena Thakur) General Practitioner, Honeypot Medical Centre and Clinical Director, Harrow East Primary Care Network. For services to the NHS (London, Greater London)
Satish Manilal PARMAR Senior Policy Adviser, Department for Work and Pensions. For Public Service (London, Greater London)
Jayshree RAJKOTIA Trustee and Vice Chair, Bharatiya Vidhya Bhavan, Institute of Indian Art and Culture. For services to Indian Culture (London, Greater London)
Sadia SADIQ Manager, Community Care and Wellbeing Services. For services to Minority Ethnic Communities in Wales (Cardiff, South Glamorgan)
Majida Aly SAYAM Founder and Director, Jannaty Women's Social Society. For charitable services to Ethnic Minority Women (London, Greater London)
Yassamin SHEEL National Lead, United Teaching, Greater Manchester. For services to Children (Rochdale, Greater Manchester)
Dr Hamsaraj Gundal Mahabala SHETTY Consultant Physician, University Hospital of Wales. For services to Stroke Services in Wales (Cardiff, South Glamorgan)
Nirmal SINGH Chaplain, North West Prisons HM Prison and Probation Service. For services to Community Development and Interfaith Integration (Preston, Lancashire)
Dr Muhammad Saleem Khan TAREEN Psychiatrist, Northern Health and Social Care Trust. For services to Mental Ill Health and to Community Development in Northern Ireland (Belfast, City of Belfast)
Suman VOHRA Vice Chair, Edinburgh Hindu Mandir and Cultural Centre. For services to the community in Edinburgh (Edinburgh, City of Edinburgh)
Rasheed ALAWIYE Detective Inspector, Metropolitan Police Service. For services to Policing, and to Diversity and Inclusion (London, Greater London)
Medal of the Order of the British Empire (BEM)
Dr Jahangir ALOM Doctor and Campaigner, NHS. For services to Tackling Health Inequalities, particularly during Covid-19 (London, Greater London)
Waqas ARSHAD Chair, Bradley Big Local. For services to Families with Mental Health Issues in Lancashire (Nelson, Lancashire)
Saeqa ASHRAF For services to Law Enforcement (London, Greater London)
Chandra Shekhar BIYANI Consultant Urological Surgeon, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. For services to Medical Education (Wakefield, West Yorkshire)
Asad Mehmood BUTT Volunteer, Chance to Shine. For services to Young People and to the community in the London Borough of Croydon (London, Greater London)
Dr Shara COHEN Chief Executive Officer, Honnao Ltd. For voluntary services to Women in STEM and to Cancer Patients and their Families (London, Greater London)
Harbaksh Singh GREWAL Vice Chair, UK Punjab Heritage Association. For services to Punjabi and Sikh Heritage, and to Charity (Hastings, East Sussex)
Sundeep KAUR Director, United Sikhs. For services to the community in the West Midlands during Covid-19 (Kingswinford, West Midlands)
Azam Ahmed KHAN Executive Officer, Department for Work and Pensions and Founder, The Akhirah Team. For Charitable Services (Leeds, West Yorkshire)
Mahbubur RAHMAN For services to Charity and to the community in Oldham, Greater Manchester (Oldham, Greater Manchester)
Rehana Khanam RAHMAN For services to the Bangladeshi Community (London, Greater London)
Sanjay SHAMBHU Councillor, South Gloucestershire Council and Chair, BAME Conservatives. For Political Service (Patchway, Gloucestershire)
Versha SOOD-MAHINDRA Lately Dementia Lead, BUPA. For services to Community Cohesion and to People with Dementia in Cardiff (Cardiff, South Glamorgan)
Army: Members of the Order of the British Empire (MBE)
Major Kamal Gurung
Diplomatic Service: Commanders of the Order of the British Empire (CBE)
Dipak Parbhubhai Karadia. Team Leader, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. For services to National Security.
Scottish Office: King's Police Medal (KPM)
Faroque Hussain. Temporary Assistant Chief Constable, Police Service of Scotland.
