The government has nominated eight distinguished persons for Swadhinata Padak (Independence Award) 2015 in recognition of their outstanding contributions in respective fields.
The awardees include late commandant Manik Chowdhury, who made significant contributions towards organising the Liberation War in 1971 in Sylhet; late Mamun Mahmud, who was a police officer in 1971 and killed by Pakistani occupation forces for helping freedom fighters; late Shah AMS Kibria, who played an important role in the campaign for Bangladesh's war of independence in Washington; and late Prof Mozaffar Ahmed, who was an adviser to the wartime government of Bangladesh.
Besides, educationist and Prof Emeritus of Dhaka University Anisuzzaman, renowned film actor Abdur Razzak, agricultural scientist and former director general of Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute Mohammad Hossain Mondol, and eminent journalist late Santosh Gupta have been nominated as recipients of the award, said a Cabinet Division release.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will hand over the awards to the recipients at a function at Osmani Memorial Auditorium on March 25.