UK royal honour for Indian-origin officer

LONDON: An immigration officer, a henna artist, a choreographer and several “extraordinary” professionals and individuals from the Indian community were named in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List for 2018.

The list of individuals from various walks of life named for the UK’s highest civilian honours reflects the spread of the Indian diaspora and their achievements in fields ranging from medicine to defence, finance, and the arts.

Honoured with a damehood – the female equivalent of a knighthood – were actor Emma Thompson and Mary Beard, professor of Classics at Cambridge. Historian Simon Chama and footballer Kenny Dalglish were named for knighthood, according to the list released on Friday night.

An official statement said the Queen’s Birthday Honours List recognises the achievements of a “wide range of extraordinary people” across the UK. The list is published twice a year, at new year and on the date of the queen’s official birthday (second Saturday of June).

Gargi Patel, an officer in the department of Immigration Enforcement at the Home Office in London, was honoured for services to community engagement and immigration, while Essexbased henna artist Pavandeep Ahluwalia was named for services to the beauty industry.

Cambridgeshire-based Alpana Sengupta Taylor was named for an OBE for contribution to South Asian dance. An official statement on her said: “She has created an interest and following in Kathak from audiences who had never previously seen the dance style. Her performances have received huge praise and fantastic reviews.” Individuals named for the OBE (Order of the British Empire) for work in inter-faith relations (Hindu and Sikh communities) are Dhruv Patel, Kumar Raval, Amandeep Singh Madra, Opinderjit Kaur Takhar, Jagdev Singh Virdee, Hasmukhlal Vadilal Shah and Ruxmani Thakorbhai Patel.