A YOUNG Indian-origin research fellow at the University of Oxford has been nominated for the Member of the British Empire (MBE) award.

Nikita Ved, 32, is chosen for the honour because of her services to public health, particularly in tackling the vaccine hesitancy during the Covid-19 pandemic.

She has co-founded the 1928 Institute, a not-for-profit University of Oxford spin-out designed to represent British Indians and analyse emerging events in the Indian sub-continent and within its diaspora.

The fellow at the Royal Society of Arts said she was “thrilled and humbled” to receive recognition.

“Although myself and others have reservations on the phrase ‘Member of the British Empire’, I am accepting this award in the spirit of being acknowledged, particularly at my age as I feel many young people are overlooked for their hard work.”

With an academic background in diabetes and cardiovascular research, Ved is an expert in pregnancy complications.

In 2015, she helped develop a therapy to treat diabetes-induced blindness. The researcher was part of a team that discovered anaemia during pregnancy causes unforeseen birth defects, linking it to the development of congenital heart defects.