MP Priti Patel, has been awarded the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman - India’s highest honour for members of the Indian diaspora.
The secretary of state for international development was granted the award by the president of India, Pranab Mukherjee, for her exceptional contribution to national and international politics, her role strengthening UK-India relations, and for supporting the Indian diaspora in the UK.
The award was presented to Patel by the Indian High Commissioner to the UK, Y.K. Sinha, at special ceremony at India House in London.
Patel, who is also the first female Indian origin MP to join the cabinet, said: ‘It is a tremendous honour and privilege to be given the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman award. This is one of the highest honours a member of the Indian Diaspora can receive and I am humbled and grateful to have been given this award.
‘I have had the pleasure of working closely with so many members of the Diaspora here in the UK and with the Indian Government over a number of years. The relationship between our two great countries is getting stronger by the day as we trade more and share more cultural ties. The Indian Diaspora in the UK are fantastic at keeping this relationship strong and work hard every day to support the UK and India reach our potential.
‘The UK is fortunate to have over one and half million members of the Indian Diaspora contributing to our country. I pay tribute to all members of the Indian Diaspora in the UK and this great award serves as an inspiration to me to carry on standing up and championing the interests of the Diaspora and working to strengthen the UK’s relationship with India,’ she added.
Dhatt with sons Jasvinder and Parminder
Dhatt as a young soldier
Dhatt with the then Prince of Wales, and the late Queen
Dhatt gardening at home
Dhatt with his granddaughter Amrit
Nandy at the WAVES event in Mumbai
The culture secretary at Yash Raj Studios
With India’s foreign minister Dr S Jaishankar