Individuals have an active and influential impact in their community.
The New Years Honours List has been released with a number of prolific South Asian members of the community being honoured on the list.
This year’s list, released at the start of the month, is in honour of individuals who have had an active and influential impact in their community.
Those awarded with a DBE include Mrs Asha Khemka OBE who is the Principal and Chief Executive of West Nottinghamshire College who was being honoured for services to further education.
There were also OBE awards for individuals from the South Asian community. These included Mahmood Ahmed who is the current Chair of Birmingham City Labour Party and was being honoured for voluntary political services at the council. Mrs Gill Harjagbir Bal, Headteacher at Wembley High Technology College was also being honoured or services to Education.
Others being honoured for services to Education was Headteacher of Elmhurst Primary School, Shahed Ahmed Battiwala, while Imam Asim Hafiz, a Religious Adviser and Imam at HM Armed Forces and was being honoured for services to Defence, especially in support of Afghan Operations.
Mrs Sofina Aktar Motin Islam was another Headteacher being honoured for services to Education; at current, she sits as Headteacher at the Stanton Bridge Primary School in Coventry.
Muhammad Khawar Amin Mann, founding member and Chair at the Mosaic Network was being honoured for voluntary and charitable service.
Mrs Rafaat Mughal, founder and director at the JAN Trust was being honoured for services to Disadvantaged Women and the community. Mrs Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh, current candidate for the SNP at the European elections, was being honoured for services to Business and to the Asian community.
The majority of individuals from the South Asian community in this year’s New Years Honours List were awarded with an MBE. These included Mrs Zaidah Parveen Ahmed, JP, who is a Schools Community Engagement and Cohesion Leader at Rotherham Borough Council and was being honoured for services to the community.
Ms Aysha Esakji a Prevent Officer, was being honoured for services to Challenging Extremism and Empowering and Dr Sadhu Singh Gakhal who is the Vice Chair at the British Sikh Consultative Forum was being honoured for services to the Sikh Community.
Brij-Mohan Gupta who is a Former President of the National Council of Hindu Temples was also being honoured for services to Inter-Faith Cohesion while Dr Satbir Singh Jassal a General Practitioner and Medical Director at the Rainbows Hospice for Children and Young People was being honoured for services to Palliative Care for Children and Young People.
Mrs Faiza Khan, the Deputy Chief Executive at the National Council for Voluntary Youth Services was being honoured for services to Young People.
Mrs Tapshum Pattni an Assistant Director at the Adult Social Care at Birmingham Social Services was also being honoured for services to Social Care, along with Miss Zanib Rasool, who being honoured for services to the community in Rotherham, South Yorkshire. Mrs Bisakha Sarkar was also being honoured for services to South Asian Dance in Merseyside.
While Jasvir Jassal has been awarded a British Empire medal (BEM) after being named in the New Year Honours list, for his voluntary work with the Concorde Rangers football Club, and charity campaigning work.
Members who were awarded with a CBE included Professor Ash Amin FBA who is a leading Professor of Geography at the University of Cambridge, who was being honoured for services to Social Science.
