The government has announced the names of 24 citizens, including three scientists of the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI), for this year’s Ekushey Padak.
The Ministry of Cultural Affairs made the announcement through a press release on Thursday.
BRRI’s Dr Md Enamul Huq, Dr Shahanaj Sultana and Dr Jannatul ferdous are getting the Ekushey Padak as a team this year in research.
Mustafa MA Momin (posthumous), Mirza Tofazzol Hossain Mukul (posthumous) will be awarded for their contribution to the Language Movement, and Zinat Barkatullah, Nazrul Islam Babu (posthumous), Iqbal Ahmed, Mahmudur Rahman Benu, Khaled Mahmud Khan (posthumous), Afzal Hossain and Masum Aziz in arts.
Meanwhile, Freedom Fighter Md Motiur Rahman, Syed Moazzem Ali (posthumous), QABM Rahman, Amzad Ali Khandaker will get the award for their contribution to the Liberation War, MA Malek in journalism, Md Anwar Hossain in science and technology, Prof Gautam Buddha Das in education, SM Abraham Lincoln and Sangharaj Gyanasree Mahather in social work, Kamal Chowdhury, Jharna Das Purkayastha in language and literature, and Dr Md Abdus Sattar Mandal in research.
The Ekushey Padak is the second highest civilian award in Bangladesh, introduced in memory of the martyrs of the Language Movement of 1952.
The award is given to recognize contributions in a number of fields, including culture, education and economics. The Ministry of Cultural Affairs administers the award.