By IANS,
Dhaka : The prestigious Asiatic Society of Kolkata has chosen Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for the Indira Gandhi Gold Plaque 2009.
Indian High Commissioner to Dhaka Pinak Ranjan Chakravarty, during his farewell call on Hasina as he moves to his next posting, Sunday handed over a letter from the Asiatic Society.
The letter reads: “The Council of Asiatic Society in its meeting decided, unanimously, to confer the Indira Gandhi Gold Plaque 2009 on Sheikh Hasina, prime minister of Bangladesh.”
Hasina, as also her father and the country’s founder Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, enjoyed great rapport with Indira Gandhi, who played an important role in Bangladesh’s independence in 1971.
The Asiatic Society, Kolkata, awards the Indira Gandhi Gold Plaque annually to an eminent person of global repute for significant contribution to international understanding or human progress or for inter-cultural cooperation.
The award was introduced in 1985 and former Swedish premier late Olof Palme was the first recipient. Amongst the other recipients are Mother Teresa and Nelson Mandela.
The Bangladesh premier was last month also selected for the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development, 2009.
It is likely that she will receive both awards during her visit to India next month.