Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari Awards Civil Honors to 125 Distinguished Individuals

Islamabad: President Asif Ali Zardari conferred Pakistan’s prestigious civil awards on a total of 125 distinguished personalities, both Pakistani nationals and foreigners, in recognition of their exceptional services to the country across various fields. The awards were presented during an investiture ceremony held today at Aiwan-e-Sadr in Islamabad.

According to Radio Pakistan, the event was attended by notable dignitaries, including Chairman Senate Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani, Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, First Lady Aseefa Bhutto Zardari, federal ministers, parliamentarians, diplomats, and prominent figures from civil society, along with a large audience. Among the awards, three individuals were posthumously honored with the Nishan-e-Imtiaz for their outstanding contributions, including the late Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan and Irfan-ul-Haq Siddiqui.

The ceremony saw eight personalities receiving the Hilal-e-Shujaat, while sixteen were awarded the Hilal-e-Imtiaz, among them Sardar Awais Ahmad Khan Leghari and Shahid Khan Afridi. The Sitara-e-Imtiaz was awarded to the Ambassador of Bahrain, Mohamed Ebrahim Mohamed Abdul Qader, and thirty-eight individuals, including late Senator Hidayatullah, received the Sitara-e-Jurat for their acts of bravery.

The awards also included twenty-two Sitara-e-Imtiaz honors to distinguished figures such as Secretary Interior Captain (Retd) Khurram Agha and Secretary Energy Dr. Muhammad Fakhar-e-Alam Irfan. TV actors Rashid Waheed Khawaja and Zahid Ahmad received the Presidential Award of Pride of Performance, while Muhammad Saeed Sheikh was conferred the Sitara-e-Khidmat.

Assistant Director Intelligence Bureau Shahid Hussain received the Tamgha-e-Shujaat, and thirty-four individuals, including IG Sindh Javaid Akhtar Odhoo, were honored with the Tamgha-e-Imtiaz for their notable services to the nation.