India chooses Dilip Mahalanabis for 'Padma Vibhushan' award

Renowned Indian pediatrician Dilip Mahalanabis, who worked at refugee camps during the Bangladesh's war of liberation in 1971, gets posthumously the Padma Vibhushan award, the second highest civilian award of India.

The Indian government announced the Padma Awards mainly in three categories - Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri- on Wednesday evening for the outstanding contribution of civilians to different fields, according to official sources.

Dilip Mahalanabis was born in Kishoreganj of the then East Pakistan (now Kishoreganj district of Bangladesh) on 12 November 1934 and graduated from the Calcutta Medical College as a pediatrician in 1958.

He is well known for pioneering the use of oral rehydration therapy to treat diarrhoeal diseases when cholera broke out at refugee camps where thousands of Bangladeshi took shelter in 1971.

According to an official statement, six persons including Dr Dilip Mahalanabis gets award of the Padma Vibhushan, nine gets the Padma Bhusan and 91 receives the Padma Shri for their contribution in the fields of art, social work, public affairs, science, trade and industry, medicine, literature, education, sports and civil service.

Nineteen of the awardees are women and the list also includes two persons from the category of foreigners and 7 posthumous awardees.

These Awards are conferred by the President of India at ceremonial functions which are held at Rashtrapati Bhawan usually around March/April every year.