Several Indian-origin people, including daughter of former President of Singapore SR Nathan and chief executive in the office of Supreme Court Juthika Ramanathan, were honoured for their contributions to the development of the nation during the National Day Awards of Singapore.
During the programme, former President of Singapore Tony Tan Keng Yam was given the top honour, receiving the Order of Temasek (First Class).
Altogether, 4,624 people were recognised for their significant contributions to the nation. Recipients came from varied backgrounds, including the civil service, educational institutions and grassroots organisations.
Juthika Ramachandran received the Public Administration Medal (Gold) award during the programme. She is the chief executive in the office of Chief Justice of Supreme Court of Singapore since February 1, 2013 overseeing the administration and operations of the Supreme Court. She is a former solicitor i commercial practice.
Rajan Krishnan, Chairman, Hindu Advisory Board, was honoured with Public Service Star Award. He has been associated with the Board as well as the Hindu Endowment Board for several years and has undertaken several steps for the benefit of Indian diaspora in Singapore.
He is currently the CEO of the KTC Group, which is a Singapore-based construction company with diverse interests in major earthmoving works, deep basement construction, MRT station construction, tunneling, airport development and transport infrastructure.
Other Indian-origin awardees in the Public Service Star category included Rangareddy Jayachandran, High Commissioner (Non-Resident) to Republic of Mauritius, Prof. Veerasingham Prem Kumar, Chairman, Work Injury Compensation Medical Board and Karamjit Singh, Council Member of Public Transport Council.
For promoting Tamil language in Singapore, Indian-origin Rajaram Ramasubban was given the Public Service Medal. He is the chairman of the Tamil Language Council.
He, along with volunteers and a team, organises the Tamil Language Festival every year. The month-long festival has been running for 12 years with Rajaram helming six editions.
Speaking about the importance of language, Rajaram said, “Knowing your language is important because the language is a window to the way of life that you belong to, the culture that you belong to.”
“The challenge of preserving the language lies in reaching out to youths and making it attractive for them. Volunteer work is meaningful and that the award serves as an encouragement,” he added.
The top honour of Singapore-Order of Temasek (First Class) was given to former President of Singapore Tony Tan Keng Yam. In a statement, Tan said he is “deeply humbled and greatly honoured” to receive the award.
“Together with many of my generation, I was privileged to serve my country, to see it grow and thrive. Our nation remains a work in progress, and Singapore needs the service of men and women from all walks of life to build on our strong foundations to ensure an even brighter future for our nation,” said Dr Tan in the statement
For organising the historic summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on June 12, seven teams were awarded the President’s Certificate of Commendation for their contributions including teams from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Communications and Information, Prime Minister’s Office, broadcaster Mediacorp, Singapore Police Force, Singapore Armed Forces as well as a group from 11 other government agencies that supported security operations.
List of Indian-origin persons honoured at Singapore's National Day Award cermony
Public Administration Medal (Gold)
1) Juthika Ramachandran, Chief Executive, Office of Chief Justice, Supreme Court
Public Service Star
2) Rajan Krishnan, Chairman, Hindu Advisory Board,
3) Rangareddy Jayachandran, High Commissioner (Non-Resident) to Republic of Mauritius
4) Prof. Veerasingham Prem Kumar, Chairman, Work Injury Compensation Medical Board
5) Karamjit Singh, Council Member of Public Transport Council
Public Service Medal
6) Rajaram Ramasubban, Chairman, Tamil Language Council
7) Nagaraj Sivaram, former Deputy Chairman, Accounting Standards Council
8) Perumal Arumai Chandran, Chairman, Keat Hong CC, IAEC
9) Edwin Joseph Jesunesan, Chairman, Keat Hong Zone, 6 RC
10) Veerammal, Chairperson, Nanyang CC, IAEC
11) Balasubramaniam Krishna, Chairman, Bukit Timah C2E,
12) Varatharaja Nadarajan, Chairman, Braddell Heights Zone
13) Chhabra Jaspreet Singh, Member , Neo Soon South CC
14) Santadevi, Chairperson, Pasir Ris East
15) Vinod A Devathas, Vice-Chairman, Canberra C2E
16) Sreelatha, Chairperson, Tanjong Pagar Spottiswood Park RC
17) Krishnaswamy Rajaram, Chairman, Telok Blangah CC
18) Suresh Kumar, Chairman, Fengshan CC
19) Asha, Chairperson, Mountbatten CC, IAEC
20) Rakesh Kumar Ashwani, Chairman, Sang Kang West Zone, BRC
21) Vellasamy Balachandran, Chairman, Yuhera CC, IAEC
Public Administration Medal (Silver)
22) Ranjit Kaur, Cluster Superintendent, School Division, Ministry of Education
23) Rita Rajlal, Principal, Zhenghua School, MOE
24) Naresh Kumar Rajamanickam, Director, office of Chief Science and technology,
25) Kumara Pathy Director, Corporate services, National Security Co-ordination Secretariat, PMO
26) Jasbendar Kaur, District Judge, Corporate Services Division, State Courts
Public Administration Medal (Bronze)
27) Balakrishna Vyjanthimala, Principal Fernvale Private School, MOE
28) Naderajah Viyaya Rani, Master Teacher, Academy of Singapore Teachers, MOE
29) Thavamalan Kanagaratnam, Lead specialist (Character and Citizenship Education), Student Development Curriculum Division
30) Dr Girija Veerappan, Deputy Director, School of Applied Sciences, Republic Polytechnic
31) Ponraj Sithuraj, Director, International Co-operation and Partnership Office, Cyber Security agency of Singapore
32) Ratna Kumari, Vice-Principal, Chongzheng Private school, MOE
33) Katehrina Rajah, Deputy Director, Communication and Engagement, School of Engineering, Temasek Polytechnic,
34) Roy Alpana, Director, ASEAN, Ministry of Trade and Industry