Jan 15, 2025 08:33 PM IST
Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam awarded Tarun Das the Honorary Citizen Award for his contributions to India-Singapore relations during his state visit.
NEW DELHI: Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam on Wednesday conferred the country’s Honorary Citizen Award on former confederation of Indian industry (CII) head Tarun Das for his outstanding contribution to strengthening bilateral relations.
The Honorary Citizenship Award is the highest recognition by the Singapore government for a non-Singaporean. It is awarded to individuals who have made significant impact in fields such as business, science and technology, education, health, arts and culture, and community service.
The award was presented to Das at a ceremony in New Delhi by President Tharman, who is on a state visit to India.
Expressing his gratitude, Das said, “I am deeply honoured and privileged to be selected by the Singapore government to receive the Honorary Citizen Award. My journey with Singapore started 31 years ago, and I have witnessed the evolution of the ‘Singapore-India Fever,’ reflecting a multi-faceted partnership that has grown over the years.”
Highlighting Das’s role as one of Singapore’s “strongest advocates in India”, Singapore’s ministry of foreign affairs said that Das first led a delegation of Indian industrialists to Singapore in 1993 as part of India’s “Look East” policy.
“He personally spearheaded many important initiatives, such as the annual CII core group visits to Singapore and the India-Singapore strategic dialogue. Mr Das’s tireless efforts to facilitate dialogue and engagement have contributed to the strong and substantive economic and people-to-people ties that we enjoy today,” the ministry said.