LONDON: At an event in London, Journalist and Editor-in-Chief of Daily Nawa-e-Jang, Asif Saleem Mitha, organized the Pakistan Community Achievement Awards (PCAA) to celebrate 22 years of Nawa-e-Jang in the UK. During the ceremony, members of the Pakistani community residing across the UK were honored for their outstanding services in areas such as journalism, music, education, human rights, community, philanthropy and business.
Among those honored for their contributions to journalism were Jang Jeo’s Aurangzeb Chaudhary, late Wadud Mushtaq, Zahid Mirza, Waqar Babar Mughal, Waseem Kazmi, Ghulam Hussain Awan, Wajaha Ali Khan and Abbas Malik, who received medals and certificates of merit.
The ceremony was attended by MPs Ruth Cadbury and Tanmanjit Singh Dhesi, former Mayor of Slough Chaudhry Nazir, Chaudhry Shafiq, Rashid Butt, Mayor of Brent Tariq Dar, former Mayor of Hounslow Afzal Kayani, and Samia Chaudhry, former Mayor of Brent Arshad Butt. Deputy Mayor of Hounslow Malik Shakeel Akram, other council members, and prominent figures from various fields such as education, journalism and law.
Participants expressed their appreciation for the individuals who have been devoting their time to social services for many years in this crowded Western society.
During the event, legendary singer Ustad Rajab Ali was presented with a Sindhi topi (hat) and ajrak (traditional Sindhi shawl) by Karachi Press Club Senior Vice President Mushtaq Sohail, along with Brent Mayor Tariq Dar.
Asif Saleem Metha also received a membership card and certificate from the Karachi Press Club. Host Asif Saleem Mitha presented memorial shields to the distinguished guests.
Prominent figures from the Asian community who have contributed in areas such as music, philanthropy, human rights and education were also honored. In the field of music, awards were distributed to Charles Frank, Muhammad Aslam and Dr. Maryam Shirin Madhu.
In community and charitable work, beneficiaries included Naeem Tahir (AIHL), Al Mustafa Welfare Trust, Dr Amjad Riaz (Brent Central Mosque), Haji Muhammad Siddiq (Cricklewood Mosque and Islamic Centre), Muhammad Iqbal Shafi of the Halal Food Authority, and Chaudhry Abdul Majeed. (PWA Hounslow).
Amanullah Khan and Raja Sikandar Khan were honored for raising their voices on human rights, Kashmir and Palestine issues.
In the field of education, awards were distributed to Ali Naveed Qureshi, Amanat Anjum, Dr. Mateen Khan (CCE), and Talib Hussain (Hays College).
In recognition of their successful businesses, awards were presented to Raja Irfan Anwar, AbidHussain, Ishtiaq Chaudhry, Major (Retd) Nawaz Malik, Muhammad Imran Idris (Lahore), Mr. Nadeem, Muhammad Ahmed (Lahore), Naheed Randhawa, Syed Saeed Shah (Original Biryani), Sajid Khan (Khaba), Nasir Ali, Farzok Hassan, Muhammad Zafar Gujjar, and Zahid Raja.
During the event, Nawai-e-Jang London and PCAA also awarded gold medals and certificates to 40 journalists from across the UK in recognition of their contributions to journalism.
In his concluding remarks, Asif Saleem Metha thanked all the distinguished guests especially from Karachi Pakistan, Senior Vice President of Karachi Press Club, Mushtaq Sohail, and Aslam Aisani, CEO of Gujarati newspaper Daily Mailat, and PCAA presented the guests with gold medals and awards for their contributions to journalism. .