New Delhi, 12 May (H.S.): President Droupadi Murmu conferred the National Florence Nightingale Awards for the year 2026 at a ceremony held at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Tuesday, on the occasion of International Nurses Day. This year, 15 nursing personnel from various states and Union Territories across the country have been selected for their outstanding contribution to the nursing profession.

The President said on the occasion that nursing professionals exemplify the highest standards of service and play a crucial role in ensuring quality healthcare to the people. She added that health‑care professionals serve the nation with compassion and dedication, often continuing to provide care to patients even under extremely challenging circumstances.

President Murmu stated, “This occasion is a fitting tribute to the invaluable contribution of nursing personnel and other health‑care professionals who serve the nation selflessly with compassion and unwavering commitment. I appreciate the inspiring devotion of all the awardees towards their duty and their tireless efforts in upholding the highest standards of patient care.”

It is noteworthy that the National Florence Nightingale Awards were instituted by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in 1973 to recognise exceptional services in the field of nursing. These awards are regarded as the highest national honour for the nursing profession in the country.

Among the awardees this year in the Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (ANM) category are Kulwinder Parhi from Ladakh, Ujwala Mahadev Soym from Maharashtra, Lalenthangi Namte from Mizoram, Madhu Mala Gurung from Sikkim, Pooja Parmar Rana from Uttarakhand, and Gita Karmakar from West Bengal.

In the Nurse category, the awardees are Poonam Verma from Chandigarh, Deepa Bijoo from Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Dr. Shrawan Kumar Dhaka from Delhi, Ruksha Roopop Parvatkar from Goa, Kavita Jagannath from Karnataka, Manju Moll V.S. from Kerala, Ayesha B.B.K. from Lakshadweep, Professor (Dr.) R. Shankar Shanmugam from Tamil Nadu, and Major General Lishamma P.V. from the Army Headquarters (IHQ, Ministry of Defence), Delhi.

---------------

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar