Japanese Ambassador confers 'Imperial Decoration' on former CII head
Ambassador of Japan to India, Kenji Hiramatsu, recently hosted a ceremony to honour Tarun Das, Chairperson of Sasakawa-India Leprosy Foundation, with the 'Imperial Decoration of the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon'.
The reception enjoyed the presence of the former Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, the Minister of Commerce and Industry and Aviation, Suresh Prabhu, among other dignitaries representing the Indian public and private sectors.
Earlier in April 2018, Das was decorated in recognition of his outstanding contribution to strengthening broad-based Japan-India relations and promoting mutual understanding.
Following the conferral of the decoration insignia and diploma, Ambassador Hiramatsu, in his congratulatory remarks, acknowledged Das' services at Confederation of Indian Industry
(CII), which grew into one of the largest business federations in India under his leadership and spearheaded initiatives like the Parliamentarian Visitation Programme and the non-governmental
Japan-India Strategic Dialogue.
Das has also collaborated with The Nippon Foundation in its efforts to end stigma and discrimination against leprosy. Ambassador Hiramatsu commended the ingenuity of Das to nurture Japan-India relations, founded on multi-layered mutual understanding, and placed him among those who helped scale the current heights of Japan-India relations.
On this occasion, Dr. Sasakawa of The Nippon Foundation entrusted the ambassador to convey his felicitations from Japan, whereas the Indian speakers, namely, the Commerce Minister and the Vice Chairperson of NITI Aayog expressed the heartfelt faith and trust that people hold in Das.
Das, in his acceptance speech, stated that the honour of Japanese Imperial Decoration motivates him further to fully blossom the Japan-India relations in his current capacity at Sasakawa-India Leprosy Foundation and Ananta Aspen Centre, and pledged his devotion to hold close the hands of the true, trusted friend, Japan, by working toward further progress in cultural understanding and friendship between the two countries.
