President to confer Ratna Award on Chancellor of Himachal Central varsity Dr Harmohinder Singh Bedi

Renowned literary scholar Dr Harmohinder Singh Bedi will be honored with the Ratna Award by President of India, Droupadi Murmu for his outstanding contributions to Hindi literature and academia. The event will be held at Panjab University’s annual convocation on March 12.

Dr Bedi, currently serving as the Chancellor of Central University of Himachal Pradesh, is a distinguished academician and an expert in Hindi literature, cultural studies, and religious discourse. A former faculty at Department of Hindi at the Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, he is also a Council Member of the Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR), Ministry of Education, Government of India, and a Member of the National Monitoring Committee on Minority Education.

His legacy of excellence in bridging the gaps between Hindi literature and Punjabi literature through his illustrious research and translation work has also won him a Padma Shri in 2022. He has also won a national award for his poetry book, Garam Loha.

Dr Bedi has also served as Hindi Advisor to the Ministry of Labour and Employment & Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and played a key role in drafting the New Education Policy as part of the National Language Council, Government of India.

His research on Punjab’s cultural and religious contribution to Hindi literature has been ground breaking. His three-volume edited work on Shardha Ram Phillauri has redefined the history of Hindi literature. For the last decade, Dr Bedi has focused on strengthening cultural ties across SAARC countries through their shared heritage in language, religion, and traditions.