Two prominent members from the Indian community are among those who have been picked up on this year’s Queen Birthday honour list. They both have been awarded the Member of New Zealand Order of Merit or MNZM by the Queen Elizabeth II. Sergeant Gurpreet Arora is currently working as District Family Harm Partnership Liaison Officer in Counties Manukau. He is the first Ethnic Police Officer and the first Police Officer of Indian ethnicity to be awarded MNZM. Sergeant Gurpreet Arora is widely known for his tremendous work done during Christchurch earthquake of 2011 and later after shooting at Al-Noor Mosque at Christchurch.

The other recipient of the MNZM, Sameer Handa is a well know entrepreneur, an international trade expert of repute and an experiences industry leader. Sameer is a Mechanical Engineer by trade and an MBA from Sydney University. He has extensive experience in leadership roles in several countries including Middle East, Fiji, India, Australia, and New Zealand. Sameer has worked in refrigeration & air-conditioning industry for over 22 years mainly in leadership roles and is currently an executive member of India and New Zealand Business Council (INZBC) and on Board with several other companies including a member on Board with Bank of India.

The Indian News congratulates both the proud members of Indian community on their feat and wishes the very best for their future endeavours. -TIN Bureau