Kiran M Shaw appointed 'Knight of Legion of Honour' by France

BENGALURU: Biocon chairperson and managing director Kiran Mazumdar Shaw has been appointed 'Chevalier de l'Ordre National de la Légion d'Honneur' (Knight of the National Order of the French Legion of Honour) for her outstanding contribution and dedication to Biosciences and Research field globally.

The award will be conferred on behalf of the President of the French Republic at a special ceremony later this year, Biocon said here in a statement.

"It is an absolute privilege for me to be appointed 'Chevalier l'Ordre National de la Légion d'Honneur' and I am deeply grateful to the French government for this great honour.

"I owe this recognition to my wonderful team at Biocon who have joined me in my mission to harness the power of Biotechnology to provide affordable access to life saving bio pharmaceuticals for Cancer and Diabetes," she said.

Chevalier l'Ordre National de la Légion d'Honneur, created in 1802 by Napoleon Bonaparte, is the highest civilian award of the French Republic for outstanding contribution in diverse fields bestowed on citizens of the world.

The award is conferred by the President of the French Republic.

Other Indians to have received this honour in the past include Yashwant Sinha, Narayana Murthy, Amitabh Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai, Nandita Das, Shah Rukh Khan, veteran musician Balamuralikrishna and the late actor Sivaji Ganesan, among others.