PESHAWAR: The families of 142 martyrs of the Army Public School and College were honoured with the prestigious Tamgha-e-Shujaat gallantry awards at a simple but impressive ceremony held at the Governor’s House here Monday. A total of 14 personalities were also decorated with civil awards for their outstanding performance in different fields.Governor Sardar Mehtab Ahmad Khan gave away the awards on behalf of President Mamnoon Hussain. Khyber Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser represented the provincial government at the event. Provincial ministers, government officers including inspector general of police, chief secretary, administrative secretaries, political agents, politicians and elites attended the ceremony held at the sprawling lawns of the British-era Governor’s House. The parents and close relatives of the 142 martyrs of the December 16, 2014 terrorist attack on the APS received the awards.All the martyrs including students and staff were awarded the presidential civil award for their courage during the incident. The citation said they embraced martyrdom but did not escape and even tried to save the life of their colleagues. “It was the sacrifice of APS students and staff that united the nation against terrorists. The sacrifices of young and innocent students boosted the morale of the whole nation and gave a message to the world as well as the terrorists that they would lay down their lives but would never surrender before terrorists,” it added. The 14 personalities who won the prestigious civil awards were Riaz Khan Mehsud, Wilson Wazir, Prof Dr Riaz Ahmad Mufti, Jehan Sultana, Sultan Muhammad Sakoon, Dr Muhammad Raza Shah, Prof Dr Tahir Shah, Prof Dr Muhammad Nasim, Prof Dr Muhammad Nisar Ahmad, Haroonur Rashid, Arbab Abdul Wakeel, Laiq Zada Laiq, Hafiz Sanullah and Amir Atlas Khan. Riaz Mehsud was awarded Sitara-e- Imtiaz for his administrative skills in maintaining law and order when he was political agent of Kurram Agency.Wilson Wazir, a Christian and teacher by profession, was decorated with Sitara-e-Imtiaz for social work. Prof Riaz Ahmad Mufti got presidential Pride of Performance award for his outstanding performance in the field of science and research. Jehan Sultana aka Noshaba was given the same award for her contribution as an artiste. She is a known Pashto TV and radio artiste. Sultan Muhammad Sakoon, a known Hindko language writer, poet and researcher, received the Pride of Performance award for his outstanding performance in the field of literature in Hindko and Urdu. Dr Muhammad Raza Shah was decorated with Tamgha-e-Imtiaz for his contribution in the field of chemistry. He was adjudged among the youngest chemist in the country. Prof Dr Muhammad Nasim received the same award for contribution in the field of archeology. Prof Dr Nisar Ahmad was decorated with the prestigious award for best research in the field of medicine. Haroonur Rashid also bagged the award for his outstanding performance as newscaster and broadcaster. Arbab Abdul Wakeel got Tamgha-e-Imtiaz for his contribution to literature and culture. Laiq Zada Laiq was awarded for best performance as writer, poet and broadcaster while Hafiz Sanaullah was decorated with the civil award for his long contribution in the field of journalism. Amir Atlas Khan was awarded for best performance in squash.
