Four Avro makers receive Ekushey Padak

Four manufacturers of Avro keyboards have received the country's second-highest civilian honour, Ekushey Padak, in recognition of their significant contributions to science and technology. They are- Mehedi Hasan Khan, Rifat Nabi, Md. Tanbin Islam Siam and Shabab Mustafa.

Chief Adviser to the interim government Dr Yunus handed over the awards to the recipients at a function in the city on Thursday, as per a local media report.

Introduced in 2003, the Avro keyboard brought revolutionary changes in Bangla typing through phonetic typing. It allows users to write Bangla without complicated keyboard layouts, which quickly gained popularity.

It is to be noted that Mehdi Hasan Khan, the craftsman making the Avro keyboard, was initially nominated for the Ekushey Padak in this category this year. However, at the request of Mehdi Hasan, it was decided to reward the other three with him for making Avro.

This year, Dr Muhammad Yunus has given 'Ekushey Padak-2025' to 18 distinguished personalities and parties for their significant contributions in different fields. Each recipient will get a gold medal, a certificate, and a cheque for Tk 400,000.