Ottawa: Professor Mahesh Chandra Sharma, an Indo-Canadian academic who suffered immense personal loss in the Air India Flight 182 (Kanishka) bombing in 1985, has been honored with the Order of Canada, the country’s highest civilian honor.
Among the 329 victims of what remains the worst incident of terrorism in Canadian history were the wife, two children, and mother-in-law of Professor Sharma. He is among the 83 honorees for this year's award, announced recently by Governor General Mary Simon.
The citation with the honor noted: “Mahesh Sharma is a civic-minded philanthropist and leader. A beloved professor and mentor at Concordia University, he established scholarships to honour the memory of his family, who were victims of Air India Flight 182. He also actively champions social causes, supporting vulnerable individuals and the wider community.”
Sharma, who is a professor of supply chain and business technology management at Concordia University in Montreal, studied mechanical engineering in India before moving to Canada.
Also on the list was another Indo-Canadian academic, Dr Saroj Saigal, professor emeritus at McMaster University in Hamilton, who was admitted as an Officer of the Order of Canada. She “helped shape the field of neonatology”, the citation stated.
