A scientist of Indian origin has been given Canada's highest civilian award – the Order of Canada. Recently, Shrawan Kumar was honoured for his three decades of pioneering research on workplace injury and the spine at the University of Alberta. Alumnus of Allahabad University, Kumar did his masters in zoology. After his higher studies in Britain, he worked from 1971 to 1973 at the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences where he set up the first biomechanics laboratory. Before landing in Canada in 1974, he was an assistant director at the Central Labour Institute in Mumbai.
Being one of the 57 prominent Canadians who have been bestowed with the nation's highest civilian award for their excellence in various fields, Kumar has been honoured for contributions to the field of rehabilitation ergonomics, in Canada and abroad. Over the last 40 years, more than 5,000 people, including many Indian-Canadians, have been given this honour.
