Mr Bharatkumar Sisodia has dedicated over 50 years of service in helping to preserve cultural heritage, community cohesion and support for the community through a wide range of organisations.
For his remarkable selfless contribution to the community across North West England, Mr Bharatkumar Sisodia has been awarded an MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) in Her Majesty the Queen's New Years Honours list 2022, in recognition of his lifelong voluntary services for the community.
Mr Sisodia is the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Indian Association Oldham (UK). He has also chaired the Board of Trustees of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan Manchester (Institute of Indian Art & Culture).
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Upon receiving this very prestigious Award, Mr Sisodia said, "It's a great honour and a joy. I am very much touched and humbled by this award. It is wonderful to see such recognition from the Head of State for those who have done their best for the county. Serving those in need is itself a great honour that brings immense satisfaction. I am very grateful for both having had the opportunities to serve and in receiving this prestigious award".
In recent times Mr Sisodia served on the Equality Advisor Group to help protect the community from Coronavirus.
He said, "Our hard work in placing safety measures in the community centre and constantly posting information repeatedly to the community has all been well worth it during the pandemic. It has reflected in the data bank showing that the Indian community had one of the lowest rates of Coronavirus positive cases been recorded in the Borough. This, of course, is a great achievement".
An Oxfam Committee member, Mr Sisodia, also takes lead positions in several other organisations working towards racial equality, religious tolerance, and beyond.
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Director of Citizens' Advice Bureau and National Convener for Human Values in the Sri Sathya Sai Baba Council of UK, Mr Sisodia has produced the Talking Newspaper for the visually challenged.
Over the years, Mr Sisodia has also engaged in many fundraising projects that have proved immensely beneficial for the community. He has raised over £50,000 for the first MRI Scanner for the Royal Oldham Hospital. He also helped instigate a Heart Valve donation project where funds of over £50,000 were donated for over 175 artificial Heart Valves for the Sri Sathya Sai Baba Super Speciality Hospital in India. This hospital provides treatments and surgeries of all kinds completely free of charge to the patients.
Regarding engaging in voluntary work, he said, "Volunteers do amazing work that is filled with love, compassion and care. The world desperately needs such volunteers. Life is all about cultivating love through rendering selfless service.
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Opportunities to engage in charitable work that suits every individual are all around us. We just need to open our eyes, see and get involved in helping wherever there is a need."
"Even during this Coronavirus lockdown, there are many opportunities to assist those in need. A team of volunteers and I have joined a "Phone Your Friend" project, which is run by Sri Sathya Sai Baba Organisation in India. We teach English to school teachers in remote parts of India. We take a lesson once a week teaching English from the comfort of our own homes," he mentioned.
Mr Bharatkumar Sisodia has served as Magistrate for more than 30 years and a panel Justice on Appeals hearings at Crown Courts. He has popularised the Annual Health Awareness Day event in Oldham, which provides free walk-in health checks for the community every year.
