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| Dr Mohinder Singh recognised for his community work |
Dec 31, 2014: A Sikh community leader, who has worked to bring city faiths closer together, spoken of his pride at being handed an OBE in the New Year’s Honours.
Chairman of the Nishkam group Dr Mohinder Singh has been a driving force in the development of the Nishkam Centre and Schools in Handsworth.
He is currently steering, along with other faith leaders, proposals for a £60 million Museum of World Religions, to be based in the former Municipal Bank in Broad Street.
He adds the OBE to a Papal Knighthood given by Pope Benedict XVI in 2013, was the first Briton to receive the official Sikh title of Bhai Sahib and has a series of national and international roles.
He is also a patron of the Nishkam schools.
Dr Singh said: “It is a great honour to receive this prestigious award.
“I have accepted this appointment on behalf of the founders and members of Guru Nanak Nishkam Sewak Jatha and the wider communities I am privileged to serve here in the UK and internationally,” he added.
Also picking up an MBE is volunteer Doreen Mooney, a driving force for the development of the New Heights community project in Kingstanding.
The scheme, led by the Christ the King Catholic Church in Warren Farm Road, was set up in 2010 to tackle yob behaviour, support families and the elderly and create opportunities for locals.
A new community centre was also built.