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Asian achievers get jewel honour

24/ 2/2006

<p>A MANCHESTER space scientist and the City's Lord Mayor have been praised for inspiring other British Asians.<BR>Dr Sima Adhya, who has helped design space probes for Nasa, was honoured at a ceremony celebrating successful Britons of south east Asian descent.<BR>Because of her achievements in the male-dominated world of astronomy and space research, the former Manchester High School for Girls pupil - who believes there is other life in space - received the healthcare and education excellence prize at the annual Asian Jewel Awards.<BR>The scientist grew up in Hale, but now works for Hampshire-based, QinetiQ, a company commissioned by the European Space Agency to send a probe to Mercury. Dr Adhya was also praised for her work in schools to promote science to children.<BR>Said Sima: "I love my space research work - it is the most engaging career one could hope for. I personally think there is life out there - possibly in our own solar system. The next few years will reveal a lot."<BR>Manchester's Lord Mayor Afzal Khan was also honoured at the ceremony with a public service excellence award. The father-of-three, who was born in Pakistan and moved to Britain aged 12, was praised for his commitment to social inclusion as well as his work with inter-faith groups.<BR>Other winners included Manchester-based Sufyan Ismail, who established a tax advice service and Dr Syed Abidi, who set up a health charity in Cheetham Hill, producing multi-lingual health advice literature for the region.<BR>Mike Fairey, deputy chief executive of Lloyds TSB, which sponsored the awards, said: "The contribution of the Asian community to British life is astounding and this year's winners are shining examples of their talent and determination to succeed."</p>