The four-time prime minister was the acting head of state since January 2007 to July 2008. He made substantive contribution to Nepal’s road to republicanism and was an architect of the ongoing peace and constitution drafting processes. The decoration is an octagon having 8.5 cm diametre and bejewelled with five diamond pieces on every corner.

A Cabinet meeting on Wednesday evening decided to award 303 personalities of various walks of life. To honour their contribution to the society in their respective fields, orders, medals and titles were announced on the occasion of Republic Day on Thursday. The government will set a date for the function to be held at President’s Office to give away the honours.

Acknowledging his role in holding the second Constituent Assembly elections, the government will give Maha Ujjwal Rashtradip to former Chairman of Interim Election Government Khil Raj Regmi. Other recipients of the honour are former deputy prime minister the late Shailaja Acharya and former minister the late Bhim Bahadur Tamang, both NC leaders.

Chief Justice Damodar Prasad Sharma will get the Suprasiddha Janasewa Shree (first class).

According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, people from civil service, politics, business, culture, sports and other sectors will be decorated.

Former Home and Foreign Affairs Minister Madhav Prasad Ghimire and former Minister Modnath Prashit have been named for the Ujjwal Kirtimaya Rashtradeep (second class). All the ministers of the Regmi Cabinet will get the Prasiddha Prabal Janasewa Shree (second class).

Supreme Court Judge Kalyan Shreshta, Chief Election Commissioner Neel Kantha Uprety and Commissioners Dolakh Bahadur Gurung, Ayodhee Prasad Yadav, Ram Bhakta PV Thakur and Ila Sharma, Parliament Secretariat Secretary General Manohar Prasad Bhattarai and High-level Administration Improvement Suggestion Committee Chairman Kashi Raj Dahal have been declared recipients of the Prasiddha Prabal Janasewa Shree (second class).

Government secretaries, senior Army, Police and Armed Police officials, National Intelligence Department personnel, civil servants, journalists, social workers, artistes, ambassadors, doctors and professors are also on the list.

Senior journalists Kishor Nepal, Dharmendra Jha, Panna Lal Gupta, Arati Chataut and Pratap Bista have will get various titles.