Hari Punja, OF, OBE (born 1936) is an

Indo-Fijian Indo-Fijians or Indian-Fijians (also known as Fiji Indians) are Fijian citizens of Indian descent, and include people who trace their ancestry to various regions of the Indian subcontinent.Girmit by Suresh Prasad Although Indo-Fijians constitu ...

businessman A businessperson, businessman, or businesswoman is an individual who has founded, owns, or holds shares in (including as an angel investor) a private-sector company. A businessperson undertakes activities (commercial or industrial) for the ...

and Chairman of Hari Punja Group of Companies. Hari Punja and Sons Limited is a very diversified (and probably the largest) company in Fiji. Hari Punja was born in Cuvu, Sigatoka, Fiji and received his education in Fiji and Australia. He trained as a chemical engineer. Punja joined the business in 1960. He has served as a mayor of Lautoka and on a number of prestigious boards such as Fiji Broadcasting Commission and Fiji Sugar Corporation. He served as a Senator from 1996 to 1999. Following the passage of the Media Industry Development Decree 2010 by the military regime, Punja resigned from the board of

Fiji Television Fiji Television Limited is one of Fiji's main television network. It was founded on 15 June 1994 as the first permanent commercial television broadcasting network in the country, although television had previously been introduced temporarily ...

and sold his stake in radio company Communications Fiji Limited.

Honors

Punja has been bestowed with many credentials and honors. Some of these include: *

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(OBE) * Justice of the Peace (JP) *

Order of Fiji The Order of Fiji is the highest honour of the Fijian honours system. Established 1 March 1995, the order is presented for achievement and merit to Fiji and mankind as a whole. The order is divided into a general division and military division, ...

: Bestowed by the

President of Fiji The president of Fiji is the head of state of the Republic of Fiji. The president is appointed by the Parliament for a three-year term under the terms of the 2013 Constitution of Fiji. Although not entirely a figurehead, the role of president ...

, Ratu Sir Kaisese Mara * The Fiji National Millennium Committee recognized Hari Punja as an outstanding contributor in shaping the nation of Fiji during the 20th Century * He was named as one of the 10 most successful businessmen living outside India in "The Encyclopedia of the Indian Diaspora" (2006) by Professor Dr. Brij Lal (

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public research university located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton encompasses seven teaching and research colleges, in addition to several national academies an ...

) * Punja was rated the 6th most influential person in the

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contine ...

region through a poll carried out by the Australian-based Pacific Magazine.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Punja, Hari Fijian businesspeople Chemical engineers 1936 births Living people Officers of the Order of Fiji Indian members of the Senate (Fiji) Fijian engineers Fijian people of Indian descent Politicians from Lautoka Politicians from Sigatoka