UKPSC Prelims 2024 Q100: In February 2024, who became the first Indian citizen to

Q: What is the answer to UKPSC Prelims 2024 Q100?

B. Correct — B, Sunil Bharti Mittal. At the end of February 2024 the UK announced that **Sunil Bharti Mittal**, founder and chairman of Bharti Enterprises, had been made an honorary Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (KBE), "for services to UK/India business relations". He was described as the first Indian citizen to receive an honorary knighthood from King Charles III. Two cues in the stem do the work: "honorary" and "King Charles III". Honorary marks a foreign national, such as an Indian citizen; the King's name fixes the window to his reign, which began in September 2022. **The monarch is the qualifier, not the country.** Indian industrialists had received honorary knighthoods earlier, in Queen Elizabeth II's reign; the question asks who was first under Charles III.

UKPSC Prelims 2024 General Studies Paper-I · Question 100 of 147

Verified against the official question booklet. Answer as per UKPSC's provisional answer key.

Answers from UKPSC's provisional answer key. The Commission publishes a provisional key for UKPSC Prelims 2024 and invites objections before issuing a final key. Every answer shown here is the Commission's own provisional answer (key PDF), not our derivation. If the final key changes an answer, this page is updated to match.

In February 2024, who became the first Indian citizen to receive an Honorary Knighthood from the United Kingdom’s King Charles III?

(a)Anand Mahindra
(b)Sunil Bharti Mittal
(c)Ratan Tata
(d)Mukesh Ambani

Answer

Why

Correct — B, Sunil Bharti Mittal.

At the end of February 2024 the UK announced that Sunil Bharti Mittal, founder and chairman of Bharti Enterprises, had been made an honorary Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (KBE), "for services to UK/India business relations".

He was described as the first Indian citizen to receive an honorary knighthood from King Charles III.

Two cues in the stem do the work: "honorary" and "King Charles III". Honorary marks a foreign national, such as an Indian citizen; the King's name fixes the window to his reign, which began in September 2022.

The monarch is the qualifier, not the country. Indian industrialists had received honorary knighthoods earlier, in Queen Elizabeth II's reign; the question asks who was first under Charles III.

Why the others are wrong

(a)
Anand Mahindra — Anand Mahindra chairs the Mahindra Group, and the headline state honour attached to his name is Indian, not British. He is one of the two Trade and Industry recipients of the Padma Bhushan in 2020, alongside Venu Srinivasan of TVS.
The stem asks about a UK Crown honour announced in February 2024, and that announcement named the Bharti founder.
(c)
Ratan Tata — Ratan Tata does hold British honorary knighthoods, which is what makes this option tempting. He was made an honorary KBE in 2009 and raised to honorary GBE in 2014, both in Queen Elizabeth II's reign, before Charles III became King in September 2022.
He is therefore the answer to which Indian industrialist holds an honorary GBE (2014), not to who was first honoured by King Charles III.
(d)
Mukesh Ambani — Mukesh Ambani is chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries, and he is the answer when a question asks who heads the group behind Reliance Jio.
The February 2024 honour was for services to UK/India business relations, and at the presentation a year later the British High Commissioner pointed to Bharti's investments in Britain, not Reliance's.

Concept

An honorary British award is a UK state honour given to a person who is not a citizen of a country where the King is head of state.

India is a republic within the Commonwealth, so an Indian citizen receives an honorary award, approved by the King on the Foreign Secretary's recommendation.

The Order of the British Empire has five classes: GBE, KBE/DBE, CBE, OBE and MBE. The top two carry a knighthood or damehood. An honorary knight is not styled "Sir" but may use the post-nominal letters, such as KBE.

This item sits where two current-affairs threads meet: UK honours to Indian nationals and the India-UK business relationship. The honour was announced in February 2024; the insignia was presented a year later, on 22 February 2025, at the British High Commissioner's residence in New Delhi.

At that 2025 presentation the High Commissioner, Lindy Cameron, linked the award to Bharti's investments in Britain, naming BT, OneWeb, Gleneagles and Norlake Hospitality.

Bharti Global completed its purchase of 24.5% of BT Group in November 2024, with UK government clearance under the National Security and Investment Act following on 16 December 2024 — in both cases after the honour was announced.

Key facts

Sunil Bharti Mittal is Founder and Chairman of Bharti Enterprises, the parent of Bharti Airtel.
His honorary KBE (Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) was announced at the end of February 2024.
The UK's 2024 list of honorary awards to foreign nationals records the citation as "for services to UK/India business relations".
The insignia was presented on 22 February 2025 in New Delhi by the British High Commissioner, Lindy Cameron.
At that presentation Lindy Cameron named BT, OneWeb, Gleneagles and Norlake Hospitality among Bharti's investments in Britain.
Honorary awards go to citizens of countries where the King is not head of state; an honorary knight is not styled "Sir".
Ratan Tata received an honorary KBE in 2009 and an honorary GBE in 2014, both in Queen Elizabeth II's reign.
Charles III became King on 8 September 2022 and was crowned on 6 May 2023.
Mittal received the Padma Bhushan in 2007; Anand Mahindra received the Padma Bhushan in 2020.

Honorary knighthood (left) vs substantive knighthood (right)

Citizen of a country where the King is not head of state→British or Commonwealth-realm citizen

Approved on the Foreign Secretary's recommendation→Named in the King's honours lists (New Year, Birthday or special lists)

Post-nominals such as KBE; not styled "Sir"→Styled "Sir" or "Dame"

Sunil Bharti Mittal, honorary KBE, announced February 2024→Knights named in the King's own honours lists

Mittal's award is honorary: an Indian citizen, the Foreign Secretary route, KBE post-nominals, announced in February 2024 in King Charles III's reign.

Study next

Classes of the Order of the British Empire: GBE, KBE/DBE, CBE, OBE, MBEHonorary awards to foreign nationals versus the New Year and Birthday Honours listsRatan Tata's honorary KBE (2009) and GBE (2014)Bharti's UK footprint: BT, OneWeb and GleneaglesPadma awards 2024 in the Trade and Industry category

Common traps

Reading past "from King Charles III" and answering Ratan Tata, whose honorary KBE (2009) and GBE (2014) belong to Queen Elizabeth II's reign.
Mixing the announcement (February 2024) with the investiture in New Delhi (22 February 2025) when a question asks for the year.
Treating an honorary KBE as if it made the recipient "Sir Sunil"; a statement built on that title is false.
Confusing British citizens of Indian origin knighted in the New Year or Birthday lists with honorary awards to Indian citizens.

The stem fixes a month and a monarch and asks for the person. A variant keeps the person and asks for the order (Order of the British Empire), the class (Knight Commander), the citation field (UK/India business relations) or the reign in which it was given.

A statement-based item can test the mechanics instead: whether an honorary knight is styled "Sir", or whether a foreign national's award travels through the Foreign Secretary rather than the New Year and Birthday lists.

Related PYQs

UKPSC_2024_PRE_GSI_Q942024

Same paper, same "In February 2024" anchor, same skill: attaching one named entity to a dated business headline. The subject differs entirely: Q94 asks which bank raised US$300 million through its first sustainable-finance bond (HDFC Bank); Q100 asks which industrialist received a UK honour. Neither answer helps with the other.

Practice

practice — not a real PYQ
The honorary knighthood announced for Sunil Bharti Mittal in February 2024 was conferred in which British order of chivalry?
- (a)Order of the Bath
- (b)Order of the British Empire
- (c)Order of St Michael and St George
- (d)Royal Victorian Order
Answerb — The award was Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (KBE).
The Order of the Bath (a) is used chiefly for senior civil servants and military officers, St Michael and St George (c) for diplomatic and overseas service, and the Royal Victorian Order (d) for personal service to the sovereign.
practice — not a real PYQ
The citation for Sunil Bharti Mittal's honorary KBE, announced in 2024, reads "for services to":
- (a)telecommunications
- (b)UK/India business relations
- (c)satellite broadband
- (d)philanthropy in school education
Answerb — The UK's 2024 list of honorary awards to foreign nationals records him "for services to UK/India business relations".
Telecommunications (a) and satellite broadband (c) describe his businesses, Airtel and the OneWeb stake, not the citation; school education (d) is the Bharti Foundation's field and again not the wording used.
practice — not a real PYQ
Which Indian industrialist was made an honorary Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire (GBE) in 2014?
- (a)Sunil Bharti Mittal
- (b)Anand Mahindra
- (c)Ratan Tata
- (d)Mukesh Ambani
Answerc — Ratan Tata received an honorary KBE in 2009 and was raised to honorary GBE in 2014, both under Queen Elizabeth II.
Mittal's British honour (a) is the honorary KBE announced in 2024, a class below GBE. The 2014 GBE announcement named Ratan Tata, not Anand Mahindra (b) or Mukesh Ambani (d).
practice — not a real PYQ
Consider the following statements about an Indian citizen who receives an honorary knighthood from the United Kingdom: 1. He is entitled to be styled "Sir". 2. He may use the post-nominal letters of the award, such as KBE. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- (a)1 only
- (b)2 only
- (c)Both 1 and 2
- (d)Neither 1 nor 2
Answerb — An honorary knight is not styled "Sir"; that title goes with a substantive knighthood held by a citizen of a country where the King is head of state.
Post-nominal letters are permitted, which is why KBE may follow Mittal's name. Statement 1 fails, so (a) and (c) fall; statement 2 holds, so (d) falls.