Ranjith Pandithage (Chairman and Managing Director of Diesel & Motor Engineering PLC) was recently bestowed with this honour at a ceremony held at the German Embassy in Colombo.
The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany was instituted in 1951 by Federal President Theodor Heuss.
It is the only honour that may be awarded in all fields of endeavour and is the highest tribute the Federal Republic of Germany can pay to individuals for services to the nation.
In awarding the Order of Merit the President of Federal Republic of Germany wishes to draw public attention to achievements that he believes are of particular value to society in general.
The Order of Merit may be awarded to Germans as well as foreigners for achievements in the political, economic, social or intellectual realm and for all kinds of outstanding services to the nation in the field of social, charitable or philanthropic work.
The awarding of the Order of Merit was done by His Excellency Jörn Rohde, in the presence of Mr Pandithage’s family, his brothers and sisters, and his closest friends and well-wishers.
The Ambassador went on to mention why and how Mr Pandithage was chosen for this honour.
It demonstrates the confidence and the respect Federal Republic of Germany has on Mr Pandithage as a highly respected businessman and also as an exemplary human being.
Mr. Pandithage spoke at the event where he traced his roots and his connections to Germany – as an engineering student and as a businessman.
The award is granted after a strict individual analysis and receiving such an award by an individual is a testament of the significant achievement for Mr. Pandithage and the company he leads.
DIMO’s corporate governance, ethical business practices, transparency and sustainable initiatives too have been endorsed by this.
This rare honour is indeed a tribute to DIMO.
DIMO takes pride in representing the best engineered German brands in Sri Lanka from 1939.
DIMO represents more than 25 world class German brands which includes Blaupunkt, Bomag, Bosch, Claas, Demag, Detroit Diesel, Drager, Dremel, Fischer, Kaeser, KSB, Mercedes-Benz, Meditron, MTU, Osram, RZB, Schafer, SchwingStetter, Siemens, Still, thyssenkrupp, Vossloh-Schwabe and Zeiss.
This rare honour from the Federal Republic of Germany is a proud moment not only for Ranjith Pandithage and his DIMO tribe, but also for Sri Lanka.
Whilst completing 80 years of existence in Sri Lanka next year, DIMO will forge ahead to stamp the footprint of Germany’s best engineering solutions in Sri Lanka for many more decades.
Photo Caption - His Excellency Jörn Rohde with Ranjith Pandithage.