New Delhi: Indonesia Tuesday conferred its highest honour, the Bintang Adipurna, to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Jakarta. The “Adipurna” is a distinction marking the highest class of the Bintang Republik Indonesia award, whose grandmaster is the President of Indonesia.
The award was conferred to Modi by President Prabowo Subianto. The Indian PM is in Indonesia for a three-day visit which began Monday. He is set to depart for Australia Wednesday.
“This morning, I was conferred Indonesia’s highest honor with great affection and respect. This honour belongs to the millions of Indians, reflects the sentiments of the Indonesian people, and celebrates the historic and deep-rooted bonds between India and Indonesia. I extend my heartfelt thanks to President Prabowo, the Government of Indonesia, and the people here,” Modi said in a joint press statement with the Indonesian President.
Modi was wearing the star and sash of the award during the statement. He is the second Indian prime minister to be conferred with the award, following Jawaharlal Nehru. Nehru was awarded the Bintang Adipurna in 1995, when Indonesia was celebrating its 50th year of Independence.
That same year, three other Indians—Biju Patnaik, former Chief Minister of Odisha, and P.R.S. Mani and Mohd Yunus, both former ambassadors to Indonesia—were awarded the Bintang Jasa Utama (First Class of Star of Service) by Jakarta.
First instituted in 1959, the Bintang Adipurna (Medal of Honour) is the highest honour in the Republic of Indonesia, given to individuals for rendering exceptional service to the unity, continuity and prosperity of Indonesia.
A number of international leaders have been conferred with the award, including former Cuban President Fidel Castro, former Pakistan President Ayub Khan, former chairman of the Presidium of the Soviet Union Leonid Brezhnev, former Yugoslavia President Josip Broz Tito, and Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, to name a few.
The award is automatically conferred to the President of Indonesia, as they remain the “Grandmaster” for the duration of their tenure. Apart from Prabowo, other Indonesian presidents, including Joko Widodo, Sukarno and Suharto, are all recipients of the award.
In the last couple of years, Prime Minister Modi has received a number of awards from countries during his visit. This year alone, Modi received the Royal Order of the Polar Star during his visit to Sweden, and was declared the “Guardian of the Blue Horizon” by Seychelles last month.
The Indonesian award would be his 33rd international honour. Between June 2024 and July 2025, the Indian PM had been given at least 13 international awards, including four during his multi-nation visit to Ghana, Trinidad and Tobago, Brazil and Namibia last year.
Modi has also been conferred awards by the US, Russia, Palestine, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Bhutan, Fiji, Egypt, Palau and France, to name a few other countries.
(Edited by Mannat Chugh)
Also Read: BrahMos, Astra missiles, critical minerals & Sabang Port: India & Indonesia seal key strategic pacts