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INDIAN TITLES OF DISTINCTION AND HONOUR Indian Titles of Distinction and Honour

The exact date of the institution of these titles is not known but in some cases they are hereditary, though they are purely personal. Since the Durbar of 1911, the holders of these distinctions are allowed in all public functions to wear a badge corresponding to the distinction conferred on them. The following is a list of Indian Titles now in general use: Maharaja; Raja; Sardar; Sardar Bahadur; Dewan Bahadur; Rai Bahadur, Rao Bahadur; Rai Sahib; Rao Sahib; Rani; Jang; Manne Sultan; Mahamahopadhyaya; Vaidyaratna; Amir; Sultan; Nawab; Shams-u-ulema; Shaifa-ul-Mulk; Khan-Bahadur; Khan Sahib. These titles are conferred by H.E. the Governor-General of India on behalf of the Sovereign.

The above medal was instituted by Her late Majesty Queen Victoria, Empress of India, on the 10th April, 1900, as a reward for important and useful services rendered in Her late Majesty’s Indian Empire in the advancement of Public Interest.

The Medal consists of an oval-shaped badge or decoration - in gold for the first class, and in silver for the second class with the Royal cypher in the centre on one side, and on the reverse “Kaisar-I-Hind, for Public Service in India”, and is suspended on the left breast by a dark blue ribbon.  PRINTED AT THE METHODIST PUBLISHING HOUSE, MADRAS.