Eighty-year-old nurse Hindumbi Kaurom Kakkada from Lakshadweep has been named among the Top 10 finalists for the prestigious Aster Guardians Global Nursing Award 2026, recognising more than five decades of service in one of India’s most remote regions.
Currently serving at the Government Indira Gandhi Hospital in Kavaratti, Hindumbi has spent over 53 years providing healthcare across the island territory. She was selected from more than 134,000 registrations received from 214 countries and economies for this year’s award.
A theatre-trained nurse, Hindumbi has assisted in more than 20,000 surgeries and emergency cases during a career marked by challenging working conditions, limited medical infrastructure and difficult inter-island connectivity.
Her service began at a time when healthcare facilities in Lakshadweep were sparse. Medical supplies often had to be transported from Kochi, while emergency evacuations depended on fishing boats and naval vessels. During power outages, surgical procedures were sometimes conducted under kerosene lamps.
One of the most memorable cases in her career involved a pregnant woman from Agatti Island suffering severe bleeding. With no advanced medical facility available nearby, Hindumbi and her colleagues transported the patient by fishing boat to Kavaratti while administering a blood transfusion en route. Both mother and child survived following a successful Caesarean section.
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In another case, she travelled overnight by naval ship during the monsoon to assist a woman in labour on Amini Island. Despite limited equipment, the medical team successfully conducted a forceps delivery.
Beyond hospital duties, Hindumbi played a key role in promoting immunisation, hygiene and institutional deliveries across Lakshadweep. She also participated in disease-control campaigns and continued serving communities during the 2004 tsunami and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Although she formally retired at the age of 60, she returned to service within three months as a contract nurse and remains actively involved in patient care.
Her contributions were recognised nationally when she received the Florence Nightingale Award from the President of India in 2023.
Reflecting on her profession, Hindumbi said, “Nursing is great work. We care for bedridden patients as if they were our own parents. There is empathy and dignity in this profession.”
The winner of the Aster Guardians Global Nursing Award 2026, which carries a prize of USD 250,000, will be announced at a gala event in India in July.
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