Four developers of Avro Keyboard to receive the Ekushey Padak award

The Government of Bangladesh has honored the four brilliant minds behind the Avro Keyboard with the prestigious Ekushey Padak.

The Ministry of Culture announced on February 9 that Mehedi Hasan Khan, along with his three collaborators—Rifat Nabi, Tanbin Islam Siam, and Shabab Mustafa—will receive the award this year in recognition of their significant contributions to science and technology.

Earlier, on February 6, the Ministry of Culture had announced a list of 14 individuals and one group nominated for the Ekushey Padak 2025. 

Among them was Mehedi Hasan Khan, who was recognized for his extraordinary work in the field of science and technology.

However, following Mehedi Hasan Khan’s decision to decline the award individually, the government decided to present the award to all four developers of the Avro Keyboard. 

This was officially communicated through a press release signed by Mohammad Moniruzzaman Khan, the Public Relations Officer of the Ministry of Culture.

Avro Keyboard: A Game-Changer for Bengali Typing and the Digital World

Mehedi Hasan Khan introduced Avro Keyboard on March 26, 2003, to mark Independence Day. 

The software quickly gained popularity as a free tool for typing in Bengali, thanks to its support for both Unicode and ANSI, which allowed users to type Bengali on the internet. 

This was a big step forward compared to the widely used Bijoy Keyboard, which lacked Unicode compatibility.

One of the key reasons for Avro Keyboard’s success was its open-source nature, which made it free for anyone to use. 

On the other hand, Bijoy was a closed-source software that required a paid license. 

But Avro’s real breakthrough came with its phonetic layout, making it incredibly easy for people to type in Bengali using English letters. 

This "Avro Phonetic" layout allowed millions of Bengali speakers worldwide to learn to type in their native language without any hassle, leading to a rapid increase in Bengali content online. 

From personal blogs to websites and even institutional use, Avro Keyboard played a major role in bringing Bengali to the digital world.

Mehedi Hasan Khan’s Avro Keyboard didn’t just change the way people typed in Bengali, but also helped in promoting the use of Bengali language on the internet. 

It became an essential tool for many, including the Bangladesh Election Commission, which uses it to prepare national identity cards for citizens.

The government‍‍`s decision to recognize the four developers with the Ekushey Padak highlights the lasting impact of Avro Keyboard on the digital landscape in Bangladesh.