New Delhi, June 24 -- At 80 years of age, Hindumbi Kaurom Kakkada continues to report for duty at Government Indira Gandhi Hospital in Kavaratti, carrying forward a nursing career that has spanned more than five decades. Her lifelong commitment to patient care in one of India's most geographically isolated regions has now earned her a place among the Top 10 finalists of the Aster Guardians Global Nursing Award 2026, selected from over 134,000 registrations across 214 countries and economies.

A theatre-trained nurse, Hindumbi has spent over 53 years serving the people of Lakshadweep, supporting more than 20,000 surgeries and emergency cases while working in challenging conditions marked by limited infrastructure, difficult inter-island co...