Sitara Begum

Dr. Captain Sitara Begum is a Bangladeshi doctor, army officer, and war hero. She is one of two women in Bangladesh who have received the Bir Protik award. She served during the Liberation War of Bangladesh in 1971.

Early life Begum was born in Kishoreganj in 1946. Her father, Israil Mian, was a lawyer. She graduated from Holy Cross College, Dhaka. She completed her MBBS from Dhaka Medical College. She has two sisters and had a brother, Major Abu Taher Mohammad Haider.

Captain Dr. Sitara was the commanding officer of the hospital known as the Bangladesh Field Hospital, with almost 400 beds under Sector 2 in 1971. She would have to travel to Agartala to gather the necessary medical supplies . The hospital catered to Bengali patients, wounded freedom fighters, and also members of the Indian army who sought medical aid at the centre.

She returned to Dhaka after the independence of Bangladesh.

Begum left Bangladesh after her brother was killed in the 7 November 1975 Bangladesh coup d'état and settled in the United States.