AWARDS SEPTEMBER 2014

AWARDS SEPTEMBER 2014

• Snowden, Rusbridger get ‘alternative Nobel’
  Edward Snowden was among the winners on 24th September of a Swedish human rights award, sometimes referred to as the "alternative Nobel," for his disclosures of top secret surveillance programs. The decision to honor the former National Security Agency contractor with the Right Livelihood Award appeared to cause a diplomatic headache for Sweden's Foreign Ministry, which withdrew the prize jury's permission to use its media room for the announcement.
  
  Snowden split the honorary portion of the award with Alan Rusbridger, editor of the Guardian, which has published a series of articles on government surveillance based on documents leaked by Snowden.
  
  The 1.5 million kronor ($210,000) cash portion of the award was shared by Pakistani human rights activist Asma Jahangir, Basil Fernando of the Asian Human Rights Commission and U.S. environmentalist Bill McKibben.
  
  Created in 1980, the annual Right Livelihood Award honors efforts that founder Jacob von Uexkull felt were being ignored by the Nobel Prizes.
  
  Foundation director Ole von Uexkull — the award creator's nephew — said all winners have been invited to the Dec. 1 award ceremony in Stockholm, though he added it's unclear whether Snowden can attend.
  
  Snowden, who has reportedly also been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, remains exiled in Russia since leaking top secret NSA documents to journalists last year. He has been charged under the U.S. Espionage Act and could face up to 30 years in prison.
  
• Ratan Tata: Ratan Tata, Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons has received the Frost & Sullivan Growth, Innovation and Leadership Award for visionary innovation at an event in Mumbai.
  
• Lifetime Achievement Award for Kapil Dev
  Indian cricket legend Kapil Dev has been honoured with a Lifetime Achievement award at a ceremony in the House of Lords. The award, constituted by the Indo-European Business Forum (IBEF), was presented to the former India World Cup-winning captain on 24th September evening for his contribution to the sport and for his work in the field of upliftment of poor and destitute communities through the Khushii society.
  
  With 434 scalps, Kapil Dev held the record for most number of wickets in Tests for some years before being eclipsed by former West Indies captain Courtney Walsh in 2000.
  
• Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award for 10 scientists
  CSIR on 26th September 2014 announced the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Awards 2014 for ten scientists in recognition of their work. The Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology consists of a citation, a plaque and a cash prize of 5 lakh rupees. The selected awardees in different fields are
  • Biological Sciences: Dr. Roop Mallik of Tata Institute of Fundamental Research
  • Chemical Sciences: Dr. Kavirayani Ramakrishna Prasad of Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru and Dr. Souvik Maiti of Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (CSIR-IGIB), New Delhi
  • Earth, Atmosphere, Ocean and Planetary Sciences: Dr. Sachchida Nand Tripathi of Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur
  • Engineering Sciences: Dr. S Venkata Mohan of Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (CSIR-IICT), Hyderabad and Dr. Soumen Chakrabarti of Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai
  • Mathematical Sciences: Dr. Kaushal Kumar Verma of Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru
  • Medical Sciences: Dr. Anurag Agrawal of Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (CSIR-IGIB), New Delhi
  • Physical Sciences: Dr. Pratap Raychaudhuri, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research of Mumbai and Dr. Sadiqali Abbas Rangwala of Raman Research Institute, Bengaluru-
  
  
• Asian Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Leadership Award for Sukinda Chromite Mine
  Sukinda Chromite Mine won the Asian Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Leadership Award. The award was presented by World CSR Congress at Dubai, UAE. Sumit Ghoshal, Regional Commercial Manager of Tata Steel in Middle East received the award on behalf of the company.
  
• Rajeev Kishore Dubey: He is the CMD of Canara Bank, received the 1st Prize under the Indira Gandhi Rajbhasha Puraskar Yojana from the President of India, Pranab Mukherji
  
• Manoj: The sports ministry has agreed to give the Arjuna Award to boxer Manoj Kumar. The Kapil Dev-led award committee had earlier refused to give the coveted award to the 2010 Commonwealth Games gold medallist.
  
  The ministry, represented by Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Sanjay Jain, informed Justice Vibhu Bakhru that Kumar was initially not considered for the award by the committee as they mistakenly believed that he was involved in a doping case.
  
  Jain also informed the court a representation was made on the boxer's behalf but without giving reasons, the committee rejected his plea.
  
  The controversial recommendation of boxer Jai Bhagwan for the prestigious Arjuna Awards had led to Kumar approaching the sports ministry officials, who, he said, had assured him that his name would be added to a list of 15 athletes in a review meeting.
  
• Kamal Bawa won 2014 Midori Prize in Biodiversity
  Indian scientist Kamal Bawa, a distinguished professor of biology at the University of Massachusetts in Boston, has won the 2014 Midori Prize in Biodiversity for his research, including in climate change in the Himalayas. Bawa, founder president of the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) in Bangalore, will receive the prize with a cash award of $100,000 during the Oct 16-17 Conference of Parties (COP-12) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in South Korea.
  
  The prize also honors his contributions to research in ecology of tropical forests, sustainable use of tropical forests, promoting engagement of civil society in conservation efforts, and for his leadership role in setting up ATREE.
  
  The prize honors individuals who have made outstanding contribution to biodiversity conservation and sustainable use of resources at local and global levels, and raised awareness about biodiversity. The Midori Prize is regarded a major element "at the service of the objectives of the United Nations Decade on Biodiversity 2011-2020".
  The MIDORI Prize for Biodiversity was established in 2010 at the occasion of the twentieth anniversary of the AEON Environmental Foundation, which coincided with the celebration of the International Year of Biodiversity
  
• Rice bucket challenge pioneer gets U.N. Award
  Manjulatha Kalanidhi, Hyderabad resident who created a buzz online by creating the ‘rice bucket challenge (based on the ALS ice bucket challenge), has been honoured with the Karmaveer Chakra Award and the Rex Karmaveer Global Fellowship by iCONGO, an international confederation of NGOs, and the United Nations. The awards are given for doing something small, yet significant, to make a difference in the world.
  
• G.K. Reddy award for Vinod Mehta
  Veteran journalist Vinod Mehta has been named for the G.K. Reddy Memorial Award 2014 for his outstanding contribution in the field of journalism, it was announced 2nd September.
  
  The award, which comprises Rs.5 lakh in cash, a gold medal and a citation was founded in the memory of distinguished journalist G.K. Reddy. The award ceremony will be held here in December 2014.
  
  Mehta is presently the editorial chairman of the Outlook Group. Previous recipients of the award include prominent journalists like H.K. Dua, Aroon Purie and Prabhu Chawla.
  
• Tata house, temple win UNESCO award
  Mumbai’s Esplanade House, once the residence of Jamsetji Tata, founder of the Tata empire, and the Shri Sakhargad Nivasini Devi Temple Complex in Satara are among the 14 projects from 10 countries that bagged the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage Awards that were announced in Bangkok on 2nd September. The awards recognise efforts of private individuals and organisations in restoring and conserving heritage structures and buildings.