AIMS DARE TO SUCCESS MADE IN INDIA
AWARDS SEPTEMBER 2012
- Myanmar's opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi on 19 september has received prestigious Congressional Gold Medal, a rare honour bestowed to any foreign leader by the US administration.The National League for Democracy leader also met President Barack Obama on a day when the US lifted additional sanctions on Myanmar. In her Congressional Gold Medal acceptance speech Suu Kyi said it has always been her opinion that democracy offers the best balance between freedom and security for all of them.
- Noted Tamil scholar A A Manavalan was on 18 september,in New Delhi, conferred with the prestigious Saraswati Samman for his work 'Irama Kathaiyum Iramayakalyum', a comparative study of epic Ramayana written in 48 languages.Corporate Affairs and Power Minister M Veerappa Moily presented a citation plaque, a memento and a cheque of Rs 7.5 lakh to Manavalan at a function organised by K K Birla Foundation.
- Liberty Medal awarded to Muhammad Ali, the Boxing Champion :
The boxing Champion, Muhammad Ali who retired from the game in the year 1981 was honored with Liberty Medal in Philadelphia on 13 September 2012. The boxer who has been battling with Parkinson disease for the past 30 years was awarded with the honor for his contribution towards the humanitarian causes like religious freedom and civil rights. National Constitution Center of the United States administers the Liberty Medal and presents the honor of this medal to the leaders who fight in pursuit of freedom. Muhammad Ali, who was born as Cassius Marcellus Clay changed his name to be Muhammad Ali after converting himself into Isalm in the year 1964. He won the world heavyweight title three times and is nicknamed as The Greatest. In the year 1999, BBC crowned Ali, with the title; Sports Personality of the Century and Sports illustrated crowned him with the title of Sportsman of the century
- Renowned poet and film-maker Gulzar has been nominated for the 27th Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration. Congress President Sonia Gandhi will give away the 27th Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration to the 75-year-old lyricist and writer in recognition of his yeoman work in promoting and preserving spirit of national integration in the country.The Award consists of a citation and cash of Rs 5 lakh. Before Gulzar, some of the other film personalities, who received the award are director Shyam Benegal, lyricist Javed Akhtar, music composer A R Rahman and writer Mahashweta Devi. The award instituted in the name of late Indira Gandhi is given in recognition to outstanding contribution to this cause by individuals or institutions. Former Presidents A P J Abdul Kalam and Shankar Dayal Sharma, Late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, late Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh, the former head of Ramkrishna Math and Mission Swami Ranganathananda, musician M S Subulakshmi, Aruna Asaf Ali, P N Haksar, Acharya Shree Tulsi Ji, Bishambar Nath Paride and Natwar Thakkar are among the other awardees.
- Ebrahim Alkazi, the grand old man of Indian theatre has been conferred France’s highest cultural award for his contribution in nurturing and presenting modern theatre in India and preserving the treasures of photography and other art forms for posterity. Alkazi, was awarded Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters (Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres) on 28 September, in New Delhi by the French government who hailed him as “the universal man” for his patronage of fine arts and culture. French Ambassador to India Francois Richier recalled Alkazi’s association with France and his contribution in preserving and enduring the bonds between the two countries through his works and through the Alkazi Foundation of the Arts. The award is given to writers, filmmakers, musicians and other artists and persons who have distinguished themselves in the field of art, culture and literature or for their contribution to the influence of arts in France and throughout the world.
- Afghan human rights activist and former Minister Sima Samar (55) on 28 September won the Swedish Right Livelihood Award .A medical doctor by training, Ms. Samar fled to Pakistan in 1984. She returned in 2001 to become the first Minister of Women’s Affairs and in 2002 was named the head of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission, which she still leads. Ms. Samar shares the award with American political theorist Gene Sharp (84) and an organisation campaigning for an end to British arms exports.
- Pieta the South Korean Film won Golden Lion Venice Top Prize:
The Golden Lion Prize for best movie was given to the South Korean Movie, Pieta directed by Kim Ki-duk at the 69th Venice Film Festival on 8 September 2012. The Master by Paul Thomas Anderson walked off with two major awards namely, Special Jury Award and Best Actor for Joaquin Phoenix. Pieta is the brutal story about a debt collector with a habit of crippling those, who were unable to pay his debt. The brutality stops at a certain point of time, when he meets a woman who claims to be his mother.
- Ten scientists bag India Citation Awards
Ten senior scientists, including theoretical physicists Thanu Padmanabhan and Varun Sahni and environmental scientist Vinod Kumar Garg, were on 12 September honoured with the India Citation Awards instituted by Thomson Reuters. The other awardees are Anunay Samanta (physical chemistry and photochemistry), Murali Sastry (nanobiotechnology), Rabin Banerjee and Sandip Trivedi (both theoretical physics and cosmology), Umesh Waghmare (applied physics and materials science, computational methods). Sarit Kumar Das (mechanical engineering, heat transfer) Velayutham Murugesan (physical, organic and environmental chemistry) were also among the awardees. The awardees were selected on the basis of their highly cited research papers written over a decade between 2002-2011. Indian scientists who had previously been recognised at Thomson Reuters awards in 2004, 2006 and 2009 were not considered for selection. While Samanta is a Professor of Chemistry at the University of Hyderabad, Sastry is the Director of India Innovation Centre of DSM India Private Limited. Banerjee is a Senior Professor, Department of Theoretical Sciences, S N Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences. Trivedi teaches Theoretical Physics at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research. While Das is the Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, IIT-Madras, Padmanabhan is a Research Scientist at Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA). Waghmare is the Professor, Theoretical Science Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR). Sahni is a Professor at IUCAA. Murugesan is the Professor of Chemistry (Eminence) at Anna University and Garg is an Associate Professor, Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Guru Jambheshwar University of Science and Technology, Hisar
- Liberty Medal awarded to Muhammad Ali, the Boxing Champion :
The boxing Champion, Muhammad Ali who retired from the game in the year 1981 was honored with Liberty Medal in Philadelphia on 13 September 2012. The boxer who has been battling with Parkinson disease for the past 30 years was awarded with the honor for his contribution towards the humanitarian causes like religious freedom and civil rights. National Constitution Center of the United States administers the Liberty Medal and presents the honor of this medal to the leaders who fight in pursuit of freedom. Muhammad Ali, who was born as Cassius Marcellus Clay changed his name to be Muhammad Ali after converting himself into Isalm in the year 1964. He won the world heavyweight title three times and is nicknamed as The Greatest. In the year 1999, BBC crowned Ali, with the title; Sports Personality serious of the Century and Sports illustrated crowned him with the title of Sportsman of the century.
- Andhra Pradesh State Literacy Mission Authority (SLMA) received three National Level Awards for its excellent work in the State. The Authority has received awards for its work in Vizianagaram district and one gram panchayat P Yeleru of Anantapur district. Andhra Pradesh is the only State which received the Saakshar Bharat Award in the entire Country. The Awards comprising a trophy and a certificate which will be given by the Vice-President of India Hamid Ansari on the occasion of International Literacy Day to be celebrated on September 8 at Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh. The National Literacy Mission Authority has instituted Saakshar Bharat Awards to encourage the institutions working in the field of the literacy and Skill Development and the awards are presented on International Literacy Day on 8th of September every year. In Andhra Pradesh, Saakshar Bharat programme is being implemented in 19 districts where female literacy is less than 50 per cent. The overall literacy rate of Andhra Pradesh is 67.44 per cent as per 2011 census. Under Saakshar Bharat Programme, so far 37 lakh non-literates were enrolled and about 33 lakh non-literates were made literate. Thus, the literacy rate among adults in the age group of 15+ above will be around 72 per cent which is nearer to the National Average.
- Author Siddhartha Deb has been named among the winners of the 2012 PEN Awards, considered the most comprehensive literary awards programme in the US, for his non-fiction work on India, which is described as a "gripping analysis" of the country and an "important book" of current times. Deb's book The Beautiful and the Damned: A Portrait of the New India won the PEN Open Book Award, which carries a $5000 cash reward "for an exceptional work of literature by an author of colour. "Deb's book chronicles varying lives in contemporary India, including that of highly paid call centre workers, an entertainment mogul and the tragedy of the farmer suicides.
- K.C Abraham, the Managing Director of Kunnath Pharmaceuticals and the producer of world famous Musli Power X-tra has won the Switzerland Business Excellence Award 2012on 8 September 2012 at Zurich, Switzerland. He got shortlisted for the award because of his visionary leadership skill, hard working nature and dedication.
- The University of Petroleum and Energy Studies on 5 September 2012, on the occasion of teacher’s day felicitated Dr. AN Purohit with siksha ratna award. Dr. Purohit is a former vice-chancellor of HNB Garhwal University. Dr Purohit has widely worked in the Himalayan belt, particularly in Uttarakhand, on specific subject of plant physiology, ecophysiology of trees and the environment.He was awarded Padmashree in 1997 by the President.
AWARDS AUGUST 2012
- Aditi Mukherjee, a Delhi based scientist, won the prestigious Norman Borlaug Award in Field Research and Application. Mukherjee was picked for the award for her work in transforming access to water for thousands of farmers in West Bengal. The award will be formally presented to Mukherji on 17 October 2012 in Des Moines, Iowa, US. Mukherji, 37, is a senior researcher at the Delhi office of the International Water Management Institute (IWMI). The international award is conferred by the World Food Prize Foundation, which was started by Norman Borlogue, the father of Green Revolution in India. The award carries 10000 dollar cash prize. The Borlaug Award is restricted to scientists under 40.
- The Castrol awards for cricketing excellence honoured the players, as Ajit Wadekar, who bagged the lifetime achievement award, and Unmukt Chand, who topped the ‘Junior cricketer’ category. The other awards are- Indian cricketer of the year — M.S. Dhoni, special award for- Yuvraj Singh. Test-cricketer-of-the-year award - Rahul Dravid , while the limited-over category honours went to Suresh Raina and Sachin Tendulkar took the batsman-of-the-year trophy and the best bowler award - R. Ashwin. Other awards: Performance in the World Cup: Yuvraj Singh; 100th hundred: Tendulkar; Extraordinary double century in ODIs: Virender Sehwag; Performance under pressure: Gautam Gambhir (World Cup final); Stand-out performance under pressure: Virat Kohli.
- Physics professor of Johns Hopkins University, Charles L Bennett, was awarded with the Gruber Cosmology Prize 2012 in Beijing at the opening ceremony of the 28th Conference of the International Astronomical Union on 22 August 2012. This award was given to him acknowledging his immense contribution to the world of physics. Bennett, a prominent physicist, led a 26-member team that worked on NASA's Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe. The findings of the study helped astronomers refine their understanding of the age, shape and makeup of the universe.
- Dr PKB Patnaik has bagged the Damien-Dutton Award for 2012. He is now working as the State Leprosy Officer , Odisha. Dr Patnaik has been selected for the award in recognition of his more than 25 years of concern and dedication to the victims of leprosy in India and for his direct involvement in making the multi-drug therapy available to the people affected by leprosy and goal to eliminate leprosy from the State, which has been achieved. The Damien-Dutton Society for Leprosy AID INC was founded in the year 1944 by the Staff Sgt Howard E Crouch, Medical Corps US Army.Dr Patnaik is also Honorary Secretary, Hind Kustha Nivaran Sangh, Odisha State Branch appointed by the Governor since 1996.
- In a rare honour, eminent Urdu litterateur, Padmabhushan award winner, Professor Gopi Chand Narang’s(81) name figured in the list of civilian honours announced by Pakistan on the eve of its Independence Day. Prof. Narang has been conferred Sitara-i-Imtiaz (Star of Excellence), the third highest civilian honour bestowed by the nation.The legendary writer Saadat Hasan Manto ( Nishan-i-Imtiaz ), ghazal maestro Mehdi Hassan ( Nishan-i- Imtiaz ) and eminent poet Josh Malihabadi ( Hilal-i-Imtiaz ) are also figured in the list of award winners. In the past, former Prime Minister Morarji Desai and matinee idol Dilip Kumar have been bestowed Pakistan's highest civilian honour, Nishan-i-Imtiaz .The investiture ceremony will take place in Pakistan on March 23, 2013, Pakistan's Republic Day.
- Ashok Sen, an Indian physicist currently on the faculty of an Allahabad-based research institute has become a proud recipient of USD three million (about Rs 16.75 crore) cash prize instituted by Russian entrepreneur Yuri Milner for researchers in the discipline. Ashoke Sen, a professor in Physics faculty of the Harishchandra Research Institute, situated at the city outskirts and funded by the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), received the news on, that he was selected for the inaugural group of nine recipients of the Fundamental Physics Prize this year when he was abroad last week. Sen, 56, who is known for his research on the 'String Theory', is an alumni of the prestigious Presidency College at Kolkata and IIT- Kanpur. He has been associated with premier US-based institutes like Fermilab and Stanford Linear Accelerator Centre, besides the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research at Mumbai. Sen had received the Padma Shri in 2001, besides being honoured with a number of prizes like the International Centre for Theoretical Physics Prize (1989), S S Bhatnagar Award (1994). He was elected Fellow of the Royal Society in 1998. Yuri Milner is said to have himself studied Physics at the under-graduate level before dropping out of college and making billions by investing in companies like Facebook. According to the Fundamental Physics Prize Foundation's website, Sen was chosen "for uncovering striking evidence of strong-weak duality in certain super- symmetric string theories and gauge theories, opening the path for the realisation that all string theories are different limits of the same underlying theory".
- A Chennai-based development organisation, Hand in Hand India, is among the five winners of this year’s World Environment Day Challenge organised by the UN for inspiring environmental action. Hand in Hand India brought together over 500 volunteers to create a colourful 10,000 square foot rangoli carpet depicting 10 environmental themes. The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) had challenged people across the world to pledge an environmental activity in connection with this year’s World Environment Day, which was observed on June 5.
- Renowned social worker D.R. Mehta was selected for the 20th Rajiv Gandhi National Sadbhavna Award on 4 August. Congress treasurer Motilal Vora, who is member secretary of Rajiv Gandhi National Sadbhavana Award Committee, said in a statement that the award was given to Mehta for "his outstanding contribution towards the promotion of communal harmony, peace and goodwill". The award, given on the birth anniversary of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, carries a citation and a cash award of Rs.5 lakh. Mehta is founder of Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayata Samiti (BMVSS), a Jaipur-based NGO that helps the physically challenged, particularly the poor, by providing devices such as artificial limbs and callipers. Former recipients of the award include Mother Teresa, Ustad Bismillah Khan, Lata Mangeshkar, Sunil Dutt, S.N. Subbarao and Dilip Kumar.
- India born internationally acclaimed NRI Heart Surgeon and Research Scientist from the famed Harvard University, Dr Mukesh Hariawala, has been unanimously selected by the National Healthcare jury to be honored with the prestigious 'India's Most Admired Surgeon 2012 Award'. The glittering ceremony to be held at Mumbai's Hilton Hotel on 21st September, will have in attendance top dignitaries from government, celluloid personalities, industrialists and eminent public figures, led by Maharashtra Governor Shri K. Sankaranarayanan,
AWARDS JULY 2012
- Vandana Shiva to receive Fukuoka Prize in Japan this year:The Government of Japan on 23 July 2012 decided to honour renowned Indian Environmentalist Vandana Shiva with Fukuoka Prize 2012. She enlightens people about the ideas for the love of nature. She is the director of The Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology. Dr. Shiva is the founder of Navdanya, an NGO which was established in the year 1991. She commenced her work in the field of conservation of traditionally used seeds, organic farming and fair trade. In 1993, she had received Right Livelihood Award that is known as the Alternative Nobel Prize. Fukuoka Prize is the prestigious award and given to those people who contribute to the academy, arts and culture in Asia. Earlier, Pandit Ravi Shankar, Padma Subrahmanyam, Romila Thapar and Ashis Nandy were the famous personalities who were honoured by this award. She penned several books including, Earth Democracy: Justice, Sustainability and Peace, The Violence of the Green Revolution, Monocultures of the Mind: Perspectives on Biodiversity and Biotechnology, and Staying Alive: Women, Ecology and Survival in India. She also set up an international college for sustainable living in the year 2001.
- Magasaysay award for TN activist Kulandei Francis: Indian social activist Kulandei Francis, who gave up being a priest to devote himself entirely to social work in Tamil Nadu, is among the six individuals from across Asia who has been chosen for the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Awards for 2012. Kulandei Francis is being recognised for "his visionary zeal, his profound faith in community energies, and his sustained programmes in pursuing the holistic economic empowerment of thousands of women and their families in rural India. The others chosen for the prizes, announced by the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation (RMAF) in Manila today, are Ms Chen Shu-Chu from Taiwan, Mr Romulo Davide from the Phillipines, Ms Syeda Rizwana Hasan of Bangladesh, Mr Yang Saing Koma of Cambodia and Mr Ambrosius Ruwindrijarto from Indonesia. Established in 1957, the Award is Asia's highest honor and is widely regarded as the region's equivalent of the Nobel Prize. It celebrates the memory and leadership example of the third Philippine President, and is given every year to individuals or organizations in Asia who manifest the same sense of selfless service that ruled the life of the late and beloved Filipino leader.
- Sridevi Vedula Sarma gets US Prez award: US President Barack Obama has named four Indian-American scientists among 96 researchers as recipients of the prestigious presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers on 23, July. The awards bestowed on Sridevi Vedula Sarma, Pawan Sinha, Parag A. Pathak and Biju Parekkadan is the highest honour given by the US Government to science and engineering professionals in the early stages of their independent research careers. Established in 1996, the awardees are selected for their pursuit of innovative research at the frontiers of science and technology and their commitment to community service as demonstrated through scientific leadership, public education, or community outreach
- Sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik won double Gold medal at Spain:Indian Sand Artist Sudarshan Pattnaik(Orissa) won People's Choice Gold Medal Award in Moscow on 18 July 2012. It was the Second World Sand Sculpture Championship. He sculpted the copy of the face of The Showman of the Millennium Raj Kapoor, while the theme of the competition was WORLD CINEMA. Sudarshan Pattnaik had also won Berlin World Championship 2008. He had also won his first Prize in Copenhagen Sand Sculpture Championship in Denmark. He also won two gold medals and a trophy in Solo International Sand Sculpture contest 2012.
- Manipal University has bagged the Golden Peacock Environment Management Award for 2012. Karan Singh conferred the award at the 14th World Congress on environment management in Delhi on 8 july. Dr Ramdas M Pai, chairman, Manipal Education and Medical Group earlier had received Golden Peacock Lifetime Achievement Award for 2011 in recognition of his contribution in fields of education and healthcare on January 22, 2012.A jury chaired by Justice PN Bhagwati, former CJI and member, UN Human Rights Commission selected Manipal University for the award.
- Tata Sons chairman Ratan Tata has been awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award by the prestigious Rockefeller Foundation in New york on 27 june for innovation in philanthropy.Tata was honored by the foundation for incorporating public good into the business model of the Tata Group.
AWARDS JUNE 2012
- Aung San Suu Kyi has finally received her honourary degree from Oxford University. The leader of Myanmar's opposition is being honoured on 20 june at the university's Encaenia ceremony, in which it presents honourary degrees to distinguished people.Suu Kyi, who is making her first visits outside of her native country in 24 years, was awarded the honourary doctorate in civil law in 1993 but was unable to collect it under house arrest in Myanmar.She studied philosophy, politics and economics at St. Hugh's College in Oxford between 1964 and 1967.
- Bulu Imam of Jharkhand and Binayak Sen of Chhattisgarh has been invited to receive the Gandhi Foundation International Peace award 2011 at a function to be organized at the House of Lords in the UK on June 12.While individual letter of invitation has been sent to both of them, the citation released by the Gandhi Foundation on its website reads that the duo have been selected for the international peace award for their humanitarian work and their practice of non-violence. The Foundation honours individuals or groups annually based on their work in the field of promoting or practising Gandhian philosophy. Hazaribag-based Bulu Imam has been selected for the award in the wake of his non-violent approach in protesting coal mining and environmental damage to Upper Damodar Valley (Karnapura) because of open cast coal mines.
- Israeli scientist Daniel Hillel won the World Food Prize 2012 on 13 June 2012. The work and motivation of Daniel Hillel built the bridge between the divisions and to promote peace and understanding in the Middle East by advancing a breakthrough achievement. His works contributed to agriculture-dominated economies. He applied the method of micro-irrigation, which maximizes the efficiency of water usage in agriculture. World Food Prize is an international award. This award recognizes the importance of water for agricultural purposes. Dr. Hillel will be formally presented with the cash prize of 250000 dollar award in October 2012 at United States. The World Food Prize award is chaired by M.S. Swaminathan. He is Indian agricultural scientist Professor and the first World Food Prize laureate.
- Sachin Tendulkar was conferred upon the Wisden India Outstanding Achievement awardfor completing a century of 100 international hundreds, in Dubai on 11 June 2012. Tendulkar was presented a trophy at an event organised by FidelisWorld. Tendulakar achieved the incredible feat while playing against Bangladesh in the Asia Cup in March 2012. He has total 49 One-Day International centuries and 51 Test centuries to his credit.
AWARDS MAY 2012
- The Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama received the 1.7 million dollar Templeton Prize on 14 May 2012 for his role in promoting links between spirituality and science. The award was conferred at a ceremony in St. Paul's Cathedral, London.
- Miss India World Vinya Mishraand Yesteryear actress Sushma Seth were awarded with Kalpana Chawla excellence award on 6 May 2012 at Mavlankar Auditorium, New Delhi. The award was instituted by PECOBA (Punjab Engineering College Chandigarh Old Boys Association) .Kalpana Chawla was an alumnus of this College and got her degree in aeronautical engineering in 1982 from this college.
- Vice President of India Hamid Ansari conferred the 59th National Film Awards across various categories upon the winners at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi on 4 May 2012. Ansari also presented the Dadasaheb Phalke award, highest honour in Indian cinema to Veteran Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee. The best feature film award was shared by Marathi film Deool and Kannada movie Byari. Best director award went to Gurvinder Singh for his Punjabi film Anhe Ghorey Da Daan. Chillar Party was adjudged the best children's film. Marathi actor Girish Kulkarni and bollywood actress Vidya Balan got the best male and female actor awards. Kumararaja Thiagarajan won the Indira Gandhi Award for best debut film of a director for Aaranyakandam.
AWARDS APRIL 2012
- Bollywood actor Mithun Chakravarti received the PC Chandra lifetime achievement award in Kolkata on 29 April 2102. West Bengal Governor MK Narayan conferred the award upon the actor.
- Noted Tamil writer Ashokamitran, was declared as the recipient of the 6th NTR National Literary Award. The award is scheduled to be presented on 28 May 2012. The writer was born in Secunderabad and was closest to Telugu culture, language and people. Thanneer was his most popular novel. Chairperson of NTR Vignan Trust Nandamuri Lakshmi Parvati made the announcement. The previous award winners are Kannada writer S.L. Bhyrappa, A. Somasundar(Telugu), Sachidanandan (Malayalam), Mahasweta Devi and Gnanpith awardee C. Narayana Reddy.s
- Chairperson of National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) Shanta Sinha is to be honoured with the Yudhvir Memorial Foundation Award 2012.The award, instituted in the memory of freedom fighter, journalist and founder of the daily Hindi Milap , Yudhvir, will be given away on April 30, his birth anniversary. Shanta Sinha is being given the award for her pioneering and innovative role in protecting/promoting child rights.
- The 2012 Pulitzer Prize was announced on 16 April 2012. The Associated Press won a Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting for documenting the New York Police Department's spying on Muslims. A second Pulitzer for investigative reporting was given to The Seattle Times for a series about accidental methadone overdoses among patients with chronic pain. The New York Times won two Pulitzers, for explanatory and international reporting. The Pulitzers are given out annually by Columbia University on the recommendation of a board of journalists and others.
AWARDS MARCH 2012
- Tibetan Buddhist spiritual leader, Dalai Lama was selected for the Templeton Prize, 2012. The Buddhist leader who lives in exile in India had won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989 for advocating nonviolent liberation for Tibet. The Dalai Lama is founder of the Mind & Life Institute for Research on Science and Buddhism.
- Tamil writer A.A. Manavalan is bestowed with the 21st Saraswati Samman for his work Irama Kathaiyum Iramayakalum (Ramakatha and Ramayanas) published in 2005. The K K Birla Foundation announced the award on 22 March 2012.
- Legendary Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee was on 21 March 2012 selected for India's highest film honour - the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for 2012. The Dadasaheb Phalke Award is India`s highest award in film industry which is given for lifetime achievement in Indian cinema by the Central government.
- Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh on 11 march, announced a national award for sanitation and water in the name of Maharashtrian saint Sant Gadge Baba. The award was constituted in the name of the Saint who strove to serve the society through cleanliness. The award is to honour villages, individuals or organisations working in the field of sanitation and drinking water. Maharashtra's Sant Gadge Baba Swachta Abhiyan (cleanliness scheme) encourages villages to be open defecation-free. Well performing villages are awarded through the Nirmal Gram Yojana.
- The 59th National Film Awards were announced in New Delhi on 7 March 2012. The Chairperson of the jury, Rohini Hattangady, announced the awards.
- The Best Feature Film award was shared by the films Deool (Marathi) produced by Abhijeet Gholap & directed by Umesh Vinayak Kulkarni and Byari (Byari language) produced by T.H. Althaf Hussain & directed by Suveeram.
- The Best Actor was given to Girish Kulkarni for the film Deool (Marathi) and Best Actress to Vidya Balan for the film The Dirty Picture (Hindi).
- Chillar Party (Hindi) won Best Children Film.
- The book titled R.D. Burman – The Man, The Music written by Anirudha Bhattacharjee & Balaji Vittal won the Swarna Kamal for the Best Writing on Cinema category. Manoj Barpujari from Assam has been awarded Best Film Critic.
- Wang Shu of China won the Pritzker prize of this year, which can be called Nobel in Architecture.
AWARDS FEBRUARY 2012
- The National Tourism Awards 2010-11 were conferred by the President of India Pratibha Patil on 29 February 2012 in New Delhi. Madhya Pradesh received the National Tourism Award for its efforts in developing tourism related infrastructure and programmes in the state. North-Eastern state Sikkim bagged the award for the best among Northeast states and J&K category. It also got the new award under Campaign Clean India. Best heritage city awardwas bagged by HYDERABAD. Hyderabad airport received the award in the Best Airport award category. New Delhi railway station named the most tourist friendly railway station.
- The 84th Oscar Awards ceremony for 2011 took place at the Hollywood and Highland Center in Hollywood, California on 26 February 2012.
The Artist' directed by Michel Hazanavicius won five Oscars including those for Best Picture, Director and Actor. The Artist is a silent French romantic comedy drama directed by Michel Hazanavicius, starring Jean Dujardin. Pakistan got its first Oscar as Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy received the Oscar for Saving face (Best documentary -short subject) along with Daniel Junge.
- Some of the awards in different categories are-
- Best Picture - The Artist
- Best Actor - Jean Dujardin for The Artist
- Best Actress - Meryl Streep for The Iron Lady
- Best Director - Michel Hazanavicius for The Artist
- Best Supporting Actor - Christopher Plummer for Beginners
- Best Supporting Actress - Octavia Spencer for The Help
- Best Adapted Screenplay - The Descendants ( Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon and Jim Rash)
- Best Original Screenplay - Midnight in Paris ( Woody Allen)
- Best Animated feature film - Rango
- Best foreign language film - A Separation ( Iran)
- Best documentary (feature) - Undefeated
- Best art direction - Hugo
- Best visual effects - Hugo (Rob Legato, Joss Williams, Ben Grossman and Alex Henning)
- The Dr. Y Nayudamma Memorial Award for 2011 will be conferred on Rajendra Singh Pawar, chairman of the National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) for his contribution to IT industry. The award will be presented to Pawar at a function at Tenali, A.P the native town of Dr. Nayudamma. He will deliver the 20th Dr. Nayudamma Memorial Lecture on ‘IT for national development’ at the function.
- The Public Relations Council of India (PRCI) recently gave Shabnam Asthana the prestigious national public relations Hall of Fame award for her contributions in the field of public relations. The award was presented to her at the Sixth Global PR Conclave 2012 in Mumbai.
- The former President, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, and the former Lokayukta of Karnataka, Justice N. Santosh Hegde, have been selected for theS.R. Jindal Prize for their outstanding contributions in their fields. While Mr. Kalam gets the award for his contributions in science and technology, Justice N. Santosh Hegde will be bestowed the prize for his exemplary service in social development. The prize carries a cash of Rs. 1 crore. The Sitaram Jindal Foundation, which has instituted the award, will felicitate 25 others also.
- Veteran Hindi film music composer Rajesh Roshan was honoured with the Lata Manageshkar award 2010-11 by the Madhya Pradesh government on 8 February 2012. Previously this award was awarded to the legends like late Jagjit Singh, Asha Bhonsle and Naushad.
- The 54th Annual Grammy Awards were held on 12 February 2012, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The British female singer, Adele won six golden gramophones for her Album, 21.The other winners are -Album of the Year: 21 – Adele; Record of the Year: Rolling in the Deep by Adele ;Song of the Year:Rolling in the Deep by Adele ;Best New Artist: Bon Iver
- The sixty-fifth annual BAFTA(British Academy Film) awards, was held at the Royal Opera House in London 12 February 2012.Black and white silent movie, The Artist won six awards, including best film, best actor and best director.Best Actress was awarded to Meryl Streep for her amazing acting as former British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher in the Iron Lady. Some of the other winners are-Best Picture: The Artist; Best Actor: Jean Dujardin – The Artist Best Actress: Meryl Streep – The Iron Lady;Best Director: Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist Best Film not in the English language: The Skin I Live In (Spanish); Academy fellowship: Martin Scorsese
- Noted Hindi writer Professor Ramdarash Mishra was selected for the 21st Vyas Samman award for his poetry collection Aam Ke Patte published in 2004.
- India's Nobel Prize-winning economist Amartya Sen was awarded the 2011 US National Humanities Medal. He is the first Indian to be honored with the medal that is typically awarded to US nationals.
- The 2012 Laureus Sports Awards were given in London on 6 Febreaury. The winners were chosen by 47 sports stars who make up the Laureus sports academy. The winners were- Sportsman of the Year: Novak Djokovic; Sportswoman of the Year: Vivian Cheruiyot; Team of the Year: FC Barcelona; Breakthrough of the Year: Rory McIlroy; Comeback Award: Darren Clarke; Disability Award: Oscar Pistorius; Action Sportsperson of the Year: Kelly Slater; Lifetime Achievement Award: Bobby Charlton; Sport for Good Award: Rai.
- Indian Union Minister for Labour and Employment Mallikarjun Kharge was presented with Pride of India award by the Indian-American community in Washington on 1 February 2012. He was honoured with the award for his over four decades of public service.The award was presented jointly by the Indian American Friendship Council (IAFC) and India Association of North Texas (IANT).
- Bollywood actor Abhishek Bachchan received a Green Globe for Outstanding Efforts by a Celebrity Award for his efforts toward a greener future at the fourth edition of the Panasonic Green Globe Foundation Awards on 2 february 2012. He received the award from Hollywood actor and former Governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger.During his visit Schwarzenegger also attended the day-long Delhi Sustainable Development Summit presided over by the Indian Prime Minister.
- Veteran environmental filmmaker Mike Pandey was honoured with the prestigious V. Shantaram Life Time Achievement Award at the Mumbai International Film Festival 2012 on 3 February 2012. He received the award for his documentaries on wildlife conservation and environment.
- Shri Khamliana from Mizoram and Md. Abdul Bari from Odisha have been jointly selected for the National Communal Harmony Award 2011. The Jury headed by the Vice President Shri Hamid Ansari made the selection. National Communal Harmony Awards were instituted in 1996 by the National Foundation for Communal Harmony, an autonomous organization set up bt the Government of India, Ministry of Home Affairs. The Award in the individual category carries a citation and a cash award of Rupees two lakhs.
AWARDS JANUARY 2012
- The Padma awards for the year 2012 were announced on the eve of India’s 63rd Republic Day. The Awards comprises 5 Padma Vibhushan, 27 Padma Bhushan and 77 Padma Shri Awards.
Padma Vibhushan
- Shri K G Subramanyan - Art-Painting & Sculpture - West Bengal
- Late Shri Mario De Miranda - Art-Cartoonist - Goa
- Late (Dr.)Bhupen Hazarika - Art- Vocal Music - Assam
- Dr. Kantilal Hastimal Sancheti - Medicine - Orthopedics - Maharashtra
- Shri T V Rajeswar - Civil Service - Delhi
Padma Bhushan
- Smt. Shabana Azmi - Art - Cinema - Maharashtra
- Shri Khaled Choudhury - Art - Theatre - West Bengal
- Shri Jatin Das - Art - Painting - Delhi
- Pandit Buddhadev Das Gupta - Art - Instrumental Music - Sarod - West Bengal
- Shri Dharmendra Singh Deol alias Dharmendra - Art - Cinema - Maharashtra
- Dr. Trippunithwra Viswanathan Gopalkrishnan - Art - Classical vocal and instrumental music - Tamil Nadu
- Ms. Mira Nair - Art - Cinema - Delhi
- Shri M.S. Gopalakrishnan - Art - Instrumental Music-Violin - Tamil Nadu
- Shri Anish Kapoor - Art - Sculpture - UK*
- Shri Satya Narayan Goenka - Social Work - Maharashtra
- Dr. (Judge) Patibandla Chandrasekhar Rao - Public Affairs - Germany*
- Shri George Yong-Boon Yeo - Public Affairs - Singapore*
- Prof. Shashikumar Chitre - Science and Engineering - Maharashtra
- Dr. M S Raghunathan - Science and Engineering - Maharashtra
- Shri Subbiah Murugappa Vellayan - Trade and Industry - Tamil Nadu
- Shri Balasubramanian Muthuraman - Trade and Industry - Maharashtra
- Dr. Suresh H. Advani - Medicine - Oncology - Maharashtra
- Dr. Noshir H Wadia - Medicine-Neurology - Maharashtra
- Dr. Devi Prasad Shetty - Medicine-Cardiology - Karnataka
- Prof. (Dr.) Shantaram Balwant Mujumdar - Literature and Education - Maharashtra
- Prof. Vidya Dehejia - Literature and Education - USA*
- Prof. Arvind Panagariya - Literature and Education - USA*
- Dr. Jose Pereira - Literature and Education - USA*
- Dr. Homi K. Bhabha - Literature and Education - UK *
- Shri N Vittal - Civil Service - Kerala
- Shri Mata Prasad - Civil Service - Uttar Pradesh
- Shri Ronen Sen - Civil Service - West Bengal
Padma Shri awardees are -
- Shri Vanraj Bhatia - Art - Music - Maharashtra
- Shri Zia Fariduddin Dagar - Art - Music - vocal - Maharashtra
- Smt. Nameirakpam Ibemni Devi - Art - Music- Khongjom Parba - Manipur
- Shri Ramachandra Subraya Hegde Chittani - Art - Yakshagana dance drama - Karnataka
- Shri Moti Lal Kemmu - Art - Playwright - Jammu and Kashmir
- Shri Shahid Parvez Khan - Art - Instrumental Music-Sitar - Maharashtra
- Shri Mohan Lal Kumhar - Art - Terracotta - Rajasthan
- Shri Sakar Khan Manganiar - Art - Rajasthani Folk Music - Rajasthan
- Smt. Joy Michael - Art - Theatre - Delhi
- Dr. Minati Mishra - Art - Indian Classical Dance-Odissi. - Orissa
- Shri Natesan Muthuswamy - Art - Theatre. - Tamil Nadu
- Smt. R. Nagarathnamma - Art - Theatre - Karnataka
- Shri Kalamandalm Sivan Nambootiri - Art - Indian Classical Dance- Kutiyattam - Kerala
- Smt. Yamunabai Waikar - Art - Indian Folk Music-Lavani. - Maharashtra
- Shri Satish Alekar - Art - Playwright - Maharashtra
- Pandit Gopal Prasad Dubey - Art - Chhau dance and choreography - Jharkhand
- Shri Ramakant Gundecha and Shri Umakant Gundecha# - Art - Indian Classical Music- Vocal - Madhya Pradesh
- Shri Anup Jalota - Art-Indian Classical Music- Vocal - Maharashtra
- Shri Soman Nair Priyadarsan - Art - Cinema- Direction - Kerala
- Shri Sunil Janah - Art-Photography - Assam
- Ms. Laila Tyebji - Art-Handicrafts - Delhi
- Shri Vijay Sharma - Art-Painting - Himachal Pradesh
- Smt. Shamshad Begum - Social Work - Chattisgarh
- Smt. Reeta Devi - Social Work - Delhi
- Dr. P.K. Gopal - Social Work - Tamil Nadu
- Smt. Phoolbasan Bai Yadav - Social Work - Chattisgarh
- Dr. G. Muniratnam - Social Work - Andhra Pradesh
- Shri Niranjan Pranshankar Pandya - Social Work - Maharashtra
- Dr. Uma Tuli - Social Work - Delhi
- Shri Sat Paul Varma - Social Work - Jammu and Kashmir
- Smt.Binny Yanga - Social Work - Arunachal Pradesh
- Shri Yezdi Hirji Malegam - Public Affairs - Maharashtra
- Shri Pravin H. Parekh - Public Affairs - Delhi
- Dr. V. Adimurthy - Science and Engineering - Kerala
- Dr. Krishna Lal Chadha - Science and Engineering - Agriculture - Delhi
- Prof. Virander Singh Chauhan - Science and Engineering - Delhi
- Prof. Rameshwar Nath Koul Bamezai - Science and Engineering - Jammu and Kashmir
- Dr. Vijaypal Singh - Science and Engineering - Agricultural Research - Uttar Pradesh
- Dr. Lokesh Kumar Singhal - Science and Engineering - Punjab
- Dr. Yagnaswami Sundara Rajan - Science and Engineering - Karnataka
- Prof. Jagadish Shukla - Science and Engineering - USA*
- Ms. Priya Paul - Trade and Industry - Delhi
- Shri Shoji Shiba - Trade and Industry - Japan*
- Shri Gopinath Pillai - Trade and Industry - Singapore*
- Shri Arun Hastimal Firodia - Trade and Industry - Maharashtra
- Dr. Swati A. Piramal - Trade and Industry - Maharashtra
- Prof. Mahdi Hasan - Medicine-Anatomy - Uttar Pradesh
- Dr. Viswanathan Mohan - Medicine - Diabetology - Tamil Nadu
- Dr. J. Hareendran Nair - Medicine - Ayurveda - Kerala
- Dr. Vallalarpuram Sennimalai Natarajan - Medicine - Geriatrics - Tamil Nadu
- Dr. Jitendra Kumar Singh - Medicine - Oncology - Bihar
- Dr. Shrinivas S. Vaishya - Medicine-Healthcare - Daman and Diu
- Dr. Nitya Anand - Medicine - Drugs Research - Uttar Pradesh
- Late Dr. Jugal Kishore - Medicine - Homoeopathy - Delhi *
- Dr. Mukesh Batra - Medicine-Homeopathy - Maharashtra
- Dr. Eberhard Fischer - Literature and Education - Switzerland*
- Shri Kedar Gurung - Literature and Education - Sikkim
- Shri Surjit Singh Patar - Literature and Education - Poetry - Punjab
- Shri Vijay Dutt Shridhar - Literature and Education - Journalism - Madhya Pradesh
- Shri Irwin Allan Sealy - Literature and Education - Uttarakhand
- Ms. Geeta Dharmarajan - Literature and Education - Delhi
- Prof. Sachchidanand Sahai - Literature and Education - Haryana
- Smt. Pepita Seth - Literature and Education - Kerala
- Dr. Ralte L. Thanmawia - Literature and Education - Mizoram
- Shri Ajeet Bajaj - Sports - Skiing - Delhi
- Smt. Jhulan Goswami - Sports - Women's Cricket - West Bengal
- Shri Zafar Iqbal - Sports-Hockey - Uttar Pradesh
- Shri Devendra Jhajrija - Sports - Athletics- Paralympics - Rajasthan
- Shri Limba Ram - Sports - Archery - Rajasthan
- Shri Syed Mohammed Arif - Sports - Badminton - Andhra Pradesh
- Prof. Ravi Chaturvedi - Sports- Commentary - Delhi
- Shri Prabhakar Vaidya - Sports-Physical Education - Maharashtra
- Shri T. Venkatapathi Reddiar - Others-Horticulture - Puducherry
- Dr. K. (Kota) Ullas Karanth - Others-Wildlife Conservation and Environment Protection - Karnataka
- Shri K Paddayya - Others-Archaeology - Maharashtra
- Shri Swapan Guha - Others-Ceramics - Rajasthan
- Dr. Kartikeya V. Sarabhai - Others - Environmental Education - Gujarat
- President of India Pratibha Patil conferred the Ashoka Chakra on Lt. Navdeep Singh (posthumous) on the occasion of the 63rd Republic Day Parade 2012 in New Delhi. He was awarded the Ashoka Chakra for single-handedly eliminating four infiltrating terrorists on 20 August 20 2011.He was Ghatak Platoon Commander of 15 Maratha Light Infantry deployed in the High Altitude Area near the Line of Control. President also approved the award of three Kirti Chakra. For Lt. Col. Kamaldeep Singh , Capt. Ashutosh Kumar and Lt. Sushil Khajuria.
- Bollywood music director Rajesh Roshan was elected for the Latamangeshkar award-2011which was sponsored by government of Madhya Pradesh.
- 69th Annual Golden Globe Awards were held in Beverly Hills, California on 15 January 15 2012. The Artist, the French movie , directed by Michel Hazanavicius won three awards.
Some of the winners of the 69th Annual Golden Globe Awards is as follows. Best Picture: Drama- The Descendants, Best Actor: Drama- George Clooney (The Descendants), Best Actress: Drama- Meryl Streep (The Iron Lady), Best Director- Martin Scorsese(Hugo), BestForeign Language Film- A Separation (Iran), Best Animated Film- The Adventures of Tintin.
- Ramnath Goenka Awards for Excellence in Journalism 2012 function was held in New Delhi on 16 January 2012. Vice President of India, Hamid ansari gave away the awards. The Pioneer’s J Gopikrishnan and CNBC-TV18’s Udayan Mukherjee were adjudged Journalist of the Year at the 5th Ramnath Goenka Awards for Excellence in Journalism.CNN-IBN bagged three prestigious awards in various categories. The awards will cover the entire range of Indian media, Print & Broadcast, in English & Indian languages.The Ramnath Goenka foundation was set up in 1992 in the memory of late Ramnath Goenka, founder of The Indian Express, to encourage and propagate high-quality, objective journalism.
- Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari, conferred an honorary Doctor of Literature (honoris causa) of Tripura University on Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
- Secretary to the Ministry of culture, India Jawahar sirkar was awarded the British Museum Award .It was given for his reforms in the field of Indian museum.
- Senior Indian diplomat D. Bala Venkatesh Varma — a key member of the negotiating team that saw the Indo-U.S. nuclear deal, was given the first S.K. Singh award. Award was given for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen India's position in the global nuclear order .Award was given by UPA chairperson and Congress president Sonia Gandhi at a high-profile function in New delhi. The award for excellence in the Indian Foreign Service is named after the former foreign secretary and Governor, Shailendra Kumar Singh. Mr. Varma was selected as the first recipient of the prestigious award.
- Tibetan spiritual leader, Dalai Lama was presented the Mahatma Gandhi International Award for Peace and Reconciliation on 4 January 2011. The granddaughter of Mahatma Gandhi, Ila Gandhi, presented this award,which was instituted in 2003.The Gandhi Development Trust that gives the award is chaired by Ila Gandhi.
- Sarod maestro Ustad Amjad Ali Khan was presented the Mallikarjun Mansur award which was instituted by the Karnataka government on 3 January 2012.
AWARDS DECEMBER 2011
- World renowned architect and Goa’s Charles Correa was bestowed with Goa's highest civilian honour, the Gomant Vibhushan, on the eve of the Golden Jubiliee of Goa's Liberation. The award was presented to him by Goa governor K Shankaranarayanan. Correa is the second recipient of the Gomant Vibhushan, the first being eminent nuclear scientist Anil Kakodkar, who was awarded the Gomant Vibhushan in 2010. Correa has earlier been conferred with India's Padma Shri and Padma Vibhushan.
- Twenty-two writers were selected for the prestigious Sahitya Akademi awards for2011. Eight books of poetry, seven novels, three essays and one each short story, narrative history; biography and play were selected for the awards. Writers in 23 languages are recongised every year by the Akademi. The awards that are given every year and contain an engraved cooper plaque, a shawl and a cheque of Rs 1 lakh. Tamil novelist Su Venkatesan's , debut novel Kaval Kottam earned him the coveted Sahitya Akademi Award in Tamil section. The book is about the 600-year old history of the city of Madurai and a security system that prevailed there. Hindi novelist, Kashinath singh was also selected. Lalit Magotra (Dogri), Grace (Marathi) and Samala Sadasiva (Telugu) received the award for their books on essays. Historian Ramachandra Guha was chosen for the award for his book of narrative history - India after Gandhi.
- The Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences on 21 December 2011 chose Apple co-founder Steve Jobs to be posthumously honoured with a Grammy awardfor his contribution to music technology. Jobs is to be honoured as a creative visionary. He is one of 11 people who will be honoured with special awards. Jobs, who died on 5 October 2011 of pancreatic cancer, will receive a Trustees Award on 13 February 2012 for helping create products that transformed the way music, TV, movies and books are consumed.
- Hema Malini, Veteran Bollywood actress, was named the person of the year by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).PETA named her the Person of the Year for raising her voice to oppose cruelty to animals and her staunch commitment to a vegetarian diet.The Dream Girl on behalf of PETA had recently appealed to the minister of Environment and Forests to take immediate steps to end the cruel tradition of jallikattu. Jallikattu is a sport event in Tamil Nadu in which terrified bulls are kicked, punched, jumped on, dragged to the ground and otherwise tormented.
- Jamil Ahmad was declared the winner of the Shakti Bhatt First Book Prize for his book The Wandering Falcon at the British Council in New Delhi on 21 December 2011. The Wandering Falcon, is a narrative about the lives of tribal people along the borders of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iran. The book contained personal sights, sounds, actual faces and conversations. The book that has won critical acclaim worldwide was written decades ago . He started writing the book in 1971, it was completed by 1973 .Born in Jalandhar in 1933, Jamil Ahmad is a Pakistani national. The prize is set up in memory of writer and editor Shakti Bhatt.
- Vice President and Rajya Sabha Chairman M Hamid Ansari released two books Expression of Thoughts (English) and Izhar-e-Khayal (Urdu) authored by K.Rahman Khan, Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha in New Delhi on 19 December 2011.The books in English and Urdu are compilation of his selected speeches on various subjects like Parliament, democracy and governance, economy and business, besides issues of equity, justice and secularism, women empowerment and development.
- The Forbes' 30 under 30 list was prepared by selecting young turks from 12 diverse fields including energy, finance, media, law, entertainment, science, design and technology. Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg, human rights activist Ronan Farrow and pop stars Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber are also included in Forbes magazine's list of top-achieving people under age 30.The list released in December 2011 included 10 people of Indian origin.Some of the the Indian-origin people on the list is 17 year old Param Jaggi, a student and inventor at Austin College. Jaggi created algae-filled device that fits over a car's tailpipe and turns carbon dioxide into oxygen. Vivek Nair, Chief Executive of Damascus Fortune, who is developing a technology that transforms industrial carbon emissions into carbon nanotubes was also named in the list. Manvir Nijhar, Co-Head of European Equity Derivatives Sales at Citigroup was named as well. Kunal Shah, the youngest Managing Director at Goldman Sachs was also included in the list.
- Lord Swraj Paul, leading NRI industrialist was conferred with the Life Time Achievement awardfor his outstanding contributions in various fields. The award, instituted by an Indian company Powerbrands, was presented to Lord Paul on 12 December 2011 by Subrata Roy, chief of the Sahara Group. Paul was awarded the Padma Bhushan by the Government of India in 1983. He was elevated to the British Peerage in 1996.Raghupati Singhania of J K Tyres was earlier given the Powerbrands Hall of Fame Award.
- S.R. Nathan, former President of the Republic of Singapore presented the Sangita Kalanidhi M.S. Subbulakshmi Award to Trichy Sankaran at the inauguration of the 85th annual conference of the Music Academy in Chennai on 15 December 2011. Trichy Sankaran is the mridangam maestro.
- Siddhartha Mukherjee, the Indian origin American physician who won the Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction, has added another literary accolade by winning the Guardian First Book Award for his “biography” of cancer. Mukherjee is assistant professor of Medicine at Columbia University.
- The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh presented the K. Karunakaran Foundation Best Administrator of India Award- 2011 to Union Finance Minister Shri Pranab Mukherjee at a function in New Delhi. Pranab Mukherjee has been selected as the first person to receive this award.
- Prime Minister Manmohan Singh presented the National Energy Conservation Awards 2011 in New Delhi. Prominent winners from Andhra Pradesh are GMR Hyderabad International Airport, KCP Cement and South Central Railway, Secunderabad received awards.
- 18-year old Jyoti Amge from Nagpur, Maharashtra received Guinness World Record as the shortest women in the world with the height of 62.8 cm
- Akkineni International Foundation announced ANR National Award 2011 for Bollywood actress Hemamalini. The award will carry Rs.5 lakh cash prize. ANR Award was first awarded to Devanand in 2005
- Former president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam presented the Justice P.N. Bhagwati Award to O.P. Jindal Global University chancellor and managing director of Jindal Steel and Power Ltd, Naveen Jindal on 6 December 2011. The award was conferred upon Jindal for his outstanding contribution to legal education and corporate philanthropy. Justice P.N. Bhagwati Award has been instituted by the Capital Foundation. The Bhagwati Award was also given to Arun Mohan, a senior advocate in the Supreme Court, in recognition of his outstanding contribution to access to justice.
- The 42nd edition of International Film Festival of India (IFFI) was held in Panaji, Goa from 23 November to 3 December 2011. Film star Shah Rukh Khan inaugurated the 42nd edition of IFFI. The inaugural ceremony was marked by presentation of Life Time Achievement award to french filmmaker Bertrand Tavernier by Shah Rukh Khan.
- The Golden Peacock Award for the Best Film was given to a Columbian Film Porfirio.
- The Silver Peacock Award forBest Actor (Female) category was given to the actor Nadezhda Markina for her role in the Russian film Elena. Whereas, the Silver Peacock Award for Best Actor (Male) category was won by Sasson Gabey for his role in an Israeli film Restoration.
- The Special Jury Award was presented to Salim Ahamed for directing Malayalam film Adaminte Makan Abu meaning Abu, Son of Adam.
- Three girls, Sangeeta Bauri, Bina Kalindi and Mukti Majhi from Purilia village in West Bengal were honoured by President of India Pratibha Patil with Rs.10,000 cash prize each for opposing the forcible marriage arranged by parents.
- The Karnataka State government on 1 December 2011 announced its decision to confer the prestigious Basava Sri Award for the year 2010 on noted environment activist Medha Patkar. Social activist and Narmada Bachao Andolan leader Medha Patkar was chosen for the Basava award for the year 2010 for excellence in service in the social sector.
AWARDS NOVEMBER 2011
- Former India cricket captain Ajit Wadekar was selected for the Col C.K. Nayudu Lifetime Achievement award. The award is to comprise a trophy, citation and cheque for Rs. 15 lakhs.
- Veteran batsman Rahul Dravid was selected for the Polly Umrigar Award for India's best cricketer of 2010-11 season. India women's team captain Jhulan Goswami is also to be honoured at the annual awards. This pacer will be awarded the M A Chidambaram Best Woman Cricketer of 2010-11 trophy for claiming 21 wickets in eight matches.
- Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari on 23 November 2011 conferred Nishan-i-Imtiaz (Military) upon General Hou Shusen, deputy chief of general staff of Chinese Peoples Liberation Army, at a special investiture ceremony in Islamabad. Pakistan awarded a top Chinese General with Nishan-i-Imtiaz (Military) for promoting friendship and strengthening bi-lateral ties between the two countries. The Nishan-i-Imtiaz is one of the state organized civil decorations of State of Pakistan. It is the highest honour along with the highest award Nishan-e-Pakistan given to any civilian in Pakistan.
- Leading NRI politician in the UK, Lord Navnit Dholakia, won Garavi Gujarat Hammer Award at the GG2 Leadership Awards 2011 for his outstanding achievements on 23 November 2011. Britain's Attorney General Dominic Grieve presented the award to Lord Dholakia. Dholakia is a British Liberal Democrat politician and the Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords. Lord Dholakia is one of the most senior Asian politicians in Britain.
- Renowned scientist C N R Rao was conferred with the Ernesto Illy Trieste Science Prize for 2011for his contribution to materials research. The honour was presented to Rao, who is the Chairman of Scientific Advisory Council to the Prime Minister, at a function in Trieste, Italy. The Prize, instituted by the Academy of Sciences of the Developing World, carries a cash component of 100,000 dollars, a medal and a citation. The Trieste Town Council and the Trieste International Foundation for Scientific Progress and Freedom are collaborating in this effort. Rao, 77, is the founder of Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) in Bangalore. He has 1,500 research papers and is an author of 45 books. Rao also received the Firodia Lifetime Achievement Award a few days ago.
- India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru joined the elite club of Singapore christenedFriends to our Shore on 20 November 2011. Only four other world personalities are members of the coveted club. The club is in memory of their contribution to shaping the contemporary world history and their strong connection to Singapore. The measure was initiated by the Singapore National Heritage Board. The other four members in the list are- Polish-English writer Joseph Conrad (2004), Father of modern Vietnam Ho Chi Minh (2008), Filipino revolutionary leader Jose Rizal (2008) and Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping (2010).The statue of Nehru was unveiled on the banks of the Singapore river by the Indian PM Man Mohan Singh who visited Singapore for a bi-lateral discussions. Nehru visited Singapore thrice and the first was in May 1937 as part of his pan-Malayan tour.
- Eminent Kannada author S. L. Bhyrappa was presented with 20th Saraswati Samman in literature for 2010 for his epic novel Mandra. The Saraswati Samman is awarded by the K. K. Birla Foundation to a work published in the last 10 years, selected from among works published in 25 Indian languages. The award carries a prize of Rs.7.5 lakh.
- The Simhadri super thermal power station in the State has won Swarn Shakti award in the area of productivity (coal project) category. The award was presented by CMD of NTPC Arup Roy at a function in new Delhi on Wednesday.
- Vinoba Sewa Ashram founders Ramesh Bhaiya and Vimla Bahan, and social activists Anupam Mishra, Shobhana Ranade and Agus Indra Udayana were awarded 2011 Jamnalal Bajaj Awards on 7 November 2011. Anupam Mishra was chosen for Application of Science and Technology for Rural Development, while Ranade was selected for her work in Development and Welfare of Women and Children. Indra Udayana received the award for promoting Gandhian Values outside India and Ramesh Bhaiya and Vimla Bahan were chosen for the Award for Constructive Work. Each award comprised a citation, a trophy and Rs five lakh in cash. The awards were presented by spiritual leader Morari Bapu.
- A traditional tribal institution of Meghalaya on 4 November 2011 announced Former South African President Nelson Mandela the winner of People's Parliament Global Award.Grand Council of Chiefs of Meghalaya (GCCM) chairman John F. Kharshiing declared that Mandela was chosen for the award because of his sacrifice for the struggle against apartheid. Besides, three journalists — Aroon Purie, Rajdeep Sardesai and Arnab Goswami would also be given the People's Parliament National Awards for their unbiased, ethical and investigative reporting. These awards, instituted by GCCM, would be conferred at a function to be held at Asananggre near Tura in West Garo Hills District on 14 November 2011.Earlier, former United States Vice-President Al Gore was conferred the People's Parliament Global Award for promoting awareness on climate change.
- India won two prestigious awards- Best Destination and Best Marketing Campaign as the World's Leading Destination at the World Travel Awards 2011 on 8 November 2011. Union Tourism Minister, Subodh Kant Sahai received the awards from Graham Cooke, Chairman, World Travel Awards in London. The awards will boost the government of India’s efforts to brand India as a global tourist destination. India will hold its first Global Travel Mart on 12 December 2012 to reinforce India’s commitment to become a major player in world tourism.
AWARDS OCTOBER 2011
- Tehelka and the Week were jointly chosen for the International Press Institute (IPI) – India award for excellence in journalism, 2011for their outstanding journalistic work in 2010. The award was declared by the Indian chapter of the International Press Institute (IPI). The award comprises of a cash prize of Rs 1 lakh, a trophy and a citation.Led by Tarun J Tejpal weekly Tehelka was selected for its expose of the rent a riot tactics of the Sree Rama Sene in Karnataka, which admitted taking money to organise attacks on innocent persons and institutions. The Week was selected for its sustained investigative reporting on sham medical and dental colleges which had no doctors, no patients and no facilities and yet were permitted to award medical and dental degrees to thousands of students.
- Tata Group Chairman Ratan Tata was honoured with the Swiss Ambassador's award for exceptional leadership and his contribution to strengthening bilateral ties between India and Switzerland on 16 October 2011. Switzerland's Ambassador to India Philippe Welti conferred the award to Tata at a ceremony at the Swiss embassy in New Delhi. The first Swiss Ambassador's award, founded in 2010, was conferred on film-maker Yash Chopra for his contribution to strengthening Indo-Swiss people-to-people relations through his movies.
- Dr M K Mani, pioneer of nephrology in India and currently chief nephrologist at the Apollo Hospital was on 20 October 2011 declared the winner of the 40th Dhanvantari Award. Mani pioneered innovative techniques and new regimen in management of kidney disorders. He is the recipient of many awards including Padma Bhushan and the Ravindranath Tagore award and has over 125 publications to his credit. The prestigious award, which recognises contribution in medical science, is being awarded annually since 1972.
- British novelist Julian Barnes wason 18 October 2011 declared the unanimous winner of the 2011 £50,000 Man Booker prize for his novella, The Sense of an Ending. The novel is about a 60-something man forced to confront buried truths about his past after the unexpected arrival of a letter.
- The Hindu's Chhattisgarh correspondent, Aman Sethi on 19 October 2011 was awarded the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) award for the best Indian print media article on humanitarian issues at the India Islamic Cultural Centre. His article on three Chhattisgarh villages ruthlessly torched by police commandos in March 2011 was selected as the best of nearly 80 entries from across the country. About 300 homes and granaries were burnt in the five-day police operation that left three men dead, and three women sexually assaulted. Sethi's coverage initiated the local administration to probe the incident and send aid to the affected villages. The awards are instituted by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Press Institute of India (PII) for articles published in an Indian national or regional newspaper or magazine in English or any of the Indian languages.
- Actor/director Amol Gupte's son, Partho Gupte who gave an excellent performance as the quick-witted Stanley in his father's Stanley Ka Dabba won the best actor award at the Schlingel International Film Festival that concluded in Chmnitz, Germanyon 16 October 2011.Schlingel is the only film festival in the world devoted to films for and about children. It is a much evolved film festival. There were over 130 films in the competition.
- Environmentalist, lawyer and former Union Minister, Mohan Dharia was selected as the winner of the 26th Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration in October 2011. Mohan Dharia was selected for the prestigious award for his yeoman's service in promoting and preserving spirit of national integration. The 86-year-old Padma Vibhushan awardee currently runs the Vanrai NGO in Pune. He was elected to Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha and has been Union Minister and Deputy Chairperson of Planning Commission from December 1990 to June 1991. Congress constituted the award in its centenary year to give recognition to outstanding contribution to the cause by an individual or institution. It carries a citation and cash prize of Rs. 5 lakh. Committee chair and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi will present the award on 31 October 2011, the anniversary of Indira Gandhi's death.
- The 2011 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberian peace activist Leymah Gbowee and Tawakkul Karman of Yemen for their work on women’s rights.The Norwegian Nobel Committee honoured the three women “for their non-violent struggle for the safety of women and for women’s rights to full participation in peace-building work.” Johnson Sirleaf, 72, is a Harvard-trained economist who became Africa’s first democratically elected female President in 2005. She was seen as a reformer and peacemaker in Liberia when she took office. Liberia was ravaged by civil wars for years until 2003. Liberian peace activist Leymah Gbowee, organised a group of Christian and Muslim women to challenge Liberia’s warlords. Tawakul Karman, 32, headed the Women Journalists without Chains, a human rights group for journalists. She had been a leading figure in organising the protests in Yemen that opposed the rule of President Ali Abdullah Saleh and which kicked off in late January.
- Three scientists , American Bruce Beutler , French scientist Jules Hoffmann and Canadian-born Ralph Steinman (recently died), won the 2011 Nobel Prize in Medicine for discoveries about the immune system that opened new avenues for the treatment and prevention of infectious illnesses and cancer. Mr. Beutler and Mr. Hoffmann were cited for their discoveries in the 1990s of receptor proteins that can recognise bacteria and other microorganisms as they enter the body, and activate the first line of defence in the immune system, known as innate immunity. Mr. Steinman, 70, was honoured for the discovery two decades earlier of dendritic cells, which help regulate adaptive immunity, the next stage of the immune system’s response, when the invading microorganisms are purged from the body. Mr. Beutler is professor of genetics and immunology at The Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California. Mr. Hoffmann headed a research laboratory in Strasbourg, France, between 1974 and 2009 and Mr. Steinman has been affiliated with Rockefeller University in New York since 1970, and heads its Center for Immunology and Immune Diseases.
- Researchers Saul Perlmutter and Adam Riess of the United States and US-Australian Brian Schmidt won the 2011 Nobel Physics Prize for their research on supernovae.Nobel committee said, "They have studied several dozen exploding stars, called supernovae, and discovered that the universe is expanding at an ever-accelerating rate,” adding that their discovery had changed mankind's understanding of the universe. The award went to observations of ancient stars that flare in their death throes into becoming supernovae. Perlmutter, born in 1959, won half of the 10 million Swedish kronor ($1.48 million, 1.08 million euros) Nobel Prize, while Schmidt and Riess, born in 1969, were to share the other half, the Nobel jury said.
- Daniel Shechtman of Israel won the 2011 Nobel Chemistry Prize for discovering and revealing the secrets of quasi crystals, which has revolutionised the notion of solid matter. Quasicrystals, described by the Nobel jury as 'a remarkable mosaic of atoms', are patterns that are highly ordered and symmetrical but which do not repeat themselves. Quasicrystals have been found in the lab and some have been discovered to occur naturally in minerals. Shechtman, born in 1941, is currently a professor at Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa.
- The 2011 Nobel Prize in literature was awarded to Tomas Transtromer, a Swedish poetwhose surrealistic works about the mysteries of the human mind won him acclaim as one of the most important Scandinavian writers since World War II. The academy said it awarded the 80-year-old poet “because, through his condensed, translucent images, he gives us fresh access to reality.” Mr. Transtromer’s most famous works include the 1966 “Windows and Stones,” in which he depicts themes from his many travels and “Baltics” from 1974. His works have been translated into more than 50 languages and influenced poets around the globe, particularly in North America.
- US researchers Thomas Sargent and Christopher Sims won the 2011 Nobel Economics Prize for their work on macroeconomics and government economic policymaking. The jury said, This year's laureates "have developed methods for answering ... questions regarding the causal relationship between economic policy and different macro-economic variables, such as GDP, inflation, employment and investments”.
- This 2011 Right Lively Hood Awards have been given to Huang Ming (China) for his outstanding success in the development and mass-deployment of cutting-edge technologies for harnessing solar energy. Jacqueline Moudeina (Chad) "for her tireless efforts at great personal risk to win justice for the victims of the former dictatorship in Chad and to increase awareness and observance of human rights in Africa” . GRAIN (International) “for their worldwide work to protect the livelihoods and rights of farming communities and to expose the massive purchases of farmland in developing countries by foreign financial interests”. Ina May Gaskin (USA) “for her whole-life’s work teaching and advocating safe, woman-centered childbirth methods that best promote the physical and mental health of mother and child“. The Right Livelihood Award s was established in 1980 to honour and support those "offering practical and exemplary answers to the most urgent challenges facing us today". It has become widely known as the 'Alternative Nobel Prize' .Presented annually in Stockholm at a ceremony in the Swedish Parliament.
- The Dalai Lama will receive the Mahatma Gandhi peace prize, the legendary Indian leader's granddaughter Ela Gandhi announced at Johannesburg on 2 October, Gandhi Jayanti and asked the South African government to grant a visa to the Tibetan spiritual leader to visit the country. The Mahatma Gandhi International Award for Peace and Reconciliation will be conferred on the 76-year-old Dalai Lama at the annual Satyagraha Awards to be held at the Durban City.
- Veteran actor-director Dev Anand will be honoured with the national Kishore Kumar Samman for the year 2010-11 by the Madhya Pradesh government. Similarly, noted music director, Rajesh Roshan will be bestowed with the national Lata Mangeshkar award.
AWARDS SEPTEMBER 2011
- Eminent Hindi authors Amar Kant and Shrilal Shukla was chosen for India's highest literary honour Jnanpith Award for 2009, while renowned Kannada litterateur Chandrasekhar Kambar won it for 2010. Octogenarian Amar Kant is a leading author whose famous novel Inhin Hathiyaron Se earned him the Sahitya Akademi Award in 2007. Shukla is an eminent novelist and a satirist, whose works threw light on the falling moral values of the Indian society in the post-Independence era. His noted works include Raag Darbari, Makaan. In 2008, he was awarded the Padma Bhushan for his contribution to Indian literature and culture.Chandrasekhar Kambar who won the Jnanpith Award for is a novelist and playwright. His noted works include Takararinavaru, Saavirada Neralu. He is also recipient of the Sangeet Nataka Academy Award and the Sahitya Academy Award.
- ONGC, Coal India (CIL) and NMDCwere awarded by the government for best performance in different categories on 20 September. The Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) Secretary, Bhaskar Chatterjee gave away the awards. Best financial performance award in Maharatna and Navaratna category was given to ONGC. In Miniratna category, the best financial performance award award has been given to Goa Shipyard. Good Corporate Governance award in Maharatna and Navaratna category was also given to ONGC. The company of the year award in Maharatna category was given to CIL. The same awards for the Navaratna category were given to NMDC and Oil India.
- The 44th Jnanpith Award for 2008 was presented to renowned Urdu poet Professor Akhlaq Mohammad Khan Shahryar for his distinguished contribution in enriching Indian literature. He was presented the award by actor Amitabh Bachhan in a glittering ceremony organised by the Bharatiya Jnanpith in New Delhi on 18 September 2011.
- The Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) on 28 September 2011 conferred theRajiv Gandhi International Prize for Technology in Education and Development on the Azim Premji Foundation. The award instituted by the university in its silver jubilee year was presented to Azim Premji by Communications and Information Technology Minister Kapil Sibal. According to IGNOU, the award comprising of Rs. five lakh cash and a citation is given to individual or institution that contributed significantly in education, particularly educational technology, for development in developing countries across the world.
- Legendary playback singer Lata Mangeshkar was honoured with the first Hridaynath award for her contribution to Indian music on 28 September 2011. She was presented a cheque of Rs one lakh, a trophy by Amitabh Bachchan. The award has been instituted by Hridayesh Art, a Mumbai- based socio-cultural organisation in honour of Lata Mangeshkar’s brother, Hridaynath Mangeshkar.
- The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) on 26 September 2011 honoured 11 scientists with the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology for the year 2011.
The list of the awardees in the different categories are as follows:
Biological Sciences-Dr Amit Prakash Sharma (International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, New Delhi) & Dr Rajan Sankaranarayanan (CSIR Centre for Cellular & Molecular Biology, Hyderabad).
Chemical Sciences-Dr Balasubramanian Sundaram (Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bangalore) & Dr Garikapati Narahari Sastry (CSIR Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad are some of them.
- Three distinguished Indian Americans, 2 inventors and a researcher were named by US President Barack Obama on 27 September 2011 as recipients of National Medal of Science, and for Technology and Innovation. New York University’s Srinivasa SR Vardhan, Purdue University’s Rakesh Agarwal, and North Carolina State University’s B Jayant Baliga were the three Indians selected dozen to receive the National Medal of Science, and for Technology and Innovation, the highest honor bestowed by the United States government on scientists, engineers as well as inventors.
AWARDS AUGUST 2011
- Eminent Hindi authors Amar Kant and Shrilal Shukla was chosen for India's highest literary honour Jnanpith Award for 2009, while renowned Kannada litterateur Chandrasekhar Kambar won it for 2010. Octogenarian Amar Kant is a leading author whose famous novel Inhin Hathiyaron Se earned him the Sahitya Akademi Award in 2007. Shukla is an eminent novelist and a satirist, whose works threw light on the falling moral values of the Indian society in the post-Independence era. His noted works include Raag Darbari, Makaan. In 2008, he was awarded the Padma Bhushan for his contribution to Indian literature and culture.Chandrasekhar Kambar who won the Jnanpith Award for is a novelist and playwright. His noted works include Takararinavaru, Saavirada Neralu. He is also recipient of the Sangeet Nataka Academy Award and the Sahitya Academy Award.
- ONGC, Coal India (CIL) and NMDC were awarded by the government for best performance in different categories on 20 September. The Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) Secretary, Bhaskar Chatterjee gave away the awards. Best financial performance award in Maharatna and Navaratna category was given to ONGC. In Miniratna category, the best financial performance award award has been given to Goa Shipyard. Good Corporate Governance award in Maharatna and Navaratna category was also given to ONGC. The company of the year award in Maharatna category was given to CIL. The same awards for the Navaratna category were given to NMDC and Oil India.
- The 44th Jnanpith Award for 2008 was presented to renowned Urdu poet Professor Akhlaq Mohammad Khan Shahryar for his distinguished contribution in enriching Indian literature. He was presented the award by actor Amitabh Bachhan in a glittering ceremony organised by the Bharatiya Jnanpith in New Delhi on 18 September 2011.
- The Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) on 28 September 2011 conferred the Rajiv Gandhi International Prize for Technology in Education and Development on the Azim Premji Foundation. The award instituted by the university in its silver jubilee year was presented to Azim Premji by Communications and Information Technology Minister Kapil Sibal. According to IGNOU, the award comprising of Rs. five lakh cash and a citation is given to individual or institution that contributed significantly in education, particularly educational technology, for development in developing countries across the world.
- Legendary playback singer Lata Mangeshkar was honoured with the first Hridaynath award for her contribution to Indian music on 28 September 2011. She was presented a cheque of Rs one lakh, a trophy by Amitabh Bachchan. The award has been instituted by Hridayesh Art, a Mumbai- based socio-cultural organisation in honour of Lata Mangeshkar’s brother, Hridaynath Mangeshkar.
- The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) on 26 September 2011 honoured 11 scientists with the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology for the year 2011. Dr Samir K Brahamachari, Director General, Council of Scientific Research and Industrial development announced the names of scientists at the celebration of CSIR foundation Day. The list of the awardees in the different categories are as follows:
Biological Sciences-Dr Amit Prakash Sharma (International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, New Delhi)Dr Rajan Sankaranarayanan (CSIR Centre for Cellular & Molecular Biology, Hyderabad).
Chemical Sciences-Dr Balasubramanian Sundaram (Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bangalore)Dr Garikapati Narahari Sastry (CSIR Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad are some of them.
The Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology was first given in 1958. It is regarded as the country's highest award in science is named after the founder director of CSIR, Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar. It is given to a scientist up to 45 years of age and carries a prize of Rs 5 lakh.
- Three distinguished Indian Americans, 2 inventors and a researcher were named by US President Barack Obama on 27 September 2011 as recipients of National Medal of Science, and for Technology and Innovation.New York University’s Srinivasa SR Vardhan, Purdue University’s Rakesh Agarwal, and North Carolina State University’s B Jayant Baliga were the three Indians selected dozen to receive the National Medal of Science, and for Technology and Innovation, the highest honor bestowed by the United States government on scientists, engineers as well as inventors.
- China has conferred its highest literary award on Prof. B R Deepak for his book, which is a translation of 88 classical Chinese poems into Hindi. Deepak, who is from Centre of Chinese and Southeast Asian Studies, JNU, was the first Indian to receive the "Special Book Award" for his contribution to Chinese studies, translation, publication of Chinese books and cultural exchange.
- Rajiv Gandhi Manav Seva Award for the year, 2010 was announced. The winners of this prestagious award are Mira Kagti (Assam), Dr. S.A. Thasleem Sulthana (Andhara Pradesh) and for Dr.Mallika Nadda (Himachal Pradesh). Mira Kagti established Shishu Sarothi in 1987 for providing education, rehabilitation and training services to the children suffering from Cerebral Palsy and persons with disability. Dr. S.A. Thasleem Sulthana renders service to the orphaned and mentally handicapped children and works for the welfare; rehabilitation of mentally retarded, hearing impaired, visually challenged and physically challenged children. Dr.Mallika Nadda is a leading social activist in Himachal Pradesh. She founded Chetna, at Bilaspur a civil society initiative with a vision to integrate physically and mentally challenged children. She provides voluntary services and, material in kind, equipments, surgery intervention support, clothing etc. to the children.
- Six novels, five collections of short stories, seven books of poetry and one book of folk tales and plays in 24 Indian languages were selected for the 2011 Kendra Sahitya Akademi Awards for Children's Literature. Five writers have been chosen for the Akademi's Bala Sahitya Puraskar for lifetime contribution to children's literature: Sailen Ghosh (Bengali), Shyam Dutt Parag (Dogri), Ramesh Parekh (Gujarati), Harikrishna Devsare (Hindi) and Maheswar Mohanty (Oriya).some of the short-story writers selected are Maheswar Narzary (Bodo), Mayanath Jha (Maithili), Dileep Prabhavalkar (Marathi), Harish B. Sharma (Rajasthani) and M. Bhoopal Reddy (Telugu).Bandita Phukan (Assamese), Siddhartha Sarma (English), Hundraj Balwani (Sindhi), N. D'souza (Kannada), Gajanan Jog (Konkani) and K. Pappootty (Malayalam) were the novelists selected for the award. Shantibala Devi (Manipuri) was chosen for her book of folk tales and plays.The awards comprise a prize purse of Rs. 50000 and a copper plaque.
- The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports has announced the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award for the year 2010 to recognize the achievements of persons in the fields of Adventure. The following four persons have been selected for the Adventure Awards for the year 2010:-
- Ms. Reena Kaushal Dharmshaktu - Land Adventure, the first Indian woment to ski 900 Kms. From coast of Antarctica to the South Pole.
- Ms. Mamta Sodha - Land Adventure, scaled Mount Everst in 2010, she has scaled island Peak, 20589 fts., Shri Kanth Peak 20422 fts, Mun Peak 16000 fts, Phawara Rang Peak 21441 fts. She has also climbed Mount Everest- Eco Expedition- 29038 fts, Nepal.
- Shri Dilip Donde - Water Adventure, sailed Solo on INSV Mhadei undertaking Solo Circumnavigation of the earth round the “Three Great Capes” in 273 days
- Late Col. Balwant Singh Sandhu - Life Time Achievement (Posthumously)
AWARDS JULY 2011
- National Communal Harmony Awards for 2009 and 2010 were presented to Dr. Mohd. Hanif Khan Shastri in the individual category for the year 2009. Dr Shastri is a Sanskrit scholar and has authored several books including Geeta Aur Quran men Samanjasya. Acharya Lokesh Munni received the award in the individual category for the year 2010. Acharya Lokesh Muni is a social worker and orator who has contributed towards communal harmony through his oratory and writings. The Centre for Human Rights & Social Welfare received the award in the organisation category for the year 2009.
- The Union Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) conferred its national awards for outstanding lifetime contributions on the foundation of MoES. The award was conferred upon the former Director of the Hyderabad-based National Remote Sensing Agency,B. L. Deekshatulu, and the former Director of the Pune-based Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, R. N. Keshavamurthy.
- Two Indians -Nileema Mishra, a lender to the poor in Maharashtra and US-trained Indian engineer Harish Hande who revolutionized the use of solar lights were among six people to have received the Ramon Magsaysay Award for 2011.The two Indians were honoured for their effort to harness technologies to empower their countrymen and create waves of progressive change across Asia. The other award winners Filipino charity group Alternative Indigenous Development Foundation, Hasanain Juaini, who set up an Islamic school for girls in Indonesia, fellow Indonesian Tri Mumpuni who promoted micro hydropower technology and Koul Panah who toils to restore democracy in Cambodia were the other winners of the Ramon Magsaysay Award for 2011.
- Former India striker Shabbir Ali, who took up full-time coaching after retirement on 26 June 2011, became the first footballer to win the prestigious Dhyan Chand award as recognition for his lifetime achievement in sports.
- Former Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was honoured posthumously with the highest Bangladesh award — the Bangladesh Swadhinata Sammanona (Bangladesh Freedom Honour ) on 25 July 2011. The award was meant to honour Indira Gandhi’s for her outstanding contributions to Bangladesh's Liberation War fought in 1971. The award was received by her daughter-in-law Sonia Gandhi who visited Bangladesh at the invitation of Sheikh Hasina.
- Bangladesh will honour former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi with its highest state award 'Bangladesh Swadhinata Sanmanona', for her outstanding contribution to the country's 1971 'Liberation War'. The daughter-in-law of Mrs Gandhi and Indian Congress Party president Sonia Gandhi will receive the award from President Zillur Rahman on July 25 at Bangabhaban presidential palace at a special ceremony.
- Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowships and Akademi Awards for 2010 were presented by Vice-President of India, M. Hamid Ansari on 22 July 2011.
The highest honour of Akademi Fellowship (Akademi Ratna Sadasyata) was conferred on eminent vocalist Girija Devi, renowned dance guru Nataraja Ramakrishna, Dhrupad maestro Rahim Fahimuddin Dagar, and Mridangam vidwan T. K. Murthy. The Akademi Fellowship (Akademi Ratna Sadasyata) and Akademi Award (Akademi Puraskar) are the most coveted national honours conferred on performing artists, gurus and scholars of the performing arts. The Sangeet Natak Akademi is the country’s apex cultural body for music, dance, theatre and the arts.
- A female Pakistani DMG officer, Amna Imran Khan was awarded the Order National du Merite by President Nicholas Sarkozy of France. She was awarded the prestigious French knighthood for distinguished and extra ordinary services for strengthening and promoting cooperation between the Law Enforcement Agencies of Pakistan and France.
- Aishwarya Rai Bachchan was honoured with Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters from theFrench government by the Ambassador of France in New Delhi, Jerome Bonnafont. Aishwarya is the first Asian actress and the youngest Indian to win the honour. Other Indian celebrities, who were conferred with the honour in the past, include Sharmila Tagore, Habib Tanveer, Shah Rukh Khan, Raghu Rai, Upamanyu Chatterjee and Nandita Das.
- India's Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Talmiz Ahmad has become the first Indian diplomat to be conferred the King Abdulaziz Medal of First Class for his contribution towards elevating Indo-Saudi ties. The honor was bestowed upon him at Jeddah by Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal.
AWARDS JUNE 2011
- Maharatna Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) received the prestigious Golden Peacock Environment Management Award for the year 2011. The award was presented to SAIL in recognition of it’s initiatives and achievements in the field of environment management. The award was presented by Union Minister for Home Affairs Shri P. Chidambaram in New Delhi. SAIL in the last four years the company succeeded in reducing particulate emissions by 52%, specific water consumption by 11% and specific energy consumption by 5%, and increased solid waste utilisation by 18%.
- Art of Living founder Sri Sri Ravi Shankar became the first Indian to receive the Crans Montana Forum Award. The Crans Montana Forum Award was conferred upon him at a ceremony in Brussels.
- Minster of Communications & Information Technology and Human Resource Development conferred the Meghdoot Awards on postal employees for 2009 and 2010. Fifteen individuals including five women bagged the award. The Best Post Office award was given to Chandragiri Head Post Office, Andhra Pradesh. Sibal at the award ceremony mentioned that skill and capacity of 3.25 lakh Gramin Dak Sewaks will be developed through a comprehensive and time bound Rural Entrepreneurship Programme which is being finalized by Department of Posts and Ministry of Human Resource Development together. The scheme of National awards known as Meghdoot Awards was instituted in the year 1984 to provide encouragement to the postal employees by recognizing performance of high standard.
- Leading international business school INSEAD on 22 June 2011 honoured Sunil Bharti Mittal,Founder, Chairman and Group CEO of Bharti Enterprises, with its Business Leader for the World Award. Sunil Bharti Mittal was given the award for his success in having grown Bharti Enterprises from a manufacturer of push button phones to India's leading business conglomerate. The award is given to business leaders who have set new standards in building successful, sustainable, global enterprises that span multiple cultures, embrace diversity, and contribute to economic and social prosperity.
- India's famous magician Gopinath Muthukad received the International Merlin Award also known as the magicians' Oscarfor the year 2011 on 23 June 2011 from Tony Hassini, President of the US based International Magicians Society. Gopinath Muthukad is the second Indian to be chosen to receive the Merlin Award after PC Sorkar Jr.
- On 14 June 2011, Rajasthan Chief Minister, Ashok Gehlot presented the Anuvrat Ahimsa international peace award to noted Gandhian philosophy exponent Thomas Clough Daffern. The award consisted of a memento, a cheque for Rs.1 lakh and a certificate of merit.Dr. Daffern is a Director of London-based International Institute of Peace Studies and Global Philosophy. The institute works across several academic fields for study and application of peace and philosophy to various spheres of life.
- Two Indian companies Abellon Clean Energy Ltd. and Husk Power Systems have been awarded this year’s Ashden Awards for Sustainable Energy, claimed to be Britain’s most prestigious green energy awards. The awards were launched in 2001 to encourage greater use of local clean energy to address climate change and alleviate poverty.
- Irish writer Colum McCann’s Let The Great World Spin, a novel set in the shadow of Philippe Petit’s 1974 tightrope walk between the twin towers of the World Trade Center, has won the 2011 International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, one of the world’s most lucrative book prizes. The prize is worth €100,000.
