Awards and Honors

Yearly Review 2020

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Mother Teresa Memorial Awardees felicitated
 Harmony Foundation hosted the Mother
Teresa Memorial Awards for Social Justice
on December 27, 2020.
 The Awards, in its 16th year, is the only
award endorsed by Sister Prema, the
Superior General of the Missionaries of
Charity, the organization started by Mother
Teresa.
 The theme for 2020's awards
was ‘Celebrating Compassion In Times Of
Covid ’.
 The awardees include Dr Anthony Fauci, etc.
President presents Digital India Awards 2020
 President Ram Nath Kovind virtually
conferred the Digital India Awards 2020
through video conferencing on 30 Dec 2020.
 Digital India Awards have been
institutionalized under the ambit of the
National Portal of India to honor exemplary
initiatives/practices in Digital-Governance.
 The Awards were initially known as Web
Ratna Awards until 2014 and were re-named
Digital India Awards from 2016.
Rahane becomes 1st recipient of Mullagh Medal
 Ajinkya Rahane became the first recipient of
the prestigious Mullagh Medal after India
beat Australia in the 2nd Test match in
Melbourne on Dec 29, 2020.
 Johnny Mullagh Medal is a tribute to honour
the captain of Australia’s first sporting team
to tour internationally.
 Cricket Australia had earlier announced that
the Player of the match of the Boxing Day
Test will be awarded, Mullagh Medal.
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Manikchand Award reinstated by MP govt
 MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced
that the national award in journalism given by
the state government in the name of
Manikchand Vajpayee Mamaji will be
restarted.
 He announced this while releasing a postal
stamp on the birth centenary of Manikchand
Vajpayee Mamaji.
 Manikchand Vajpayee was a nationalist and
distinguished journalist of India.
Dhoni: Spirit of Cricket Award of The Decade
 MS Dhoni, former India captain, won the
International Cricket Council Spirit of Cricket
Award of The Decade.
 The wicketkeeper-batsman won the award
for his decision to call back Ian Bell after the
former England batsman was run out in a
bizarre manner during a Test match in 2011.
 Afghanistan spinner Rashid Khan took home
the T20I cricketer of the decade award.
Arun Jaitley's 6ft tall bronze statue unveiled
 Home Minister Amit Shah unveiled a six-foot-
tall bronze statue of former union minister
late Arun Jaitley at Arun Jaitley Stadium,
formerly known as the Feroz Shah Kotla
Stadium, on his 68th birth anniversary
on December 28, 2020.
 The statue was designed by the Ram Sutar
Art Creations Pvt. Ltd which designed the
world's tallest statue - Statue of Unity of
Sardar Patel in Gujarat.
Kohli wins ICC Male Cricketer of the Decade
  India captain Virat Kohli has won the Sir
Garfield Sobers Award for the ICC Male
Cricketer of the Decade along with the ICC
Men's ODI Cricketer of the Decade.
 He scored 66 out of his 70 international
hundreds.
 Australian all-rounder Ellyse Perry won the
ICC Female Cricketer of the Decade
alongside Female ODI Cricketer of the
Decade and T20I Cricketer of the Decade
awards.
Hemant Kumar Pandey gets an award
 Senior scientist Hemant Kumar Pandey has
been honoured with DRDO's 'Scientist of the
Year Award' for his contribution in developing
several herbal medicines, including the
popular drug Lukoskin meant for the
treatment of leucoderma.
 He has been undertaking research at the
DRDO lab Defence Institute of Bio-Energy
Research (DIBER) at Pithoragarh in
Uttarakhand for the past 25 years.
Bihar wins Digital India Award
 The Bihar govt has won the Digital India
Awards, instituted by the central govt, for
innovative steps in e-governance.
 It has been awarded for its initiative to
transfer financial assistance directly to the
accounts of beneficiaries during the COVID-
19 pandemic.
 More than 21 lakh stranded workers outside
Bihar were provided financial assistance
through the "Bihar Sahayata Mobile App".
MP CM felicitates sportspersons, coaches
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 MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan felicitated
sportspersons, coaches, and sports
personalities with a state-level sports award
for the year 2019 at Bhopal on 28 Dec 2020.
 Olympian hockey player Inam-ur-Rehman
was awarded the Life Time Achievement
Award for the year 2019.
 14 players were nominated for Eklavya
Award, 10 for Vikram Award, 3 for
Vishwamitra Award and 1 for Life Time
Achievement Award.
ICC announces Men's Teams of the Decade
 The International Cricket Council (ICC) has
announced the men's and women's ODI and
T20I teams of the decade.
 Former India captain MS Dhoni has been
named the captain of both the men's ODI and
T20I Team of the Decade which also features
the Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
 The ICC also announced the Test team of the
decade and named Virat Kohli as the skipper.
Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay-NIF book prize
 Jairam Ramesh and Amit Ahuja were jointly
awarded the Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay-
New India Foundation (NIF) Book Prize for
2020 out of a shortlist of six writers.
 The 2020 winners will share the prize money
of ₹15 lakhs for their respective books and
will each receive the trophy.
 The award was established in 2018, the first
winner of the prize was the political scientist
Milan Vaishnav
Selena posthumously honoured with Grammy's
LAA
  Selena Quintanilla Perez will be
posthumously honoured with the Grammy's
Lifetime Achievement Award.
 The beloved Tejana singer was selected as a
recipient of the Recording Academy's award
to recognize her outstanding
accomplishments in the music industry.
 The posthumous award will be presented at
the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards on Jan. 31,
2021.
21st Century Icon Awards
 The 21st Century Icon Award winners have
been announced in London.
 The list of winners includes Shankar
Mahadevan, Adolfo Cambiaso, Mohit
Burman, Chris Gayle, Raman Kant, Christian
Levett, Ajeet Singh, to name a few.
 The 21st Century Icon Awards celebrate the
success of the next generation by
recognizing dynamic entrepreneurs and
successful individuals, helping them to keep
growing.
NTPC wins CII-ITC Sustainability Awards 2020
 NTPC Ltd has been conferred “Excellence” in
the prestigious CII-ITC Sustainability Awards
2020 in the Corporate Social Responsibility
(CSR) Domain.
 NTPC has been honored in the Corporate
Excellence Category, Commendation for
Significant Achievement.
 This is the highest award conferred by CII-
ITC in CSR domain.
 NTPC is the only PSU to receive the award in
the Corporate Excellence category.
Dharmendra honoured by New Jersey Senate
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 Bollywood veteran Dharmendra was
honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award
by the State of New Jersey in the United
States, by a Joint Legislative Resolution
passed by the Senate and the General
Assembly.
 The award was conferred upon the veteran
actor via a zoom event organised by
Bollywood Insider, a premier publication of
Hindi Cinema in the United States.
ATP Awards 2020
 Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Rafael
Nadal and Frances Tiafoe were among the
winners of the ATP’s top awards for 2020.
 Djokovic was the year-end No. 1 for a record-
equaling sixth time after winning four titles
including a record eighth Australian Open.
 Federer was the singles fans' favourite for a
record-extending 18th straight year.
 Nadal received the Stefan Edberg
Sportsmanship Award.
Plant-based mock egg gets an award
 The innovation of plant-based mock egg by
Prof. Kavya Dashora, Centre for Rural
Development and Technology, IIT Delhi has
secured first prize at Innovate4SDG contest
by ‘UNDP (United Nation Development
Program) Accelerator Lab India’.
 The award included a sum of USD 5000.
 The development of the mock egg meets the
protein needs of the diet-specific, vegan, and
vegetarian people.
Ratan Tata honoured with a title
  Veteran industrialist Ratan Tata has
been conferred the title of "Global Visionary
of Sustainable Business and Peace" by the
Federation of Indo-Israel Chambers of
Commerce (FIICC).
 He has been honoured for epitomising "unity,
peace and sustainability".
 He is also a recipient of two of India's highest
civilian awards -- Padma Vibhushan and
Padma Bhushan.
'Legion of Merit' awarded to PM Modi
 US President Donald Trump has presented
the Legion of Merit award to PM Narendra
Modi.
 He has been awarded for his leadership in
elevating the strategic partnership of the two
countries and the emergence of India as a
global power.
 India’s Ambassador to the US, Taranjit Singh
Sandhu, accepted the award on behalf of
him from the US National Security Advisor
Robert O’Brien at the White House.
BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2020
 Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton
has been voted BBC Sports Personality of
the Year 2020.
 One of F1s all-time great drivers, he equalled
Michael Schumachers record of seven world
titles with his fourth consecutive
championship in 2020.
 It is the second time Hamilton has been
crowned Sports Personality of the Year, he
first won the award in 2014.
IIT Roorkee startup wins Award
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 Recogsquare, a start-up incubated and
funded by the Indian Institute of Technology
(IIT) Roorkee, has won the ‘Most Innovative
Digital Rollout Award’ at the Global Fintech
Innovation Awards.
 Recogsquare is an AI SaaS-backed eKYC
and Video KYC platform that streamlines and
automates individual onboarding and ID
verification.
First Filmfare OTT awards 2020
 The first-ever Filmfare Awards for OTT
platforms were given out on 19 December
2020.
 'Paatal Lok' won the Best Series Award while
the Best Series (Critics) trophy went to team
'The Family Man's kitty.
 Jaideep Ahlawat won the award for 'Paatal
Lok' and Manoj Bajpayee took home the Best
Actor in a Drama Series (Critics) award for
'The Family Man'.
Netaji Bose Museum to open soon in Kolkata
 The Government of India has announced
to open a museum on Netaji Subhash
Chandra Bose on January 23, 2022.
 Historical documents, photos and other
materials would be brought together at one
place for display.
 A museum on Bose was proposed to be set
up in Kolkata as a part of commemorations of
Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose’s 125th birth
anniversary in 2022.
US Space Force members to known as guardians
 The Trump administration celebrated the first
birthday of the U.S. Space Force on
 December 18 by announcing that its
members will be known as “guardians.”
 Vice President Mike Pence made the
announcement at a celebratory event tracing
the development of the newest branch of the
military over the past year.
PETA India's hottest vegetarian celebrities
 Sonu Sood and Shradha Kapoor bagged the
top spot to be named the People for the
Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India’s
hottest star.
 While Sood has been named as the hottest
vegetarian celebrity in the male category,
actor Shraddha Kapoor has been given the
same title in the female category.
 Past winners of the award include Prime
Minister Narendra Modi, Amitabh Bachchan
etc.
2 Indian films selected for Sundance Film Fest
 Filmmaker Ajitpal Singh’s “Fire in the
Mountains” and director duo Rintu Thomas
and Sushmit Ghosh’s “Writing with Fire” are
the two Indian films to have been selected for
the Sundance Film Festival 2021.
 The 2021 Sundance Film Festival will be held
from 28 January to 3 February.
 The festival is presented by Sundance
Organisation.
A Malik grabs silver at Wrestling World Cup
 India’s Anshu Malik won a silver medal in the
57kg category of women’s wrestling at the
Individual World Cup in Belgrade, Serbia.
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 Anshu, who is coming up from the junior
ranks, clinched her third medal at the senior
level from as many tournaments.
 She had won a bronze at the Asian
Championship 2020 in New Delhi and silver
at Mattio Pellicone event in Rome in January
2020.
Indian entrepreneur wins an award
 An Indian entrepreneur Vidyut Mohan is
among the seven winners of the “Young
Champions of the Earth” 2020 prize.
 The prize is given by the UN environment
agency to global change-makers using
innovative ideas and ambitious actions.
 Vidyut Mohan is the co-founder of
“Takachar”, a social enterprise enabling
farmers to prevent open burning of their
waste farm residues.
Steel Authority of India Limited awarded
 Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) has
been awarded the Golden Peacock
Environment Management Award for the
year 2020 in the steel sector by the Institute
of Directors.
 It has been the winner of this award for
successive two years.
 The award encourages corporates to
enhance their environmental performance
and to compete with peers to set
benchmarks.
UNEP Champions of the Earth award
 The UN Environment
Programme announced six laureates of the
 2020 Champions of the Earth award, the
UN’s highest environmental honour.
 Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama of Fiji,
honoured in the Policy Leadership category
for his global climate action work and his
commitment to climate-responsive national
development.
ISRO's Sivan awarded Surya Bhushan intl award
 President of the ISRO Dr K. Sivan
was awarded the 'Surya Bhushan
International Award' by Suryadatta Group of
Institutes.
 A delegation headed by Chordia, founder
president of Suryadatta, visited ISRO's
Bangalore HQ and honoured K Sivan.
 Chordia invited Sivan for the inauguration
ceremony of Suryadatta Institute of Scientific
Research on the occasion of the 23rd
foundation day of 'Suryadatta'.
Big Little Book Award for Rajiv & Sen-Gupta
 Author Subhadra Sen Gupta and illustrator
Rajiv Eipe have been named winners of the
Big Little Book Award 2020 for their
contribution to children's literature.
 Instituted by the Parag initiative of Tata
Trusts, the chosen language of the fifth
edition of the Big Little Book Award was
English.
 Previous winners (authors) are Madhuri
Purandare (Marathi), Nabaneeta Dev Sen
(Bengali), etc.
Prize in the name of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib
 The UNESCO has decided to launch an
international prize in the field of ‘creative
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economy’ in the name of Bangabandhu
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
 Starting November 2021, the $50,000 award
will be given away once in two years for
global economic initiatives of the youth.
 Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was
the first President of Bangladesh and later
served as the PM from 1971-1975.
Gates honoured with Lifetime Achievement
Award
 Bill Gates was conferred with the Life-time
Achievement Award at the TiE Global
Summit 2020 held virtually.
 For this award, Bill was selected by a jury
which comprised of founder NR Narayana
Murthy, President and Chairman, Sparta
Group Gururaj ‘Desh’ Deshpande.
 Along with the Life-time Achievement Award,
TiE has announced various awards under
various categories as part of its global
summit.
HelpAge India gets '2020 UN Population Award'
 NGO HelpAge India received the "2020 UN
Population Award" in the institutional
category for its contribution towards serving
disadvantaged elderly people and raising
awareness on their cause.
 The UN Population Award, established by the
United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in
1981, recognises contributions in the fields of
population and reproductive health.
Ashraf Patel: Social Entrepreneur of the year
 Ashraf Patel has won the Social
Entrepreneur of the Year award instituted by
 the Schwab Foundation and Jubilant Bhartia
Foundation.
 Ashraf Patel is the co-founder of Pravah and
ComMutiny Youth Collective.
 In partnership with UNICEF ROSA,
she developed an appreciative enquiry tool to
assess the impact of COVID 19 on the lives
of adolescents in 8 South Asian countries.
Dr Carolina Araujo awarded
 2020 Ramanujan Prize for Young
Mathematicians has been awarded to Dr.
Carolina Araujo, Mathematician from the
Institute for Pure and Applied Mathematics
(IMPA), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
 The prize is awarded annually to a
researcher from a developing country funded
by the Dept of Science and Technology of the
Govt of India in association with ICTP
(International Centre for Theoretical
Physics).
Eric Yuan Time's Businessperson of year 2020
 CEO of Zoom, video conferencing platform,
Eric Yuan has been named 'Businessperson
of the Year' by TIME for the growth of Zoom
in a pandemic.
 He began at WebEx as a coder and soon
became integral to the creation of his video-
conferencing platform.
 Zoom’s software was released in 2013,
promoting a free basic service for different-
size organisations along with many paid
levels.
Rahul Dubey named as TIME's 'Heroes of 2020'
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 Indian-American Rahul Dubey, on 1 June,
had opened the doors of his home in
Washington, DC, to over 70 protesters who
were demonstrating against the killing of
George Floyd.
 His action made him a local hero, and he has
now been hailed among the "Heroes of 2020"
by the TIME Magazine, honouring those who
"went above and beyond the call of duty".
Sood tops 50 Asian Celebrities in The World
 Indian actor Sonu Sood has been named the
number one South Asian celebrity in the
world.
 He has been honoured for his philanthropic
efforts during the Covid-19 pandemic.
 The 47-year-old Bollywood star beat off
tough global competition to top the ‘50 Asian
Celebrities in The World’ list.
 The list was published by UK-based weekly
newspaper Eastern Eye.
Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay Book Prize 2020
 The New India Foundation (NIF) Kamaladevi
Chattopadhyay Book Prize has
been awarded jointly to two people.
 Amit Ahuja has been awarded for his book
Mobilizing the Marginalised: Ethnic Parties
without Ethnic Movements.
 Rajya Sabha MP Jairam Ramesh has been
awarded for A Chequered Brilliance: The
Many Lives of VK Krishna Menon.
 The 2020 winners will share the prize money
of Rs 15 lakhs.
Punjab renames five Government Schools
  The Punjab Government has decided to
rename five educational institutions of the
state after those who sacrificed their lives for
the country.
 It was decided under its policy of “honouring
the martyrs and prominent departed
personalities”.
 Government High School, Chuslewar of
district Tarn Taran has been renamed as
Shaheed Naik Karamjit Singh Sena Medal
Government High School.
Bajrang Punia bags top honour at FICCI Awards
 Wrestler Bajrang Punia and shooter Elavenil
Valarivan -- bagged the top honours at the
FICCI India Sports Awards 2020.
 The two athletes, who have had an
impressive 2019-20 season, won the
Sportsperson of the Year awards in their
respective categories.
 Cricket legend Anil Kumble received the 'Best
Company Promoting Sports (Private Sector)'
award on behalf of his enterprise - Tenvic
Sports.
World Athletics Awards 2020
 Mondo Duplantis of Sweden and Yulimar
Rojas of Venezuela are the 2020 Male and
Female World Athletes of the Year.
 They are their countries' first recipients of the
prestigious athletics award.
 Duplantis is the youngest ever winner of the
Male Athlete of the Year Award after twice
breaking the absolute world record (6.17m
and 6.18m) in Feb 2020.
Dr. Samir selected for Senior Scientist Award
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 Dr. Samir Damare, Principal Scientist and
Head Analytical Services Division, at CSIR-
NIO, Goa has been selected for the Senior
Scientist Award for 2020, by the
Microbiologists Society, India.
 It is presented annually to Microbiologists
working in different fields.
 He has received this award in recognition of
his research in the field of microbiology,
extremophiles, and biotechnology.
TCS recognised as UK Superbrand
 Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has been
selected as a superbrand in the United
Kingdom for the sixth consecutive year.
 The prestigious annual survey recognised
TCS as one of the strongest brands based on
its excellent brand reputation, notable
business performance, etc.
 Women make up 28 per cent of employees in
TCS, much higher than the 17 per cent
average in the UK IT sector.
Invest India wins an award
 United Nations Conference on Trade and
Development (UNCTAD) has declared Invest
India as winner of the 2020 United Nations
Investment Promotion Award.
 The award recognizes and celebrates the
outstanding achievements of the Worlds
best-practice investment promotion
agencies.
 The evaluation was based on UNCTADs
assessment of work undertaken by 180
national Investment Promotion Agencies.
Yusuf Hamied Department of Chemistry
  The Department of Chemistry at the
University of Cambridge has been named the
Yusuf Hamied Department of Chemistry until
2050.
 Hamied, 84, who was a student at Christs
College, has retained close links with
Cambridge over the past 66 years.
 He is the chairman of pharma major Cipla.
 KA Hamied, the father of Yusuf Hamied,
started Cipla in Mumbai (1935).
Raj Kamal Jha wins a prize
 Journalist-author Raj Kamal Jha has won the
3rd Rabindranath Tagore Literary Prize for
his novel, "The City and The Sea".
 Jha's book, which is based on the December
2012 Nirbhaya rape and murder case, was
chosen from ten shortlisted books.
 The Rabindranath Tagore Literary Prize was
founded in 2018 by US-based publisher
Bundalo and carries a cash prize of USD
5,000.
BVB wins national crossword contest
 The team of V Krishna Sai Gayatri and
Nellore Dharshita from Bharatiya Vidya
Bhavan, Hyderabad, won the grand finale of
the 8th edition of the annual national inter-
school CCCC Cryptic Crossword Contest
(CCCC 2020).
 The team from Don Bosco Academy, Patna,
secured the second position while The
Mothers International School, New Delhi,
were at the third spot.
Sanjana Sanghi topped IMDb’s list
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 Sanjana Sanghi has topped IMDb's list of
breakout stars in Indian streaming content
this year.
 She was followed by Isha Talwar, Harshita
Gaur, Swastika Mukherjee and Aahana
Kumra.
 She was made her debut in a leading role
with Dil Bechara.
Adar Poonawalla named as 'Asian of the Year'
 Serum Institute of India's CEO Adar
Poonawalla has been named among six
people as "Asians of the Year" by
Singapore's The Straits Times.
 The five others who made to the list are
Chinese researcher Zhang
Yongzhen, Major-General Chen Wei (China),
Dr Ryuichi Morishita (Japan), Ooi Eng Eong
(Singapore) and South Korean businessman
Seo Jung-jin.
Writer Ranendra honoured with an award
 Writer and critic in Hindi Ranendra has been
honoured with the Shrilal Shukla Smriti
IFFCO Sahitya Samman for the year 2020 by
Indian Farmers Fertilizer Cooperative Limited
(IFFCO).
 The award is given annually to a person who
has made an important contribution in the
field of literature.
 This award was started in the year 2011 in
the memory of the storyteller Shrilal Shukla.
Prayagraj Student becomes PETA’s ‘VoTY’
 The People for the Ethical Treatment of
Animals (PETA) India has named O P Jindal
 Global University’s student Ayan Banerjee as
its 2020 ‘volunteer of the year’.
 Ayan, an 18 year old student from Prayagraj,
is a vegan and he joined PETA India’s
volunteer ranks two years ago.
 During the pandemic, he encouraged
students to join PETA Youth’s online webinar
on vegan eating.
Gitanjali Rao named as Kid of the Year
 Indian-American teenager Gitanjali Rao has
been named as TIME magazine's first-ever
"Kid of the Year".
 She has been recognised for her works using
'technology to tackle issues ranging from
contaminated drinking water to opioid
addiction and cyberbullying'.
 The 15-year-old from Colorado, US was
selected from 5,000 nominees and was
interviewed by Hollywood actress Angelina
Jolie.
'No Dorai' wins Bangladesh best film award
 The Bangladesh Ministry of Information has
announced the National Film Awards for
2019.
 Films ‘No Dorai’ and ‘Fagun Haway’ jointly
won the best film award.
 Taneem Rahman Anghshu who directed the
film ‘No Dorai’ got the Best Director award.
 The film ‘No Dorai’ dominated the awards in
several categories including Best
Cinematography, Best Sound
Recording, and Best Screenplay.
Indian teacher wins Global Teacher Prize
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 Indian teacher Ranjitsinh Disale was named
as the winner of the Global Teacher Prize
2020.
 Disale teaches at the Zilla Parishad Primary
School, Paritewadi, Solapur, in Maharashtra
and has been credited for transforming the
lives of young girls.
 His name was announced by English actor,
comedian and writer Stephen Fry at a virtual
ceremony broadcast from the Natural History
Museum in London.
J Abraham named as PETA's Person of the Year
 John Abraham has been named the Person
of the Year for 2020 by the People for the
Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).
 John Abraham had sent a letter urging an e-
retailer to stop trading in live animals.
 He is pushing for a ban on the use of animals
in circuses and is part of a campaign against
keeping birds in cages.
NDA institutes new award
 The National Defence Academy has
instituted a new award for cadets.
 It has been named after Lt Ummer Fayaz who
was killed by terrorists in 2017 in the Kashmir
valley.
 The winner of 1st Commandant's Motivation
Award - Lieutenant Ummer Fayaz, Rajputana
Rifles Regiment Trophy and Silver Medal for
displaying overall improvement in
performance has been awarded to Cadet
Vijay Bahadur.
Four sites in India get a tag of WHIS
  Four sites in India have received the World
Heritage Irrigation Structure (WHIS) tag in
Dec 2020.
 The sites are Cumbum Tank, Kurnool-
Cuddapah Canal, Porumamilla Tank
(Anantharaja Sagaram) in Andhra Pradesh
and 490-year-old Dhamapur Lake in
Maharashtra’s Sindhudurg district.
 The International Commission on Irrigation
and Drainage (ICID) recognises these
structures.
'Shameless' becomes India's entry for Oscar
 Writer-director Keith Gomes' short film
'Shameless' has been selected as India's
official entry at the 93rd Oscars in the 'Live
Action Short Film' category.
 The short film that had released in April last
year was picked from a list of five films that
included Shaan Vyas' 'Natkhat', Aditya
Kelgaonkar's 'Sound Proof', and other short
films 'Safar' and, 'Trapped'.
CMC principal gets WSO award
 Jeyaraj D Pandian, principal, Christian
Medical College, was conferred with the
global stroke services award by the World
Stroke Organisation.
 He is the first Asian to receive this award at
the recently concluded joint virtual World
Stroke Congress and European Stroke
Organisation Conference held in Vienna,
Austria.
 Dr Pandian is also the current vice-president
of the WSO.
Benjamin Netanyahu nominated for Nobel Prize
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 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin
Zayed Al Nahyan have been nominated for
the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize.
 They have been nominated for their roles in
establishing diplomatic ties between their
countries.
 It was announced in Sept 2020 that Donald
Trump has been nominated for the Prize
following his efforts to broker peace between
Israel and the UAE.
UMANG Awards unveiled
 On the occasion of completion of 3 years of
UMANG App, Union Minister Ravi Shankar
Prasad has unveiled the newly instituted
UMANG Awards for Partner Departments of
Centre and States based on average
transactions in the past 6 months across all
services.
 Employees' Provident Fund Organisation
was conferred with Platinum Partner Award
for registering more than 25 lakh transactions
on UMANG App.
Jallikattu: India's entry for 2021 Oscars
 Malayalam film Jallikattu, directed by Lijo
Jose Pellissery, has been selected as India’s
official entry to the Academy Awards, or the
Oscars for this year.
 Jallikattu is the second Malayalam film to be
submitted as the country’s entry to the
Oscars.
 The film released in Kerala in October 2019,
Jallikattu was premiered at the 2019 Toronto
International Film Festival.
UP's Pilibhit Tiger Reserve bags an award
  Pilibhit Tiger Reserve has bagged the first-
ever international award, TX2 for the
conservation and preservation of tigers.
 It was awarded in recognition of its consistent
conservation efforts and more than doubling
the tiger population from 25 in 2014 to 65 in
2018.
 Pilibhit Tiger Reserve was the first to receive
the award among 13 tiger range countries.
ICC Men's Player of Decade award
 Kohli and veteran off-spinner Ashwin are the
two Indians among seven players nominated
for the most prestigious award ICC Men's
Player of Decade.
 Indian skipper Virat Kohli is the only player to
feature in all four Men's categories.
 The final winners will be decided on the basis
of the number of votes a player receives.
'Delhi Crime' wins top prize at Emmy Awards
 Netflix's India Original series "Delhi Crime",
helmed by Indian-Canadian director Richie
Mehta, has bagged the best drama series
honour at the 48th International Emmy
Awards.
 The series deconstructs the case of the 23-
year-old physiotherapy intern who was
abducted and gang-raped in a moving bus on
the night of December 16, 2012.
 The show was released in the year 2019.
ET Govt Global Smart Cities Forum 2020
 In Nagaland, Kohima Smart City
Development Limited, KSCDL has been
declared Winner at the ET Government
Global Smart Cities Forum 2020.
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 It has been awarded under the category Best
Digital Initiative of the Year (Technology) for
Kohima City Wifi Phase-I Project.
 It has activated Wi-Fi Hotspots in 51 locations
of Kohima along with two smart Kiosks as
part of the Kohima Wi-Fi Phase 1 Project.
Lal Bahadur Shastri Award to Sudha Murty
 Well-known philanthropist and prolific writer,
Sudha Murty was awarded the 21st Lal
Bahadur Shastri National Award for
Excellence in Philanthropic work.
 She was awarded on 21 November 2020 by
Vice President Venkaiah Naidu.
 Anil Shastri, Chairman of Lal Bahadur Shastri
Institute of Management also participated in
the virtual event.
Doctor of Science to ISRO Chairman
 Karnataka Governor Vajubhai Vala
presented Doctor of Science honorary
doctorate upon ISRO Chairman K Sivan on
21 Nov 2020.
 The Visvesvaraya Technological University
has conferred the doctorate to him.
 Sivan has been involved in many space
programmes undertaken in the country.
 Sivan was appointed the chief of ISRO in
January 2018.
N.Shah receives A.V Birla Kalashikhar Puraskar
 Veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah has
received the Aditya Vikram Birla Kalashikhar
Puraskar at Sangit Kala Kendra Awards.
 Two emerging stars, Neel Choudhary and
Irawati Karnik, were awarded the Aditya
Vikram Birla Kalakiran Puraskars.
  The Sangit Kala Kendra’s ‘Aditya Vikram
Birla, Kalashikhar Puraskar’ and the
‘Kalakiran Puraskars’, were instituted in
1996.
UN award: Bhutan’s Queen Mother, HelpAge India
 Her Majesty Gyalyum Sangay Choden
Wangchuck, Queen Mother of Bhutan, was
announced as the individual laureate for the
2020 United Nations Population Award.
 HelpAge India was announced as the
award’s institutional laureate.
 She has founded a volunteer organization
called “Respect, Educate, Nurture and
Empower Women”.
 She has also been a Goodwill Ambassador
for UNFPA for more than 20 years.
‘Chhapaak' nominated for AACTA awards
 Three Bollywood films – ‘Thappad,’
‘Chhapaak,’ and ‘Shubh Mangal Zyada
Saavdhan,’ – have been nominated
for Australian Academy of Cinema and
Television Arts Awards (AACTA).
 All three films revolve around different social
issues and bring out the message of the need
to bring a change in society.
 Meghna Gulzar’s ‘Chhapaak,’ is based on the
life of a real acid attack survivor.
Krishna: ‘Best Marine District’ in the country
 Krishna district has been selected for the
‘Best Marine District’ award in the country by
the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry
and Dairying.
 Kalahandi of Odisha has been announced as
Best Inland District and Nagaon of Assam
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has been declared as Best Hilly and North
Eastern District.
 Vaisakhi Bio Marine Pvt. Ltd, A.P., has been
announced as one among the three Best
Shrimp Hatcheries.
Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ awarded
 Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal
‘Nishank’ was conferred with the Vatayan
Lifetime Achievement Award at a virtual
ceremony on November 21, 2020.
 It was conferred to him for writing, poetry and
other literary works.
 Vatayan International Awards given by the
Vatayan-UK organization in London honours
poets, writers and artists for their exemplary
work in their respective fields.
Douglas Stuart wins 2020 Booker Prize
 New York-based Scottish writer Douglas
Stuart has won the 2020 Booker Prize for his
debut novel ‘Shuggie Bain’.
 Stuart has won a cash prize of £50,000.
 Dubai-based Indian-origin writer Avni
Doshi was shortlisted among the final six
authors for her debut novel Burnt Sugar.
 First awarded in 1969, The Booker Prize is
considered one of the leading prizes for
literary fiction written in English.
20 districts get Swachhata Awards 2020
 Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh
Shekhawat conferred the Swachhata Awards
2020 on the 20 best performing districts.
 They were awarded for contributing towards
ODF (Open Defecation Free) Sustainability
 and ODF Plus goals on World Toilet Day on
19 Nov 2020.
 Phase 2 of the Swachh Bharat Mission -
Gramin has been launched early in 2020 and
it focuses on ODF sustainability.
James Dyson's sustainability award
 A material created from rotting fruits and
vegetables that generates renewable energy
by absorbing UV light from the sun has
received the first James Dyson's
sustainability award.
 The "AuREUS" system uses scientific
principles behind the northern lights.
 The "Blue Box", a low-cost biomedical device
that can be used to detect breast cancer at
home, has been declared the International
Winner.
NFDB confers four awards to Assam
 The National Fisheries Development Board
has conferred four awards to Assam for the
success in the fishery sector.
 Assam has got the best state award under
the category of best hilly and North-Eastern
state.
 Assam Apex Cooperative Fish Marketing and
Processing Federation Limited (FISHFED)
has been selected under the category of best
hilly and Northeastern government
organization.
AICTE's Lilavati Award-2020 launched
 Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal
“Nishank” virtually launched Lilavati Award-
2020: AICTE's Innovative education program
to empower women on 17 Nov 2020.
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 With women empowerment as the theme, the
objective of the award is to create awareness
about issues like sanitation, hygiene, health,
nutrition, literacy, and employment among
women.
 The theme of the award is women
empowerment.
Emerald won the prestigious JNA award
 Emerald Jewel Industry India Ltd based in
Coimbatore has won the title 'Manufacturer of
the year 2020' awarded by JNA.
 The JNA Awards programme is one of the
most prestigious awards programmes in the
jewellery and gemstone trade.
 It honours companies who uphold innovation,
excellence in the jewellery industry.
VA Tech WABAG bags an award
 VA Tech WABAG has bagged the award for
best research innovation adaptation of new
technology for water conservation from the
Ministry of Jal Shakti.
 The company was awarded at the second
edition of National water awards organised
by the Ministry of Jal Shakti, department of
water resources recently.
Vaishno Devi Shrine Board Bags First Prize
 The Union Ministry of Jal Shakti awarded the
first prize for water conservation
management to Shri Mata Vaishno Devi
Shrine Board.
 In the category of best institution, resident
welfare association and religious
organisation for successful campus usage.
  The award was announced during the two-
day 2nd National Water Awards prize
distribution ceremony organized by the
Ministry of Jal Shakti.
Bangladeshi teen wins children's prize
 A teenager in Bangladesh has won the
International Children's Peace Prize for his
efforts to educate young people about
cyberbullying.
 Sadat Rahman, 17, was inspired to create a
mobile app to help young people report
online abuse.
 Create a mobile app after hearing about a 15-
year-old girl who took her own life because of
bullying.
Udhampur conferred with National Award
 In Jammu and Kashmir, District Udhampur
has been conferred with National Award for
water conservation under Jeevika Project
launched by the District Administration.
 The project aims to increase the assured
irrigation of Agriculture land and conservation
of water.
 The project envisages development of
sustainable ecosystems through water
conservation.
Lakhta Center wins Emporis Skyscraper Award
 The annual Emporis Skyscraper Awards has
unveiled ten winning tall projects with the new
Lakhta Center in St. Petersburg, Russia
taking the top spot for 2020.
 Standing 1,515 feet tall, the Center is the
tallest building in Russia as well as in Europe
and ranks number 14 worldwide.
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 Besides its unusual design, the jury has
praised Lakhta Center also for its energy-
efficient technologies.
Binny Bansal India’s youngest philanthropist
 Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal, who has
debuted on the 2020 Hurun India and
EdelGive list of top philanthropists, is also the
youngest on the list.
 Among the leading philanthropists in the
country, startup consultancy xto10x
Technologies’ Co-founder Bansal was
ranked 109th.
 Donated Rs 5.3 crores during the financial
year 2020 for education as the primary
cause.
S Hareesh wins JCB Prize for Literature
 Malayalam author S Hareesh has won the
coveted JCB Prize for Literature 2020 for his
novel, Moustache.
 It has been translated in English by Jayasree
Kalathil and published by HarperCollins
India.
 Originally published as Meesha, S, the novel
addresses a wide range of issues plaguing
the society at large through the symbol of a
moustache, which withholds connotations of
both gender and caste.
Hariharan bags JC Daniel award
 Noted filmmaker Hariharan has been
selected for the JC Daniel Award, the state
government’s highest honour for lifetime
contributions to Malayalam cinema.
 The award carries a purse of Rs 5 lakh, a
citation, and a sculpture.
  Some of the notable works that won critical
acclaim include 'Panchagni', 'Oru Vadakkan
Veeragadha', 'Naghakshathangal' and
'Sargam'.
Maria Thattil wins Miss Universe Australia
 Indian-origin Maria Thattil was crowned as
the Miss Universe Australia 2020 in the first
virtual pageant event of Australia.
 The 16th Edition of beauty pageant Miss
Universe Australia 2020 was held on October
28, 2020, at Sofitel Melbourne on Collins,
Melbourne, Victoria.
 First runner-up was bagged by Miné Coetser
of Pretoria, followed by Tash Galgut (Sydney)
as second.
Brookfield Properties wins an award
 Brookfield Properties has won the
'Excellence Award' for two of its Indian Green
Building Council (IGBC) platinum-certified IT
parks at the recently held Performance
Challenge for Green Built Environment 2020.
 The IT Parks are Candor TechSpace G2,
Sector 21, Gurugram and Candor
TechSpace N1, Sector 62, Noida.
 One of its other office campuses is also Gold
certified.
Hockey Mizoram named ‘Best’ HI Member Unit
 Hockey Mizoram has been named as the
best Hockey India member unit award for
2019-2020.
 This award is a recognition to the efforts the
state has taken in order to develop the sport
and encourage more and more youngsters to
take up hockey as a profession.
17
 Hockey India also awarded Rakesh Kumar
as the best employee.
Ruskin Bond awarded
 Ruskin Bond has been conferred the Tata
Literature Live! Lifetime Achievement Award
for 2020.
 He has a substantial body of work, close to
100 books, across genres for children and
adults.
 He has also been conferred the Padma Shri
and Padma Bhushan.
 The award recognises and salutes sustained
and outstanding contribution to writing and
literature in India.
Second National Water Awards to be conferred
 Ministry of Jal Shakti, Dept of Water
Resources, River Development and Ganga
Rejuvenation is organising the 2nd National
Water Awards 2019 Distribution Ceremony
on 11-12 Nov 20.
 The awards are given to motivate the
individuals/organizations who are doing
commendable work in the field of water
resources conservation and management.
 The winners will be given a citation, trophy
and cash prize.
IACG Naravane conferred honorary rank of Gen.
 Indian Army chief General M M Naravane
was conferred the honorary rank of General
of the Nepali Army by Nepal's President
Bidya Devi Bhandari at a special ceremony in
Kathmandu.
 The tradition, which started in 1950, reflects
the strong ties between the two militaries.
  General Naravane was presented with a
sword, insignia and a certificate of
conferment order by the President.
A Maharashtra villager awarded
 The Union Ministry of Water Resources has
declared an award for a villager of Sangli
Sampatrao Pawar for his contribution to the
revitalization of the Agrani River.
 He was the first person to come up with the
idea of re-circulating the river which had
disappeared due to mud, soil and bushes.
 Agrani is a tributary of Krishna river
originating from Tamkhadi village of Sangli
district.
KL Rahul conferred Ekalavya Award
 Indian cricketer KL Rahul was awarded by
the Karnataka Government the Ekalavya
Award.
 The Ekalavya Award is given by the
Karnataka state government for outstanding
performance in sports.
 Veda Krishnamurthy, the Indian Women
Cricket team’s batting all-rounder, has also
been conferred with the prestigious Ekalavya
Award.
J&K: Tributes paid to Major P Purushottam
 In the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir,
in a solemn and poignant ceremony held at
the Public Relations Office, Badami Bagh
(BB) Cantonment in Srinagar, all ranks paid
rich tributes to Late Major P. Purushottam
and five brave soldiers, who were martyred in
action on this day in 1999.
18
 On this occasion, wreaths were laid by all
ranks of the unit at the memorial in Public
Relations Office.
6 women led startups win COVID-19 Shri Shakti
 Six women-led startups have won COVID-19
Shri Shakti Challenge organized by MyGov in
collaboration with UN Women.
 With an objective to encourage and involve
women-led startups to come up with
innovative solutions that can help in the fight
against COVID19 or solve problems that
impact a large number of women.
 Launched the COVID-19 Shri Shakti
Challenge in April 2020.
Writer Paul Zacharia chosen for an award
 Noted Malayalam writer Paul Zacharia has
been selected for 2020 Ezhuthachan
Puraskaram, the Kerala government's
highest literary honour.
 The award, named after Ezhuthachan, the
father of the Malayalam language, carries a
cash prize of Rs 5 lakh and a citation.
 He was chosen for his contribution to
Malayalam literature during the past 5
decades.
 A 5-member jury selected him for the award.
Oscar Race With Deepa Mehta’s ‘Funny Boy’
 Deepa Mehta’s “Funny Boy” will represent
Canada in the race for best international
feature film at the 2021 Oscars.
 Based on the best-selling novel by Shyam
Selvadurai, the film follows a young boy’s
sexual awakening in Sri Lanka during the
 turbulent Tamil-Sinhalese conflict leading up
to the civil war.
 The film will premiere on Netflix outside of
Canada on Dec. 10.
First actor to play James Bond, dies at 90
 Sir Sean Connery, best known for his
portrayal of the fictional James Bond, has
died. He was 90 years old.
 It was his performance as an Irish cop in
Brian De Palma’s The Untouchables that
brought him an Oscar.
 He also won two Bafta awards and three
Golden Globes in his long and storied career.
He was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in
2000.
India’s Global Himalayan Expedition wins award
 An Indian organisation has won a prestigious
UN award for its efforts to combat climate
change amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
 The Global Himalayan Expedition (GHE) is
among the winners of the 2020 UN Global
Climate Action Award.
 GHE is one of the world’s first organisations
using tourism and technology to bring solar
energy to remote communities.
Highest civilian award of Bangladesh conferred
 The highest national award of Bangladesh
‘Swadhinata Puraskar 2020’ was conferred
on eight distinguished persons and an
educational institute on 28 Oct 2020.
 The award carries a gold medal, certificate
and Taka 5 lakh.
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 The award is given away to individuals and
institutions ahead of Independence Day on
March 26 every year since 1977.
The Kolkata International Film Festival
 The Kolkata International Film Festival
(KIFF), scheduled to be held in November,
has been deferred to January next year due
to the COVID-19 pandemic.
 Initially, the 26th edition of the KIFF, with a
limited number of visitors, was scheduled to
be held from November 5 to 12.
 It will now be organised from January 8 to 15,
2021.
Gully Boy wins Best Original Score at AFA14
 The 14th Asian Film Awards (“AFA14”) were
announced on 28 October 2020 virtually by
the Asian Film Awards Academy (“AFAA”).
 Gully Boy bagged the award for the Best
Original Score at the event.
 Bagged the best original music award for
musician Karsh Kale and the Salvage Audio
Collective.
 It was India's official entry to Oscars in the
International Feature Film category.
Dr Satish Mishra bags DrTulsi Das Chugh Award
 The Orations & Awards Committee of the
National Academy of Medical Sciences
(India), has selected Dr Satish Mishra for
“Dr.Tulsi Das Chugh Award” for 2020.
 He will be awarded in recognition of his
research work on Malaria parasite's life cycle
which is a complex process involving two
hosts.
  He is the Principal Scientist, Division of
Molecular Parasitology and Immunology,
CSIR-CDRI, Lucknow.
DBS named Asia's Safest Bank
 DBS Bank has been named the 'Safest Bank
in Asia' for the 12th consecutive year by New
York-based trade publication Global Finance.
 DBS' rankings as the fourth-safest
commercial bank in the world and 14th safest
bank globally remain unchanged from 2019
and 2018.
 DBS was also Global Finance's pick for 'Best
Bank in the World' 2020.
Film on boxer Sarita Devi’s life wins award
 A documentary based on boxer Laishram
Sarita Devi’s life titled ‘I Rise’ has won the
‘Best film on Woman, Outstanding
Achievement Award’ at the Tagore
International Film Festival held in West
Bengal.
 The 52-min documentary is directed by the
national award-winning filmmaker Borun
Thokchom.
 It has already won best film on sports and
best audiography at the 13th Manipur State
Film Awards 2020.
Maharashtra Government presents awards
 Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh
Koshyari has presented the top awards of a
national level photo competition at Raj
Bhavan in Mumbai.
 The photo competition was organized by the
Photographic and Artists Social Foundation.
20
 Sanjay Hadkar, Photographer of Times of
India was presented the 1st prize while
Rajesh Jadhav of Deccan Chronicle won the
2nd prize and Ashpak Killedar won the third
prize.
Om Puri posthumously awarded at IIFF
 Late Indian actor Om Puri was honoured with
a Lifetime Achievement Award at the third
edition of the India International Film Festival
of Boston (IIFFB 2020).
 The award was received by his wife Nandita
Puri.
 The three-day film festival, based in Boston
USA., was held virtually from October 16 to
18.
Centre's National Water Award
 Chhattisgarh's Bilaspur and Surajpur districts
have bagged the National Water Award by
the Central government for the revival of
water bodies and water conservation.
 This comes under Chief Minister Bhupesh
Baghel's Narwa programme, which ensured
the availability of drinking water,
development of irrigation resources, and
recharge of groundwater.
Young Bangladeshi boy wins a prize
 A six-year-old Bangladeshi boy Anzar
Mustaeen Ali won a special prize of USD
1000 for his artwork in the global art
competition organised by the Indian Council
of Cultural Relations (ICCR).
 The ICCR had launched a global painting
competition named ‘United Against
CORONA- Express through Art’.
  It attracted 8000 artwork entries from around
the world.
ISA confers the ISA Solar Awards
 The Solar Awards were presented during the
third Assembly of the International Solar
Alliance (ISA), for the first time.
 The assembly witnessed the conferment of
the Visvesvaraya award which recognises
the countries with maximum floating solar
capacity in each of the four regions of ISA.
 The awards went to Japan for the Asia
Pacific region and the Netherlands for
Europe and other regions.
NTPC ranks first among Indian PSUs
 NTPC has featured on the top on the list of
Indian PSUs under 'World's Best Employer
2020', published by Forbes.
 The recognition is testimony to the NTPC's
commitment towards inculcating best in class
practices that are thoughtfully designed and
robustly executed.
 The final list comprised 750 multinational and
large corporations headquartered in 45
countries.
Award to honour singer Sunanda Patnaik
 The Odisha govt has instituted the 'Sunanda
Samman' for excellence in classical music in
the honour of eminent singer Sunanda
Patnaik.
 The Odisha Sangeet Natak Akademi's award
for classical music will now be named
'Sunanda Samman'.
 The 'Sunanda Samman' will have a cash
reward of Rs 2.5 lakh and a citation.
21
 Noted Indian classical singer Sunanda
Patnaik died in January 2020 in Kolkata.
India assisted project in Bhutan wins Award
 India-assisted Mangdechhu hydroelectric
project in Bhutan has been awarded the
prestigious Brunel Medal for excellence in
civil engineering by the UK-based Institute of
Civil Engineers.
 PM Modi had inaugurated the 720 MW
project on 17 Aug 2019.
 The run-of-river power plant, built on the
Mangdechhu River in Trongsa Dzongkhag
district of central Bhutan at a cost of Rs
4,500-crore.
Mandi district bags top position
 Himachal Pradesh's Mandi district has
bagged top position among 30 districts of
India in the successful implementation of
Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana.
 It has also secured the second position at the
national level for construction of roads under
PMGSY.
 6 more districts of Himachal have secured
positions among top 30, which include
Chamba, Shimla, Kangra, Una, Sirmour,
Hamirpur and Solan.
Jajini Varghese named Outstanding Young
Person
 Dr Jajini Varghese has been named an
Outstanding Young Person of the World 2020
by a non-profit NGO for her incredible
scientific contributions to diagnosing and
treating breast cancer.
  She is a UK-based Indian-origin plastic
surgeon.
 A Consultant in Oncoplastic Breast Surgery
at Royal Free Hospital and University College
London, she was one of 10 nominations from
the UK for the award.
Mohun Bagan receives I-League trophy
 Mohun Bagan received its I-League trophy
on 18 Oct 2020, in the presence of West
Bengal sports minister Aroop Biswas and I-
League CEO Sunando Dhar.
 Mohun Bagan will also display the trophy
from November 2-5, 2020 for a photo
opportunity by the members of the club and
its supporters.
 Mohun Bagan clinched the I-League crown
on March 10, 2020, after defeating Aizawl
FC.
Geetha Manjunath wins an award
 Geetha Manjunath, Co-founder and CEO,
Niramai Health Analytix was awarded
'Accenture 'Vaahini' Innovator of the Year' at
the ETPrime Women Leadership Awards
(ETPWLA) 2020.
 ETPWLA sets a benchmark of success for
women in business and inspires a million
others to come forward.
 The awards recognise women leaders who
have helped create a new and lasting
template for leadership.
Aishwarya Sridhar wins an award in photography
 Aishwarya Sridhar became the first Indian to
win the Wildlife Photographer of the Year
award.
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 The announcement was made on October
13, 2020, at the Natural History Museum in
London.
 Aishwarya Sridhar's photo won among
50,000 entries from over 80 countries across
the world.
 The image is named 'Lights of passion' and
was captured using one of Canon’s premium
DSLRs -- EOS-1DX Mark II.
Prince William launches £50m Earthshot Prize
 Prince William has launched the Earthshot
Prize, which offers £50m in funding for
solutions to the environmental and climate
crises.
 The aim of the prize is to provide an incentive
to find solutions to repair the planet over the
next decade.
 The prize aims to improve living standards
globally and find environmental solutions that
work on every level through new ways of
thinking.
Rajnath Singh presents Raksha Mantri Trophy
 Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on 16 Oct
2020, presented the Raksha Mantri Trophy
for the Best and Second Best Command
Hospitals of the Armed Forces Medical
Services (AFMS) for the year 2019.
 Command Hospital (Air Force) Bengaluru
and Command Hospital (Eastern Command)
Kolkata were judged as the Best and Second
Best Command Hospital for the year 2019
respectively.
Mrs Seema Gupta wins an award
  Mrs. Seema Gupta, Director (Operations),
Power Grid Corporation of India Limited has
been named the winner of GOLD Stevie
Award.
 She has been awarded in the Lifetime
Achievement- Business category in the 17th
annual Stevie Awards for Women in
Business.
 The Stevie Awards for Women in Business
honours women executives, entrepreneurs,
employees, and the companies they
run worldwide.
BoG picks Central Bank of the Year award
 The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has been
honoured at the seventh Central Banking
Awards.
 The Governor of the BoG, Dr Ernest Addison
received the Central Bank of Year award on
behalf of the bank.
 The annual Central Banking Awards, now in
their seventh year, recognises excellence in
the central banking community.
 The Central Banking Awards trophies are
made of sustainable materials.
Shai Evra bags Sastra Ramanujan prize
 The 2020 Sastra Ramanujan Prize will be
awarded to Dr Shai Evra of Princeton
University, USA and the Hebrew University of
Jerusalem, Israel.
 The prize is awarded for outstanding
contributions in mathematics by individuals
below 32 years of age.
 Shai Evra was chosen for his outstanding
work on high dimensional expanders in the
area of combinatorial and geometric
topology.
23
GMR Hyderabad Airport receives ACI award
 GMR Hyderabad International Airport Limited
(GHIAL) has received the trophies of the
Airports Council International (ACI), Airport
Service Quality (ASQ) Departures Awards.
 It was awarded for being 'Best Airport by Size
and Region' and for 'Best Environment and
Ambience by Size'.
 It received these awards in the Asia-Pacific
region in 15-25 Million Passengers Per
Annum (MPPA) category.
Harish Kotecha wins lifetime Achievement award
 Indian-origin philanthropist Harish Kotecha
has been awarded the prestigious Sandra
Neese Lifetime Achievement Award.
 He was awarded in recognition of his work in
the US for meeting the needs of children and
youth experiencing homelessness.
 The lifetime achievement award from the
National Association for the Education of
Homeless Children and Youth (NAEHCY)
was presented to him on 9 Oct'20.
Paul Milgrom and Robert Wilson win Nobel
 American economists Paul Milgrom and
Robert Wilson have been awarded the 2020
Nobel Prize in economics.
 Milgrom and Wilson, who are professors at
Stanford University in California, were
recognized for theoretical discoveries that
improved how auctions work.
 They also designed auction formats for
goods and services that are difficult to sell in
a traditional way, such as radio frequencies.
IN Ships Sahyadri, Kora adjudged as Best
  Fleet Award Function, 2020 was organised to
mark the successful culmination of the
Operational Cycle of the Eastern Fleet of the
Indian Navy, on 10 Oct 2020.
 The most coveted trophies of Best Ship were
awarded to INS Sahyadri amongst Capital
ships and INS Kora amongst Corvettes and
similar classes of ships.
 Indian Naval Ships Airavat and Kiltan jointly
bagged the ‘Best Spirited Ship’.
8 beaches get Blueflag Certification
 All 8 beaches recommended by the
Government have got the coveted
International Blueflag Certification.
 No Blueflag nation has ever been awarded
for 8 beaches in a single attempt.
 The beaches are Shivrajpur beach in
Dwarka, Ghoghla beach in Diu, Kasarkod
and Padubidri in Karnataka, Kappad in
Kerala, Rushikonda in Andhra Pradesh,
Golden Beach in Odisha and Radhanagar
beach in A&N Islands.
Bryan Stevenson won ‘Alternative Nobel’ Award
 An Alabama human rights attorney whose
work for fighting racial injustice was depicted
in the Hollywood movie “Just Mercy” has won
an honour, sometimes referred to as the
“alternative Nobel.”
 Equal Justice Initiative founder Bryan
Stevenson was named a recipient of the
annual Right Livelihood Award.
 The award is presented annually by the
Swedish Right Livelihood Foundation.
World Food Programme wins Nobel Peace Prize
24
 The Nobel Peace Prize 2020 was awarded to
the World Food Programme (WFP) for its
efforts to combat hunger and food insecurity
around the globe.
 The announcement was made in Oslo by
Berit Reiss-Andersen, the chair of the Nobel
Committee.
 The World Food Program plays a key role in
multilateral cooperation in making food
security an instrument of peace.
Louise Glück wins Nobel Prize for Literature
 Nobel Prize for Literature 2020 has been
awarded to the US poet Louise Glück.
 Glück, born 1943 in New York, lives in
Massachusetts and is also a professor of
English at Yale University.
 She is the fourth woman to win the prize for
literature since 2010, and only the 16th since
the Nobel prizes were first awarded in 1901.
 The last American to win was Bob Dylan in
2016.
Nityananda Nayak selected for Sarala Puraskar
 Noted Odia poet Nityananda Nayak has been
selected for the prestigious Sarala Puraskar
for his contribution to literature.
 The award, constituted by IMFA'S wing
IMPaCT, consists of a citation and a cash
prize of Rs 5 lakh.
 Nayak will be conferred with the foremost
literary honour in the state for work of poetry
'Setebelaku Nathiba' which was published in
2017.
Nobel Prize 2020 for Chemistry
  French scientist Emmanuelle Charpentier
and American Jennifer A. Doudna have won
the Nobel Prize in chemistry for developing a
method of genome editing known as
CRISPR.
 The recipients were announced in Stockholm
by Goran Hansson, Secretary General of the
Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.
 The prestigious award comes with a gold
medal and prize money of 10 million krona.
JSPL wins GreenTech CSR India 2020 award
 Jindal Steel & Power Ltd (JSPL) was
conferred with GreenTech CSR India 2020
Award for its for outstanding achievements in
promoting healthcare under its CSR
programmes.
 The Award was received by Chairperson of
JSPL Foundation, Shallu Jindal, during the
7th CSR India Summit & Expo.
 JSPL was declared the winner for this
coveted award in the category of “Promotion
of Health and Healthcare”.
“Man of the Month” safety awards presented
 Gajanan Mallya, General Manager, South
Central Railway presented “Man of the
Month” safety awards to 45 employees.
 He presented the awards during a virtual
safety meeting held from Rail Nilayam,
Secunderabad.
 The General Manager held a detailed review
on Business Development Units (BDU’s) and
emphasized on the consistent efforts to
identify the new avenues of freight traffic.
National Start-Up Awards-2020
25
 Two Mumbai-based Start-ups were declared
winners at the first National Start-Up Awards-
2020.
 While Taraltech Solutions Private Limited
won the award in the Urban Services
category, Wealthy Therapeutics won the
award in the Health care category.
 India is the number three country in the world
in terms of number of Start-ups.
India's 1st awards for startups announced
 The government of India announced the
winners of its maiden national awards for
startups and incubators.
 A number of startups from 12 different
sectors received the national award from
commerce minister Piyush Goyal.
 The winning startup founders got a cash prize
of Rs 5 lakh, the incubators and accelerators
got Rs 15 lakh as the winning amount.
2020 Nobel Prize in Physics announced
 Roger Penrose of Britain, Reinhard Genzel of
Germany and Andrea Ghez of the US won
the Nobel Physics Prize FOR 2020.
 The physicists were selected for their
discoveries about one of the most exotic
phenomena in the universe, the black hole.
 Andrea Ghez is just the fourth woman to
receive the physics prize since 1901 when
the first Nobel prizes were handed out.
IACC presents award to Ratan Tata
 The Indo-American Chamber of Commerce
(IACC) presented the lifetime achievement
award to business icon Ratan Tata.
  The IACC leadership bestowed the IACC
Lifetime and Global Excellence Awards to
Tata.
 Tata, who grew the revenues for India's
largest conglomerate 'The Tata Group' to
nearly $100 billion by 2011-12, remains an
influential industrialist, philanthropist and
humanitarian to the day.
3 Win Nobel Medicine Prize 2020
 Three scientists won the Nobel Prize in
medicine for discovering the liver-ravaging
hepatitis C virus.
 Americans Harvey J. Alter and Charles M.
Rice and British-born scientist Michael
Houghton were honoured for their work over
several decades on an illness that still
plagues more than 70 million worldwide and
kills over 400,000 each year.
Swachh Bharat Awards 2020 - I
 Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh
Shekhawat gave Swachh Bharat Awards -
2020 to States, Districts, Blocks and Village
Panchayats.
 The awards were given under the drinking
water and cleanliness categories.
 Under the Swachh Sundar Samudayik
Shouchalaya category, Gujarat bagged first
position at state level whereas Tirunelveli in
Tamil Nadu got the Award for cleanliness at
District Level
Swachh Bharat Awards 2020 - II
 Khachrod block in Ujjain district in Madhya
Pradesh and Chinnanur Village in Tamil
26
Nadu bagged the top slot at Gram Panchayat
level.
 Under the Samudayik Shouchalaya Abhiyan,
Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh were awarded
best performing states whereas Prayagraj
and Bareilly were the best performing
districts.
 In Gandagi Mukth Bharat Mission, Haryana
and Telangana came first.
Kerala receives India Today Healthgiri award
 Kerala received India Today's award for the
best state combating COVID-19.
 The 'India Today Healthgiri' award was
announced and given by Union health
minister Dr Harsh Vardhan.
 The award was given considering the
accuracy in granting and spending funds, the
vigilance in bringing down the fatality rate,
good healthcare, and the work of the state
government.
Rana Ayyub to be honoured
 Rana Ayyub, the award-winning investigative
journalist will be honoured on 10 October
2020 for her “tenacious reporting on the rise
of authoritarian Hindu nationalism".
 She will be honoured by the Muslim Public
Affairs Council, a US-based non-profit that
works to promote pluralism.
 In February 2020, she won the 2020 McGill
Medal for journalistic courage.
Vienna wins “Smart City” award from UNESCO
 Vienna’s inclusive housing policy has been
recognized by UNESCO.
  UNESCO and Netexplo, a company in the
field of futurology and innovation research,
have awarded ten global cities for their top
performance in certain areas of society.
 Vienna received the award for its “innovative,
intelligent, networked and expressly
sustainable” housing policy.
UP govt bags 8 awards
 Uttar Pradesh government has bagged 8
awards in Garib Kalyan Rozgar
Abhiyan launched by Hon’ble Prime Minister
on 20th June 2020.
 The State has also got overall second rank in
implementation of Gandagi Mukt Bharat
scheme.
 The awards will be distributed at a virtual
ceremony by the Minister of State, Ministry of
Jal Shakti on October 2, 2020.
Gan Samragni Lata Mangeshkar award for 2020-
21
 The Maharashtra government announced the
Gan Samragni Lata Mangeshkar award for
the year 2020-21 to veteran female playback
singer Usha Mangeshkar.
 The award is given by the cultural department
of the state government.
 Making the announcement, state culture
minister, Amit Vilasrao Deshmukh said the
award include cash prize of five lakh rupees,
a certificate and a memento.
ICC gets recognition for digital initiatives
 The International Cricket Council (ICC) has
been recognised for its twin digital initiatives
27
at the prestigious Leaders in Sports Awards
2019.
 The coverage of the women’s T20 World Cup
in Australia and the bold collaboration with
Wimbledon for the One Day in July, both
were recognised as they took home the
awards.
 The ICC Women’s T20 World Cup had 1.1
billion video views on ICC platforms.
Sonu Sood honoured by the UNDP
 Sonu Sood has been conferred the
prestigious SDG Special Humanitarian
Action Award by the United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP).
 He has been awarded for selflessly extending
a helping hand and sending home lakhs of
migrants, helping thousands of stranded
students across geographies abroad,
providing free education and medical
facilities to young children in the COVID-19
pandemic.
I.S. Chahal gets 'COVID Crusader Award-2020'
 Iqbal Singh Chahal, IAS, Municipal
Commissioner of the Municipal Corporation
of Greater Mumbai, has become the first
Indian bureaucrat to get 'COVID Crusader
Award-2020'.
 The award is given for his contribution in
controlling the novel coronavirus infection in
Mumbai.
 The 1989-batch Maharashtra cadre officer
has been conferred the Award by the Indo
American Chamber of Commerce.
Researchers win Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize
  Twelve scientists were given the Shanti
Swarup Bhatnagar Prize, 2020, on the
foundation day of the Council for Scientific
and Industrial Research (CSIR).
 Dr Satyendra Datta of IIT-Bombay was
awarded the prize under the ‘Earth,
Atmosphere, Ocean and Planetary Sciences’
category.
 U K Anandvardhanan, also from IIT-Bombay,
was felicitated under the ‘Mathematical
Sciences’ category.
Surat bags UNESCO award
Manipur college receives two awards
 Diamond City Surat has bagged the Netexplo
Smart Cities Award with UNESCO in the
resilience category.
 Surat’s mayor will receive the award at the
UNESCO House in Paris, France in March
2021.
 Globally, 10 cities were awarded under the
UNESCO - Netexplo Smart Cities
Accelerator Programme.
 Surat is the only city from India to have
bagged the award in the resilience category.
15 inspiring school kids received CSIR Award
Kerala Tourism bags PATA Grand Award
 The Council of Scientific and Industrial
Research celebrated its 79th Foundation Day
on 26 Sep.
 The CSIR Innovation Awards for School
Children were announced for 15 incredible
children of India who have developed apps,
devices or products, or come up with
scientific ideas that can help the country.
 The children come from a wide range of
backgrounds, from both government and
private schools.
28
Noted literary critic G. S. Amur passes away
 Noted literary critic G. S. Amur, passed away.
 One week before his demise, Karnataka
State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC)
announced this year’s Nrupatunga award for
lifetime’s work in literary criticism to G S
Amur.
 He was awarded the Kendra Sahitya
Akademi award in 1996 and the highest
literary award of Kannada, the Pampa award
in 2006.
 The National Service Scheme Award 2018-
19 was conferred by the President of India on
24 Sept 2020.
 In Manipur, a college located in a remote hill
area has received two awards including Best
Program Officer Award.
 Sister Sweta William Parmar, Program
Officer NSS Unit of Don Bosco College
Maram Centre of Senapati District Manipur
has been conferred the Award in the category
of Program Officer.
 Kerala Tourism’s internationally acclaimed
‘Human by Nature’ campaign has bagged the
prestigious PATA Grand Award 2020 for
marketing.
 The award, one of the three PATA grand
awards, will give a stimulus to the tourism
industry in the State that is in a crisis for over
six months due to the pandemic.
 The awards were announced at a virtual
presentation ceremony in Beijing.
Gurpreet and Sanju declared winners of AIFF
 Indian men’s team goalkeeper Gurpreet
Singh Sandhu and women’s squad’s mid-
fielder Sanju were declared the winners of
the All India Football Federation (AIFF)
Footballer of the Year awards for the 2019-
20 season.
 This is the first time Gurpreet has received
the award, and in the process he became the
second goalkeeper after Subrata Paul in
2009 to be named the AIFF Player of the
Year.
Indian-American-led team wins NIH prize
 The Cornell researchers' team led by
Saurabh Mehta was awarded the National
Institutes of Health Technology Accelerator
Challenge prize.
 It has been awarded for developing a quick,
non-invasive, mobile phone-based system.
 It detects infectious diseases, inflammation
and nutritional deficiencies in saliva.
 The prize encourages the development of
new, non-invasive diagnostic technologies.
Akkitham conferred with Jnanpith Award
 Renowned Malayalam poet Akkitham
Achuthan Namboothiri was conferred with
the Jnanpith award at Kumaranellur on 24
Sept 2020.
 Akkitham is the 6th Malayalam writer to
receive the award.
 The award includes a cash prize of Rs 11
lakh and a bronze sculpture of Goddess
Saraswati.
29
 He was also honoured with Padma Shri, the
fourth highest civilian award of the
Government of India in 2017.
Nobel Prize winners to get $110,000 more
 Winners of the prestigious Nobel Prize for
2020 will receive an extra 1 million crowns
($110,000).
 The prize amount has varied over time,
starting at 150,000 crowns and reaching 1
million crowns in 1981.
 The value rose sharply in the 1980s and
1990s, jumping to 9 million crowns in 2000
and 10 million a year later.
GAIL wins Leader Award
 GAIL India Ltd has won the leader award in
mega large business process sector category
in the 11th edition of Frost & Sullivan and The
Energy and Resources Institute (TERI)
Sustainability 4.0 Awards 2020.
 The award recognises corporates in
sustainable development practices that
provide a measurable and verifiable
framework for sustainability.
Odisha CM dedicates AZ Award to farmers
 Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has dedicated
the prestigious AZ Awards-2020 for Odisha's
architectural marvel Krushi Bhavan, to
farmers and artisans of the state.
 Bhubaneswar based Krushi Bhawan building
was adjudged as the 'People's Choice
Winner' at the AZ Awards 2020 in Social
Good Category.
  The Krushi Bhawan was the only project from
India at the globally recognized prestigious
award.
President Ram Nath Kovind to confer NSS
Awards
 President Ram Nath Kovind will confer the
National Service Scheme, NSS Awards for
the year 2018-19 on 24 Sept 2020 from
Rashtrapati Bhawan through virtual mode.
 The NSS Award for the year 2018-19 will be
given to 42 awardees.
 They will be awarded in 3 different
categories- University or 2 Council, NSS
Units and their Programme Officers and NSS
Volunteers.
Raaj Sah honors Father Camille Bulcke
 Father Camille Bulcke, a Belgium-born
Jesuit, and a pre-eminent Hindi scholar, was
honored by Professor Raaj Sah.
 He gifted a plaque to Father Bulcke's
birthplace of Ramskapelle, a village in
Knokke-Heist.
 After arriving in India, Father Bulcke spent
most of his life at St Xavier's College, Ranchi.
 His contributions include the epics of Lord
Rama, and the peerlessness of Goswami
Tulsidas.
Kalasagar awards 2020 announced
 The 11th Kalasagar awards for exemplary
contribution in the field of traditional
performing arts for 2020 have been
announced.
 Kalasagar awards are given in honour of
artists in the field of Kathakali,
30
Bharathanatyam, Mohiniyattam, Kuchipudi,
Ottanthullal, Chakyarkoothu, Koodiyattam,
Thayambaka and Panchavadyam.
 The awards will be presented on October 14
at Kunnamkulam Badhani School Palace.
‘Schitt’s Creek’ sets an Emmy Record
 In its sixth and final season, the Canadian
comedy ‘Schitt’s Creek’ set Emmy Record.
 It got seven primetime awards and nine
Emmys during the ceremony.
 “Schitt’s Creek,” created by Eugene and
Daniel Levy, swept the comedy category at
the Emmy Awards.
 It was 72nd Primetime Emmy Awards.
Emmys 2020: 24-Year-Old Zendaya Makes History
 American actor and singer Zendaya has won
an Emmy 2020 for ‘Outstanding Lead Actress
in a Drama Series’ at the age of 24.
 She has created a history by becoming the
youngest female actor to win the prestigious
award in the leading role in drama series.
 Zendaya has won the accolade for her
portrayal of Rue Bennett in HBO’s drama
series Euphoria.
PM Narendra Modi awarded Ig Nobel Prize 2020
 Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been
awarded the Ig Nobel Prize 2020 for Medical
Education.
 Modi was awarded the prize for "using the
COVID-19 pandemic to teach the world that
politicians can have a more immediate effect
on life and death than scientists and doctors
can".
  The Ig Nobel Prize is a satirical and parody
award given out by a magazine Improbable
Research every year since 1991.
Margaret Atwood awarded
 Margaret Atwood has won the 2020 Dayton
Literary Peace Prize's lifetime achievement
award.
 The award celebrates literature's power to
foster peace, social justice and global
understanding.
 Atwood is a prolific writer of poetry, fiction,
nonfiction, essays, comic books.
 Atwood published her first book of poetry,
Double Persephone, in 1961.
Chef Vikas Khanna to be honoured
 Michelin-star chef Vikas Khanna will be
honoured with the prestigious 2020 Asia
Game Changer Award.
 He will be awarded for feeding millions
across India amid the COVID-19 pandemic
through a massive food distribution drive that
he coordinated from thousands of miles away
in his Manhattan home.
 Khanna is the only Indian among the six
honourees named by the leading
organisation.
Second Utkrisht Sansthan Vishwakarma Award
 Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal
‘Nishank’ virtually conferred Second Utkrisht
Sansthan Vishwakarma Award to 34
institutions in 14 categories.
 It was awarded to the Institutions under
AICTE on Vishwakarma Divas Celebration.
31
 AICTE under its Utkrisht Sansthan
Vishwakarma Award (USVA) 2020 has
proposed the theme of the year as “INDIA
FIGHTS CORONA”.
Rome's Fiumicino Airport awarded
 Rome's Fiumicino Airport has become the
first airport in the world to earn "the COVID-
19 5-Star Airport Rating" from Skytrax, an
international airport industry rating body.
 Fiumicino Airport (FCO), also known as
Leonardo Da Vinci International Airport, is the
busiest airport in Italy.
 On September 1, 2020, the airport opened a
7,000-square-foot COVID testing centre.
Mira Nair honoured with TIFF Tribute Award
 Mira Nair received the Jeff Skoll Award for
Impact Media at a remotely conducted TIFF
Tribute Awards ceremony.
 The presentation of the award to Nair was
initiated by Tabu, star of "A Suitable Boy" as
well as the director's critically acclaimed 2006
drama "The Namesake".
 Two episodes of her six-part television series
"A Suitable Boy" will close the 45th Toronto
International Film Festival.
Aditya Puri conferred an Award
 Aditya Puri, MD, HDFC Bank has been
conferred the Lifetime Achievement Award
by Euromoney Awards of Excellence 2020.
 He has been recognised for his skills in
building a world-class Indian bank at a time
where there were no similar institutions in
existence.
  Euromoney's Awards for Excellence were
established in 1992 and were the first of their
kind in the global banking industry.
AICTE Visvesvaraya Best Teacher Awards 2020
 Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal
Nishank presented the 1st-ever AICTE
Visvesvaraya Best Teacher Awards 2020 to
12 faculty members of AICTE approved
institutes.
 They were awarded on Engineers Day on 15
Sept 2020.
 Visvesvaraya was one of the most eminent
Engineers and Statesmen of India who was
awarded the highest civilian award ‘Bharat
Ratna’ in 1955 for his indispensable
contribution.
Chaitanya Tamhane bags Best Screenplay award
 Filmmaker Chaitanya Tamhane’s The
Disciple won the Best Screenplay award at
Venice International Film Festival during the
closing ceremony held on 12 Sept 2020.
 This is the second award the film got at the
festival.
 Earlier, it was honoured with the International
Critics’ Prize awarded by FIPRESCI.
 Chloe Zhao’s Nomadland won the
prestigious Golden Lion award at the festival.
Bengal bags WSIS award for a scheme
 After Kanyashree scheme, another West
Bengal government project has received a
global prize.
 The World Summit on the Information Society
(WSIS) has handed over the winner prize
32
2020 to the state government for Sabuj Sathi
project through a virtual ceremony.
 Sabuj Sathi had contested with 800 projects
from across the globe to become the “winner”
under the e-government category.
Mathematician wins richest prize in academia
 A mathematician who tamed a nightmarish
family of equations that behave so badly they
make no sense has won the most lucrative
prize in academia.
 Martin Hairer, an Austrian-British researcher
at Imperial College London, is the winner of
the 2021 Breakthrough prize for
mathematics.
 It is an annual $3m (£2.3m) award that has
come to rival the Nobels in terms of kudos
and prestige.
CM KCR presents Kaloji literary award
 Chief Minister of Telangana K
Chandrashekhar Rao presented the Kaloji
Narayan Rao Literary award to noted writer
and poet Rama Chandramouli at Pragathi
Bhavan.
 Terming Chandramouli as the right choice for
the award, the Chief Minister handed over a
cash award for Rs 1,01,116 and honoured
him by offering a shawl.
 Government's advisor KV Ramanachary and
chief secretary Somesh were also present
Ramesh Pokhriyal confers CBSE Teachers Award
 Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal
Nishank felicitated and conferred CBSE
Teachers Award to 38 teachers and
 principals of CBSE affiliated schools during
an online ceremony in New Delhi.
 These awards were presented for the year
2019-20 in honour of the teachers and
principals for their valuable contribution
towards improving school education,
innovation and dedication.
Doorstep Banking Services launched
 Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman
inaugurated Doorstep Banking Services by
Public Sector Banks on 9 Sept 2020.
 She also participated in the awards
ceremony to felicitate best performing banks
on EASE Banking Reforms Index.
 Bank of Baroda, SBI, and Oriental Bank of
Commerce were felicitated for being the top
3 in the ‘Top Performing Banks’ category
according to the EASE 2.0 Index Results.
Kevin, Beth win PFA Player of the Year awards
 Kevin De Bruyne was named men’s Player of
the Year while Chelsea forward Bethany
England won the women’s award.
 De Bruyne scored 13 Premier League goals
last season and also equalled the league
record with 20 assists which helped him
become the first Manchester City player to
win the award.
 Liverpool’s Alexander-Arnold was named the
Young Player of the Year.
David awarded with Indira Gandhi Peace Prize
 Manmohan Singh conferred the Indira
Gandhi Peace Prize on British broadcaster
David Attenborough.
33
 David is well known for his prodigious
creativity in educating the humankind with
brilliant films and books about the natural
world.
 The award was instituted in the memory of
Indira Gandhi by a trust in her name in 1986
and consists of a monetary award of Rs 25
lakh along with a citation.
TN CM presents Dr. Radhakrishnan Awards
 Tamil Nadu CM Edappadi K. Palaniswami on
7 Sept 2020 handed over the Dr
Radhakrishnan Award to 15 best teachers
selected from Chennai district.
 This was a part of the National Teachers’ Day
celebrations organised by the School
Education Dept.
 The award carries a medal and a cash prize
of ₹10,000.
 A total of 375 teachers were selected for the
award from across Tamil Nadu for the year
2020.
National Teachers' Awards conferred
 President Ram Nath Kovind conferred the
National Teachers' Awards to 47 teachers
from across the country on 5 Sept 2020.
 They were awarded for their contribution in
developing innovative methods of teaching.
 The awards are given on Teachers' Day to
honor those who through their commitment
have not only improved the quality of school
education but also enriched the lives of their
students.
NTPC wins National Management Games 2020
  NTPC has won AIMA-Chanakya National
Management Games 2020.
 The victory was also significant since NTPC
won the prestigious National Management
Games for the first time in five years.
 The team from NTPC Vallur, Tamil Nadu
achieved the feat of being crowned the
national champion after competing against
teams from 112 organisations from different
parts of the country.
ABB India's Factory to be awarded by IGBC
 ABB India has won a gold certification by the
Indian Green Building Council for its
environmentally-friendly smart factory.
 By this, it became the first to be certified as a
green building within the Nashik industrial
area which houses about 10,000 factories
across various industries.
 The IGBC green factory buildings is the first
rating programme developed in India for the
industrial sector.
President honours 3 RPF personnel
 3 Railway Protection Force (RPF) personnel
were honoured by President Ram Nath
Kovind with Jeevan Raksha Medals.
 Late Jaghir Singh, constable, Northern
Railway, was posthumously awarded the
Sarvottam Jeevan Raksha Padak.
 Shiv Charan Singh, constable, Western
Railway was awarded the Uttam Jeevan
Raksha Padak.
 Mukesh Kumar Meena was also awarded the
Uttam Jeevan Raksha Padak.
Ratan Tata, Anand Mahindra awarded
34
 In a first-of-its-kind virtual summit, World
Digital Awards announced its first edition
awardees in India on 1st September 2020.
 Ratan Tata, Anand Mahindra, Mukesh
Ambani and NR Narayana Murthy were
conferred the Lifetime Achievement Awards.
 Special Recognition Awards were conferred
to Psychologist Dr Jawahar Surisetti; Debjani
Ghosh; Michelin Star Chef Vikas Khanna;
Actor Sonu Sood, etc.
AFSCB conferred with an award
 Air Force Sports Control Board has
been conferred with ‘Rashtriya Khel
Protsahan Puruskar 2020’.
 It was awarded for the outstanding
contribution in helping sportsperson to excel
in their respective disciplines and implement
robust sports welfare measures.
 The award is for sustained efforts towards
encouragement and promotion of sports in
the country and IAF in particular.
Hyderabad International Airport wins an award
 The Hyderabad International Airport has won
the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) -
Godrej Green Business Centre (GBC)
'National Energy Leader' and 'Excellent
Energy Efficient Unit' award.
 The Hyderabad Airport was awarded at the
21st National Awards for 'Excellence in
Energy Management', during the 19th edition
of 'Energy Efficiency Summit', held from
August 6 - 28, 2020.
French star Juliette Binoche to be honoured
  The 16th edition of annual film gala will be
held from September 24 to October 4, 2020.
 Academy Award winner Juliette Binoche will
be the first French artist to receive the award.
 She will be presented the honour on
September 30, 2020, at a presentation ahead
of a screening of her most recent film, the
French-language comedy "How to Be a Good
Wife".
Ishika Chaudhary receives Eklavya Award
 Indian Junior Women's Hockey team's Ishika
Chaudhary has been awarded the Eklavya
Award by the Madhya Pradesh government.
 Chaudhary started playing the sport at the
age of 11 in 2011 and graduated from the
Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy.
 In 2013, she made it to Madhya Pradesh
Hockey Academy's Junior team which took
part in the third Hockey India Junior National
Championship held in Ranchi.
Hike in prize money of National Sports Awards
 Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju has officially
announced a massive hike in the prize
money in four of the seven categories of the
National Sports and Adventure Awards.
 The prize money for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel
Ratna Award has been increased to a
whopping ₹25 lakh from the previous amount
of ₹7.5 lakh.
 Arjuna Award has been enhanced to ₹15 lakh
from ₹5 lakh.
A teacher selected for National Award
 For the first time, a teacher of Eklavya Model
Residential Schools (EMRS) has been
35
selected for the National Award to Teachers
(NAT).
 Sudha Painuli, a vice-principal of EMRS-
Kalsi, Dehradun, Uttarakhand was selected
for the award.
 She made it to the list of 47 outstanding
teachers selected after a three-stage
rigorous online transparent process.
NLCIL wins Swachhta Hi Seva award
 PSU NLC India Ltd (NLCIL) has bagged the
‘Swachhta Hi Seva’ 2019 award, for
transforming Neyveli township into a plastic-
free, clean and green campus.
 The award was conferred to three units of the
PSU – Township administration office (First
rank), Thermal Power Station -I (second
rank) and Mines Sub-stores (third rank).
 NLCIL implemented the Swachhta Hi Seva
programme in two phases.
Marieke Lucas wins International Booker
 Dutch author Marieke Lucas Rijneveld has
won the 2020 International Booker prize for
debut novel 'The Discomfort of Evening', a
story of childhood grief.
 She is the youngest author to win the
prestigious prize.
 Rijneveld shares the prize of 50,000 pounds,
about $66,000, with Michele Hutchison, who
translated it from Dutch.
 Rijneveld’s book was a bestseller in the
Netherlands in 2018.
Telangana wins Technology Sabha award
 B-PoST (Blockchain-Protection of StreeNidhi
Transactions), Telangana's blockchain-
 based solution, has won the Indian Express
Technology Sabha Award 2020.
 Director of Emerging Technologies Rama
Devi received the award on behalf of the
State govt.
 Technology Sabha Awards are given to govt
departments that demonstrate the innovative
use of technology for distinct benefits to the
stakeholders.
Rossell Techsys receives an award
 Rossell Techsys has been named a global
Supplier of the Year by aerospace major
Boeing.
 The award in the Production Category is for
being instrumental in the design,
modification, or production of a product, for
2019.
 Rossell Techsys is based in Bengaluru, India,
and supplies engineering, manufacturing,
test, and product support solutions to the
global aerospace and defence OEMs.
Awards for Excellence in Public Administration
 PM Narendra Modi will confer the PM’s
Awards for Excellence in Public
Administration on 31st October 2020.
 The awards will be conferred at the Statue of
Unity in Gujarat.
 The PM's Awards portal was launched by
Minister of State in PMO, Dr. Jitendra Singh
on 17th July 2020.
 Almost 702 districts have registered and
participated in the PM's Awards for
Excellence in Public Administration 2020.
Neelakanta Bhanu Prakash wins a title
36
 Neelakanta Bhanu Prakash, a 21-year-old
boy of Hyderabad has won the title ‘World’s
Fastest Human Calculator’.
 He won the first-ever gold for India in Mental
Calculation World Championship at Mind
Sports Olympiad (MSO).
 The championship was held in London on
Independence Day, August 15.
 He also holds world records and 50 Limca
records for being the fastest human
calculator in the world.
US embassy, WISCOMP honour individuals
 The US Embassy in India in partnership with
Women in Security, Conflict Management
and Peace (WISCOMP) on 24 Aug 2020 held
a virtual award ceremony.
 It honored people across India for their efforts
in helping make educational spaces safe and
inclusive for all students.
 The Sahaas Award ceremony honored the
individuals who have shown exemplary
courage to address gender discrimination.
CAS Appreciation to 51 SAG of NSGs
 Army Chief General Manoj Naravane
conferred the Chief of Army Staff Unit
Appreciation to 51 Special Action Group of
the National Security Guards.
 It was conferred in recognition of the Group’s
outstanding achievements in combating
terrorism.
 The group draws 100% of its manpower from
the Indian Army and has established itself as
an elite Counter-Terrorist Force earning
many Gallantry Awards.
'Abhilash' receives International Award
  A short film based on lockdown titled
'Abhilash' has bagged an International Award
at the 'Bengal Lockdown online film Festival'
in the Best Social Message Film category.
 The festival, organized under the supervision
of organizer Subhamapurva, witnessed
contest from around 135 films from around
the world.
 Out of these titles, only 50 titles from 20
countries were officially nominated.
Wabag wins prestigious Global Water Award
 Water technology major Va Tech Wabag has
won the Global Water Award for its 45 million
liters a day tertiary treatment reverse
osmosis (TTRO) plant at Koyambedu in
Chennai.
 The plant bagged the distinction award under
the 'wastewater project of the year' category.
 The TTRO plant is one of the largest and
technologically most advanced water reuse
plants in India.
Army Sports Institute selected for an award
 Pune-based Army Sports Institute (ASI) has
been selected for Rashtriya Khel Protsahan
Puraskar for 2020.
 It will be awarded under the category
‘Identification and Nurturing of Budding and
Young Talent’.
 This award is given to corporate entities
- private as well as public sectors - and
individuals who have played a visible role in
the area of sports promotion and
development.
A teacher from Ladakh selected for an award
37
 A govt school teacher from Ladakh has been
selected for the National Awards to
Teachers, 2020.
 Head Teacher of Middle School Taknak Sakti
in Kharu block of Leh - Ladakh, Sonam
Gyaltsen, has been selected for the
prestigious National award.
 Mr. Sonam Gyaltson made all efforts to build
confidence among the villagers about
government schools and facilitate the
students at the school.
Chitkara University students won an award
 Chitkara University Students have won the
Gandhian Young Technological Innovation
(GYTI) Award -2020 in the field of Agricultural
Innovation.
 It has become the only non IIT, NIT, and IISc
institution to make it to the award list.
 The award was presented to the team
MOKSH from Chitkara University for the
successful commercialization of the on-field
Rice Stubble management machine.
Anand Mahindra to receive Award from USISPF
 US-India Strategic Partnership Forum will
honour Mahindra group Chairman Anand
Mahindra and Adobe Chairman Shantanu
Narayen with its 2020 Leadership Awards.
 They will be awarded in recognition of their
exemplary vision towards promoting US-
India bilateral ties.
 The award would be presented during the
third Annual Leadership Summit, titled “US-
India Week: Navigating New Challenges".
National Sports Awards 2020 announced
  Government announced the National Sports
Awards 2020 on 22 Aug 2020.
 Rohit Sharma, Mariyappan Thangavelu,
Manika Batra, Vinesh Phogat are among
others who will receive the Rajiv Gandhi Khel
Ratna Award.
 In Life-Time Category, Dronacharya Award
will be given to Dharmendra Tiwary for
Archery, Purushotham Rai for Athletics, Shiv
Singh for Boxing, Romesh Pathania for
Hockey, among others.
Abhijit Paul's 'Am I' wins first prize
 A Short film titled 'Am I?' directed by Abhijit
Paul won the 1st prize in the Online Patriotic
Short Film Contest organized by the Ministry
of Information and Broadcasting and National
Film Development Corporation, NFDC.
 He also won a cash award of Rs 1 lakh.
 'Ab India Banega Bharat' directed by Debojo
Sanjiv got the 2nd prize and '10 Rupees'
directed by Yuvraj Gokul got the 3rd prize.
Chhattisgarh: Cleanest state of country
 Chhattisgarh has been declared as the
cleanest state of the country as per the
Cleanliness Survey 2020 organized by Union
Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry.
 Chhattisgarh has bagged 14 national awards
in various categories.
 The state had taken many initiatives to
achieve this success.
 100% door to door garbage collection was
ensured in the state.
Rajendra S Pawar felicitated with an award
38
 Rajendra S Pawar, Chairman & Co-Founder,
NIIT Group & Founder, NIIT University was
felicitated with the 'Lifetime Achievement
Award' at Dataquest ICT Awards 2019 on 18
August 2020.
 The award was presented during a Special
Webinar on '40 Years of ICT Industry and the
Next 10 Years'.
 He was felicitated with the award for his
immense contribution in shaping the growth
of the Indian IT sector.
Swachh Survekshan 2020 results announced
 The government announced the results of the
annual survey of cleanliness, Swachh
Survekshan 2020 on 20 August 2020.
 Indore once again bagged the top spot as the
cleanest city of India, the fourth time in a row.
 The second and third positions in the
category were grabbed by Surat and Navi
Mumbai respectively.
 This is the fifth edition of the annual
cleanliness survey of the country.
UST Global wins CSR Award
 UST Global, a leading digital transformation
solutions company, has won the Project
Management Institute Kerala (PMIK)'s PMI
Kerala Community Project of the Year Award
for 2020.
 It was awarded for its 'Adopt a School
initiative'.
 Under this, the company adopts and supports
Government or Government-aided schools in
the rural and financially backward
communities.
Dwijing Festival wins 5 awards
  The 4th edition of the Dwijing Festival with
over 15 lakh tourists attending the 12-day
event has emerged as the winner in 5
categories at the prestigious WOW Awards
Asia, 2020.
 It is an annual river festival celebrated in
Assam with various colourful events.
 It is organized with the vision to encourage
tourism, boost the will of the promising
indigenous talent, and promote local
products.
Ganesh Vilas awarded Star 2020 Certificate
 Solapur based social activist Ganesh Vilas
Lengare has been awarded the Star 2020
Certificate by the World Book of Records,
London.
 The organisation, found in 2017, honours
personalities for their outstanding
contribution towards humanity and universal
peace.
 Recognizing his efforts to help the needy
during the lockdown, Ganesh Lengare has
been awarded the Star 2020 e-citation
certificate.
IIT Madras wins first place in Atal ranking
 IIT Madras has retained its position as the top
‘innovative educational institution’ in the
country for the second consecutive year.
 Atal Ranking of institutions on Innovation
Achievements (ARIIA) was announced on 18
Aug 2020 by Vice President M. Venkaiah
Naidu.
 ARIIA was launched in 2019 by the
Innovation Cell of the Ministry of Education
(formerly Ministry of HRD).
39
Five nominated for Khel Ratna
 5 names have been nominated for Rajiv
Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, while 29 were
recommended for Arjuna, by the selection
committee on 18 Aug 2020.
 Rohit Sharma, Vinesh Phogat, Rani Rampal,
Manika Batra and T Mariyappan were
recommended for the highest sporting
honour of the country.
 Ishant Sharma, Atanu Das, Dutee Chand,
Manish Kaushik, Manu Bhaker, etc. are
among the 29 in fray for Arjuna.
Physician Ravi Solanki won an award
 An Indian-origin physician is among 19
winners of the UK’s Royal Academy of
Engineering President’s Special Awards for
Pandemic Service.
 Ravi Solanki, a physician working on
neurodegenerative diseases, along with
Raymond Siems, an engineer working in
machine learning, were awarded for their
volunteer work to help build a website for a
new National Health Service (NHS) charity
HEROES.
Sivakumar Surampudi bags Gramodaya award
 Sivakumar Surampudi, Group Head of Agri
and IT Businesses of ITC Ltd, is among the
winners of the Gramodaya Bandhu Mitra
Puraskaras.
 The awards were constituted to mark the
150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
 The other winners include Padmasri SP
Verma, Vilas Shinde, Koosam Rajamouli,
Brig Pogula Ganesham, and Govinda Rajulu
Chintala, Chairman of the Nabard.
926 Police personnel awarded Medals
 A total of 926 Police personnel have been
awarded Medals on the occasion of
Independence Day.
 Police Medals for Gallantry have been
awarded to 215 police personnel for their
conspicuous gallant action.
 President’s Police Medals for Distinguished
Service has been awarded to 80 police
personnel and Police Medal for Meritorious
Service to 631 police personnel.
84 gallantry awards for defence personnel
 President Ram Nath Kovind has approved 84
gallantry awards for defence personnel,
including 9 Shaurya Chakra.
 The Kirti Chakra has been posthumously
awarded to Abdul Rashid Kalas, Head
Constable, Jammu and Kashmir Police.
 Those from the Army who have been
awarded the Shaurya Chakra are Lt.Col.
Krishan Singh Rawat from the elite Special
Forces, Major Anil Urs and Havildar Alok
Kumar Dubey.
Gagan Arora wins "CEO Of The Year" Award
 Gagan Arora was recently named as "CEO of
the Year - 2020" by Indian Achievers Forum
India.
 He is the CEO & Strategic Growth Leader of
Vertex Global Services.
 The awards program recognizes
entrepreneurs who demonstrate
extraordinary success and excellence in
areas such as innovation, social, professional
achievements, etc.
40
Medal for excellence awarded to 121 policemen
 121 police personnel have been awarded the
Union home ministry’s “Medal for Excellence
in Investigation” for the year 2020.
 Out of these, 15 awardees are from the
Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), 10
each are from Madhya Pradesh and
Maharashtra Police, eight from Uttar Pradesh
Police and seven each from Kerala and West
Bengal Police.
 The list also includes 21 women police
officers.
Sudarsan Sahoo presented Dharmapada award
 In recognition of his Life Time Contribution to
Art, Dharmapada Award was presented to
Padma Shri awardee sculptor Sudarshan
Sahoo by Odisha Lalit Kala Academy.
 He was given a Plaque, Angabastra along
with a cheque of Rs 1 lakh.
 Sahoo also presented the pictorial Book on
his life 'Sudarshan Sahoo - a Legacy Set in
Stone' to Jyoti Prakash Panigrahi, Minister of
Odia Literature and Culture.
FSSAI's Eat Right India movement wins a prize
 The Food Safety and Standards Authority of
India (FSSAI) has been awarded the Food
System Vision Prize for its 'Eat Right India'
movement's vision.
 The prize is for organizations across the
globe that have developed an inspiring vision
of the regenerative and nourishing food
system that they aspire to create by the year
2050.
 Its vision aims to create a culture of safe and
sustainable food.
President honours 202 freedom fighters
 President Ram Nath Kovind has honoured
and felicitated 202 freedom fighters from
across the country on the occasion of 78th
Quit India Day.
 Every year, the President hosts a reception
at Rashtrapati Bhavan on the anniversary of
the Quit India Movement to honour freedom
fighters.
 He has requested State and UT Govts to
honour and felicitate freedom fighters with a
shawl and angavastram.
Naandi Foundation chosen for Food Vision Prize
 US-based Rockefeller Foundation has
selected Naandi Foundation, an NGO, as
one of the top 10 visionaries in the world for
the Food Vision 2050 Prize.
 The prize money of USD 200,000 was
announced in New York for it.
 The Rockefeller Foundation award
recognised the application of the
'Arakunomics' model in the regions of Araku,
Wardha and New Delhi.
Dipankar Ghose bags Prem Bhatia award 2020
 The Indian Express Special Correspondent
Dipankar Ghose has won the Prem Bhatia
Award for political reporting for his work on
issues related to the COVID-19.
 The award for reporting on environmental
and development issues was given to the
People’s Archive of Rural India (PARI), a
journalism website dedicated to reporting on
rural India.
Pakistan to confer award to Turkish lawmaker
41
 Pakistan will confer the country's prestigious
award to a Turkish lawmaker, Ali Sahin, in
recognition of his services to promoting
friendship between the two countries.
 President Mr Arif Alvi will present Sitar-e-
Quaid-e-Azam award to him on Aug. 14, on
the country's Independence Day.
 Sahin is the chairman of the Pakistan-Turkey
friendship parliamentary group.
CRSI Bronze Medal for IICT Scientist
 Senior Principal Scientist in the dept of
Organic Synthesis and Process Chemistry,
CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical
Technology, Dr Srihari Pabbaraja, has been
selected for the Chemical Research Society
of India Bronze medal 2021.
 He will be honoured for his contributions in
the field of total synthesis of natural products
and method development for new chemical
entities.
IIT Kharagpur researchers awarded
 A group of researchers from IIT Kharagpur
has been conferred the "Gandhian Young
Technological Innovation Awards 2020".
 They were awarded for developing a
mechanism for generating electricity from wet
clothes left under sunlight to dry.
 Another team from the institute was
separately granted the same award for
addressing the problem of energy
conservation and thermal management.
Dalmia Bharat Group wins FICCI CSR Award
  Dalmia Bharat Group has won an award for
Environment Sustainability at 18th FICCI
CSR award ceremony, organized by FICCI.
 The award recognizes efforts of companies in
integrating and internalizing Corporate Social
Responsibility.
 So far, Dalmia Bharat Group has promoted
more than 25,000 Solar Household Lighting
Solutions and installed 535 Solar Streetlights.
11 Women entrepreneurs awarded
 11 Women entrepreneurs have been
awarded by the Women Entrepreneurship
and Empowerment, WEE cohort.
 It is India’s first of its kind initiative to
strengthen women's ecosystem at IIT Delhi,
supported and sponsored by the Department
of Science and Technology.
 The cash awards in the form of a grant
totalling Rs 25 lakh have been presented to
11 Women entrepreneurs.
Jordan Henderson won an award
 Liverpool’s Premier League title-winning
captain Jordan Henderson was named
England’s Footballer of the Year.
 Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne,
Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford and
Liverpool pair Virgil van Dijk and Sadio Mane
made up the rest of the top five.
 Henderson has played in 30 of Liverpool’s
league matches so far this season and
scored four goals.
Tribal Affairs Ministry receives an award
 Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) has received
SKOCH Gold Award for its “Empowerment of
42
Tribals through IT-enabled Scholarship
Schemes” project of Scholarship Divison of
the Ministry.
 The 66th SKOCH 2020 Competition was
entitled “INDIA RESPONDS TO COVID
THROUGH DIGITAL GOVERNANCE”.
 MoTA integrated all 5 Scholarship Schemes
with DBT Portal and the initiative was rolled
out on 12 June 2019.
Sunil ydv SS honoured with Karamveer Chakra
 Founder of SS Motivation, World record
holder Sunil ydv SS was honoured with
“Karamveer Chakra Award" by Global
Fellowship Award instituted by United
Nations and International Confederation of
NGO (iCONGO).
 He was awarded at the ReX ConcLIVE
hosted at IIT Delhi.
 He received the award for his relentless
contribution to society through his Telegram
channel “SS Motivation.”
Earth Sciences Mstry announces National
Awards
 Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) National
Awards for excellence in Earth System
Science have been announced.
 The Life Time Excellence Award is being
awarded to Professor Ashok Sahni for his
significant contribution in the field of Geology,
Vertebrate Paleontology and Biostratigraphy.
 The National Award for Atmospheric Science
and technology will be presented to Dr. S.
Suresh Babu.
India’s solar-powered ferry won an honour
  Aditya, India’s first solar-powered ferry that
commenced operations in 2017 in Kerala’s
Vembanad backwaters, has won the
prestigious Gustave Trouve Award for
Excellence in Electric Boats and Boating.
 The ferry was adjudged the world’s best
electric boat in the category of ferries
designed for paid passenger service.
 Every day it makes 22 trips with 75 people on
board.
Jamie Vardy wins Golden Boot award
 Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy bagged the
Premier Leagues Golden Boot award after
netting 23 goals across the 2019/20 season.
 Vardy beat Arsenal striker Pierre-Emerick
Aubameyang, Southampton's Danny Ings
and Manchester City forward Raheem
Sterling to scoop the prestigious individual
award.
 He is the first Leicester City player to claim
the award.
Indian-origin nurse conferred with an award
 Singapore govt on July 21, 2020, honoured
an Indian-origin nurse Kala Narayanasamy
with the President's Award for Nurses, the
highest accolade in the nursing profession.
 She was awarded for her outstanding
services during the coronavirus pandemic.
 The award was given to five nurses.
 Each awardee received a trophy, a certificate
signed by President Halimah Yacob and an
SGD$10,000 cash prize.
A Coimbatore scientist awarded
43
 An award-winning scientist at the Institute of
Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding,
Coimbatore has been conferred the National
Award of excellence.
 Kannan Warrier made several personal visits
and enumerated 1128 sacred groves in
Alappuzha.
 He was awarded for outstanding research in
forestry, including conservation of
endangered sacred groves in the Alappuzha
district of Kerala.
Greta Thunberg named winner of a Prize
 Climate activist Greta Thunberg has
been named winner of the inaugural
Gulbenkian Prize for Humanity.
 She plans to donate her 1 million euro ($1.14
million) prize to organizations focused on the
environment and climate change.
 Earlier, in April 2020, after winning the
Human Act Award, she donated the
$100,000 prize money to UNICEF.
Arnab Chaudhuri to recieve Toonz Media Award
 The ‘Legend of Animation’ award will be
posthumously conferred to the legendary
animation director Arnab Chaudhuri.
 The award is being presented for his
invaluable contribution to the animation and
entertainment industry of India.
 The award was instituted by the Toonz Media
Group (TMG) as part of the Animation
Masters Summit (AMS) 2020 - Digital Edition.
2020 Nelson Mandela Prize winners
  The laureates of UN 2020 Nelson Rolihlahla
Mandela Prize are Marianna Vardinoyannis
of Greece and Morissana Kouyate of Guinea.
 It was announced by General Assembly
President Tijjani Muhammad-Bande.
 Vardinoyannis is a Greek philanthropist
known for fighting childhood cancer.
 Kouyate is a Human rights activist known for
her contribution towards violence against
women and girls in Africa.
Kate Winslet to be honoured
Shahidul Alam won an award
 Actor Kate Winslet will receive the Tribute
Actor Award during the 2020 Toronto
International Film Festival (TIFF) on 15
September 2020.
 The Oscar-winning actor will receive the
honour during the virtual gala following her
latest film, Francis Lee's Ammonite.
 In 2019, the inaugural TIFF Tribute Gala
honoured Meryl Streep, Taika Waititi, Mati
Diop, and Joaquin Phoenix.
SC Railway’s Ongole Sub-Division won an award
G7CR Technologies won an award
 The Ongole Sub-Division Office of South
Central Railway has bagged the WATER
HEROES AWARD, from Ministry of Jal
Shakti.
 The Ongole Sub-Divisional Office of
Vijayawada Division, Andhra Pradesh, South
Central Railway have been declared as
winner in the “Water Heroes Award” for the
month of April 2020.
 A contest was organized for the period from
1st September, 2019 to 30th June 2020.
Tata group Chairman to receive an award
Ashok Kumar to receive Mohun Bagan Award
44
 Tata group Chairman N Chandrasekaran and
Lockheed Martin CEO Jim Taiclet will receive
the USIBC Global Leadership Award 2020.
 Every year, the Awards are conferred upon
executives in recognition of outstanding
leadership and for promoting Indo-US trade
and business.
 The earlier receivers of this award include
Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Google CEO
Adena Friedman, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos,
etc.
 Noted Bangladeshi photojournalist and
founder of Pathshala Media Institute
Shahidul Alam has been announced as one
of the winners of the 2020 International Press
Freedom Awards.
 The Committee to Protect Journalists will
honour Shahidul and three others from Iran,
Nigeria, and Russia with the award.
 CPJ will also honour lawyer Amal Clooney
with the Gwen Ifill Press Freedom Award.
 G7CR Technologies India Pvt Ltd has won
the Microsoft Country Partner of the Year
2020 Award for India.
 It was honoured for demonstrating
excellence in innovation and implementation
of customer solutions based on Microsoft
technology.
 The Awards were classified in several
categories, with honorees chosen from a set
of more than 3,300 submitted nominations
from 100 countries worldwide.
  Ashok Kumar will be conferred with the
Lifetime Achievement Award by football club
Mohun Bagan on the occasion of its
foundation day.
 Pranab Ganguly (Football) and Monoranjan
Porel (Athletics) would also receive
the Lifetime Achievement Award along with
him.
 Mohun Bagan Ratna for the year 2020 would
be presented to Gurbux Singh and Palash
Nandi.
Ved Parkash Dudeja awarded
 Ved Parkash Dudeja, Vice Chairman, Rail
Land Development Authority (RLDA) was
recently awarded the coveted ‘Infra Business
Leader of the Year’ award for 2020.
 He was awarded by the Rail Infra and Mobility
Business Digital Awards (RIMBDA).
 RLDA is a statutory authority under the
Ministry of Railways, responsible for the
development of vacant railway land for
commercial use.
ISRO Chief K Sivan named for an award
 ISRO chief Dr Kailasavadivoo Sivan
has been named as the recipient of the 2020
Von Karman Award of the International
Academy of Astronautics.
 The award which is the highest distinction of
the Academy will be conferred in March 2021
in Paris.
 Charles Elachi was the previous recipient of
the award, which has been named after
Theodore von Karman, who was an
aerospace engineer.
A Chhattisgarh app awarded
45
 Chhattisgarh's Mukhyamantri Darpan and
mobile App has been awarded "Elites
Excellence Awards-2020" at the national
level.
 The app contains the details of all the flagship
schemes of the Chhattisgarh govt including
the ambitious 'Suraji Gaon Yojna'
 Chhattisgarh has been awarded this honour
by the country's prestigious IT institution
Elites Technomedia under the 'Digital India
initiative'.
NTPC's Singrauli Unit 1: Top-performing plant
 National Thermal Power Corporation,
NTPC's Singrauli Unit 1 has emerged as the
top-performing unit in the country in the first
quarter of the financial year.
 NTPC, Singrauli is the oldest Unit and a
flagship power station of NTPC Limited.
 NTPC, Singrauli has an installed capacity of
2,000 Mega Watt with five units of 200 Mega
Watt each and two units of 500 Mega Watt
each.
NTPC Limited won an award
 National Thermal Power Corporation, NTPC
Limited has won the prestigious CII-ITC
Sustainability Award 2019.
 It has been awarded under Outstanding
Accomplishment in Corporate Excellence
Category.
 The company has also received
Commendation for Significant Achievement
in the category of CSR.
 CII-ITC Sustainability Awards recognizes and
rewards excellence in sustainability
practices.
Indian battalion won UNIFIL environment award
 An Indian battalion stationed with the United
Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL)
has won an environment award.
 It has been awarded for a project that aims to
decrease waste generation, reuse plastic,
build greenhouses and compost pits.
 UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force
Commander Major General Stefano Del Col
gave the annual environmental awards to
seven Missions entities.
Kezang D Thongdok won Dada Saheb Phalke
Award
 Kezang D Thongdok, a filmmaker,
has bagged the prestigious Dadasaheb
Phalke Award 2020.
 Thongdok's short documentary Chi
Lupo artfully sketches the custom of honey
hunting practised in the Shertukpen
community wherein 'Chi' means honey and
'Lupo' means hunters.
 Presently, Thongdok is working on his new
project, a documentary film titled 'Khiksaba',
an unexplored festival of Shertukpen tribe.
Nadaun Police Station ranked as one of best
 Nadaun Police Station of Hamirpur district in
Himachal Pradesh has been ranked as one
of the best Police Stations of the country.
 Certificate of Excellence was provided to this
Police Station by Union Home Minister Amit
Shah.
 Director General of Police Sanjay Kundu
presented this Certificate of Excellence
received by him from Union Home Minister to
the Chief Minister in Shimla 9 July 2020.
46
Sachin Awasthi honoured with an award
 President of National Media club Sachin
Awasthi bagged Top Publicist honour under
Global Humanitarian Award 2020.
 He is one of the 100 awardees nominated
from 35 different countries and 7 continents.
 The awards were announced under the
initiative Honouring the Honourable by the
Global Humanitarian Award 2020 to honour
people, who are selflessly working to improve
society and the world.
IOC received Green Building Leadership Award
 The International Olympic Committee (IOC)
announced that its new headquarters in
Lausanne has been awarded the European
2020 US Green Building Council (USGBC)
Leadership Award.
 Olympic House, which also holds the
rigorous LEED Platinum certification, is one
of the most sustainable buildings in the world.
 The award has been given to five
organisations.
Quinton de Kock named cricketer of the year
 Quinton de Kock was named men’s cricket of
the year at the Cricket South Africa annual
awards, his second such honour after 2017.
 De Kock, who is captain of the South African
national team in limited-overs cricket, also
bagged the Test cricketer of the year award.
 Opener Laura Wolvaardt was adjudged the
women’s cricketer of the year and the ODI
cricketer of the year.
Kritika Pandey won a prize
  India’s Kritika Pandey has been awarded the
5,000 pound Commonwealth Short Story
Prize 2020 for “The Great Indian Tee and
Snakes” in a virtual ceremony in London.
 The Asian Regional Winner beat challengers
from four other contenders in the final round.
 This year’s competition received 5,000
entries from 49 countries.
13-year-old girl from Delhi received an award
 Freya Thakral, a student of The British
School, New Delhi has been recognised with
the Diana Award for her humanitarian efforts.
 She was added to the roll of honour on
Princess Diana’s birthday on 1 July 2020.
 Established in memory of Diana, Princess of
Wales, the Award is given out by the charity
of the same name and has the support of The
Duke of Cambridge and The Duke of Sussex.
REC Group won Prestigious Intersolar Award
 REC Group has announced that its flagship
REC Alpha solar panel has won the
prestigious Intersolar Award 2020 in the
"Photovoltaics" category.
 This marks the second time REC Group has
won the award, with the REC TwinPeak
Series earning the recognition in 2015.
 The Intersolar Award is presented to
companies making a substantial contribution
to the success of the solar industry.
Two renowned Indian-Americans honoured
 In the United States, two renowned Indian-
Americans are among the 38 immigrants
honoured by a prestigious American
47
foundation ahead of US Independence Day
commemoration 2020.
 Pulitzer Prize-winning author and oncologist
Siddhartha Mukherjee and Professor of
Economics at Harvard University Raj Chetty
have been named by the Carnegie
Corporation of New York as '2020 Great
Immigrants' honorees.
C. Rangarajan got an award
 Former RBI governor C Rangarajan has
been conferred with the lifetime achievement
award for his contribution to statistics.
 He was awarded on the occasion of Statistics
Day.
 Besides heading RBI and the Prime
Minister’s Advisory Council, Rangarajan was
chairman of the National Statistical
Commission, set up in 2000 to review the
statistical system.
Popstar Beyonce honoured with an award
 The 20th annual BET Awards took place on
28th June 2020.
 The BET Awards honoured Beyoncé with the
2020 Humanitarian Award for her
philanthropy and passion for social justice.
 The BET Awards also paid tribute to the lives
of many that were lost in the entertainment
industry such as rapper Pop Smoke, Little
Richard, Jas Fly, and several others who
unfortunately passed away.
MyGov Corona Helpdesk won 2 awards
 India’s MyGov Corona Helpdesk has bagged
2 awards at the Global Leadership Summit
 and Festival of AI and Emerging Technology,
CogX 2020.
 It was awarded under categories of Best
Innovation for Covid-19 - Society and
People’s Choice Covid-19 Overall Winner.
 The recently held CogX 2020 is a prestigious
Global Leadership Summit and Festival of AI
and Emerging Technology held annually in
London.
Mon District Administration awarded
 In Nagaland, Mon District Administration has
been conferred the SKOCH Awards under
three different categories at the 65TH
SKOCH Summit.
 The district administration was awarded for
its initiative on financial inclusion, District
Response to COVID-19 and skill
development.
 The SKOCH Crucible Award for ‘Financially
Inclusive Mon’ was also conferred to the
district administration.
UN honours Kerala Health Minister K.K Shailaja
 Kerala Health Minister K.K Shailaja was
honoured by the UN on June 24, 2020.
 She was one among several leaders across
the world invited to speak on the occasion of
United Nations Public Service Day.
 She was honoured for her efforts to fight the
COVID pandemic in her state.
 She was the only speaker from the country to
speak on the strategies adopted by Kerala to
curb COVID-19 transmission.
Sansad Ratna Award for Srikakulam MP
48
 Srikakulam TDP MP K Ram Mohan Naidu
has created a record as he is the youngest
MP to be honoured with Sansad Ratna
Award 2020.
 Ram Mohan Naidu has been nominated for
the ‘Jury Committee Special Award’ for his
overall qualitative performance and individual
efforts.
 8 MPs from the Lok Sabha and 2 from the
Rajya Sabha have been selected for the 11th
edition of Sansad Ratna Awards.
Gulabbai Sangamnerkar to get lifetime honour
 The Maharashtra government has
announced the Vithabai Narayangaokar
lifetime achievement award to folk artist
Gulabbai Sangamnerkar.
 The Annasaheb Kirloskar award will be
conferred upon veteran theatre actress-
singer Madhuvanti Dandekar.
 The award carries the cash prize of Rs 5 lakh,
a citation and a memento.
 Sangamnerkar has been performing since
the age of nine.
Himachal Pradesh won e-Panchayat Puraskar
2020
 Himachal Pradesh has secured first prize
under e-Panchayat Puraskar-2020, given by
the Union ministry of Panchayati Raj.
 The award is conferred to those states who
have ensured maximum use of IT for
monitoring the various works of the
panchayats.
 Himachal Pradesh has been selected for this
award for effective implementation of an e-
application developed by the Centre.
Six District Hospitals of J&K UT won an award
 6 District Hospitals of Jammu and Kashmir
have bagged Kayakalap award claiming
notable positions in the best hospitals
category 2019-20.
 Four of these District Hospitals are from
Jammu division including DH Reasi which
has clinched the top spot winning a cash
award of Rs. 50 lakh.
 The Kayakalp Award was instituted as part of
the 'Swachh Bharat Abhiyan' on 15 May
2015.
Golden Globe awards postponed to February
2021
 The annual Golden Globe Awards ceremony
for film and television has been postponed to
February 2021.
 The Golden Globes ceremony, which kicks
off Hollywood’s awards season, will now take
place on 28 Feb 2021.
 The decision follows the postponement by
two months of the Oscars to 25th of April
2021 because of Coronavirus pandemic.
Minerva Academy FC recommended for an award
 Minerva Academy Football Club has been
recommended for 2020 Rashtriya Khel
Protsahan Puruskar by the Punjab
government and Federation of Indian
Chambers of Commerce and Industry
(FICCI).
 The club has been recommended under the
category of ''identification and nurturing of
budding talent''.
 The award carries a citation and a trophy.
 There is no cash prize.
49
Amartya Sen won Peace Prize
 Nobel-laureate Indian economist Amartya
Sen has won the prestigious Peace Prize of
the German Book Trade for his decades-long
work on "questions of global justice".
 He has been awarded for his pioneering work
addressing issues of global justice, social
inequality in education and healthcare.
 He has been a professor of economics and
philosophy at Harvard University since 2004.
J&K conferred with three prestigious awards
 Jammu & Kashmir has been conferred with
three prestigious Deen Dayal Upadhyay
Sashaktikaran Puraskar awards.
 It has been awarded for its outstanding
contribution to the socio-economic
development of the Gram Panchayats across
the Union Territory.
 Panchayat Rathal and Panchayat Badakana
and Panchayat Meej of Pulwama district
were adjudged the best performing
panchayats
AIFF recommended IM Vijayan for Padma Shri
 The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has
recommended former skipper IM Vijayan for
Padma Shri, the country's fourth-highest
civilian award.
 Vijayan, a former India striker, scored 40
goals in 79 matches for India since he
made his debut in the early 90s.
 He was awarded the Arjuna award in 2003.
 He was also awarded the Indian 'Player of the
Year' in 1993, 1997 and 1999.
Deccan Development Society won an award
  Deccan Development Society has won the
Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation Award,
one of the most coveted environmental
awards in the world for the year 2020.
 It was announced by the Prince Albert II of
Monaco Foundation Vice President and
CEO, Olivier Wenden.
 It has been awarded “in recognition of the
work of DDS women to rehabilitate degraded
lands and promote biodiversity”.
Hima Das nominated for Khel Ratna Award
 Hima Das has been nominated for the Khel
Ratna by the state government of Assam.
 She is one of the youngest nominees for Khel
Ratna 2020.
 She is India's first track athlete to win a global
title at U20 World Championship in Tampere,
Finland in 2018.
 She will compete with Neeraj Chopra, Vinesh
Phogat, Manika Batra, Rani Rampal
and Rohit Sharma for country's highest
sporting honour.
ZestMoney awarded as technology pioneer
 India's first AI-driven digital financing
platform ZestMoney has been selected as
one of the World Economic
Forum's technology pioneers.
 It was founded by Lizzie Chapman, Priya
Sharma and Ashish Anantharaman in 2015.
 ZestMoney is built as a platform that can
meaningfully improve the lives of more than
300 million households in the country, who
currently have no access to credit cards.
Chef Angad Singh Rana won a competition
50
 Chef Angad Singh Rana has been
announced as the winner of New Zealand’s
first ‘Virtual’ Chef competition – the ‘Quality
NZ Culinary Cup’ held in India.
 Launched in response to the Covid19
outbreak to help keep chefs motivated and
connected during a challenging time, the
competition had more than 120 entries.
 He won the Cup along with INR 50,000 worth
of QualityNZ lamb and seafood.
Shobha Sekhar conferred with an honour
 Shobha Sekhar, founder of Kalakruthi, music
organisation in Australia, will be conferred the
Medal of the Order of Australia later in 2020.
 The Montreal-based artiste and lecturer,
University of Melbourne, figures in the
Queen’s Birthday 2020 Honours List.
 Tony Abbott, former Prime Minister of
Australia and Michael Clark, cricketer, are
among those nominated.
Rattan Lal got 2020 World Food Prize
 Eminent Indian-American soil scientist
Rattan Lal has been named the recipient of
the 2020 World Food Prize.
 He has been awarded for developing and
mainstreaming a soil-centric approach to
increasing food production that conserves
natural resources and mitigates climate
change.
 He will receive the 2.5 lakh dollar award that
honours his contribution throughout his
career spanning 5 decades.
Asian Peace Prize cancelled due to COVID-19
  A Philippine peace award has been cancelled
for 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
 This marks only the third disruption in six
decades for the annual prize regarded as an
Asian Nobel.
 The awards were also cancelled due to a
financial crisis in 1970 and a disastrous
earthquake in 1990.
 They are named after a popular Philippine
president who died in a 1957 plane crash.
Renjith Kumar honoured with “NASA Medal”
 Renjith Kumar, an aerospace entrepreneur
hailing from Kerala, has been bestowed with
NASA Distinguished Service Medal.
 He is only the second Indian after R K Chetty
Pandipati to win the coveted award.
 During his 30-year long association with
NASA, Kumar had helped redesign the
International Space Station (ISS).
India’s solar ferry shortlisted for an award
 India’s first solar-powered ferry, Aditya has
been shortlisted for the Gustave Trouvé
Award as the only entrant from Asia.
 Aditya has been an icon on the Vaikom-
Thavanakadavu route in Kerala for being the
first solar-powered ferry in the country.
 The ferry was built by Naval Solar and
Electric Boats, Kochi and is currently being
operated by the Kerala State Water
Transport Dept (KSWTD).
Javed Akhtar bagged Richard Dawkins Award
 Javed Akhtar has been named 2020's
recipient of the Richard Dawkins Award.
51
 Akhtar became the first Indian to be given the
honour for critical thinking, advancing human
progress and humanist values.
 Every year, the award recognises a
distinguished individual from the field of
science, scholarship, education, or
entertainment.
Gold rating for Trichy Railway Junction
 The Trichy Railway Junction has been given
the Gold rating by the Confederation of
Indian Industries (CII) for implementing
various environment-friendly measures.
 The rating was awarded in accordance with
the Green Railway Station Rating System.
 This system takes into consideration the
implementation of various national priorities
like water conservation, handling of waste,
etc.
Hyderabad airport received ACI recognition
 Hyderabad Airport has received the highest
Platinum Recognition in the Airports Council
International (ACI) Asia-Pacific Green
Airports Recognition 2020 in the 15-35 million
passengers per annum category.
 The airport has a large reservoir with a water-
holding capacity of 6,00,000 cubic meters,
which is sufficient to meet the considerable
quantum of airport’s requirement throughout
the year.
Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw won an award
 Biocon Ltd announced that its Executive
Chairperson Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw has
been named the EY World Entrepreneur of
the Year 2020 (WEOY).
  She has been honoured with the title from
among a distinguished list of 46 EOY country
award winners from 41 countries and
territories.
 In the award's 20-year history, Mazumdar-
Shaw is the first woman entrepreneur from
India and the third Indian to win it.
Delhi-based NGO won WHO award
 WHO has conferred the World No Tobacco
Day Award 2020 to the Socio-Economic and
Educational Development Society (SEEDS),
an NGO.
 It was awarded for its efforts to ban pan
masala, gutkha, e-cigarettes and hookah in
Bihar and Jharkhand.
 It has been working closely with the Union
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on
prevention and control of smokeless tobacco
use.
Neeraj Chopra nominated for Khel Ratna
 The Athletics Federation of India has
confirmed recommending star javelin thrower
Neeraj Chopra for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel
Ratna Award, country’s highest sporting
honour.
 Asian Games gold medallists Arpinder Singh
(triple jump) and Manjit Singh (800m) and
reigning Asian champion middle-distance
runner P. U. Chitra were recommended for
the Arjuna Award, besides Dutee Chand.
Indian writer won an award
 Indian writer Kritika Pandey has won the
Commonwealth Short Story Prize.
52
 She won it for 'The Great Indian Tee and
Snakes'.
 It talks about love in an age of hatred and
prejudice.
 The Commonwealth Short Story Prize is
awarded for the best unpublished short
fiction.
 Pandey had been previously nominated for
the Pushcart Prize.
Amit Panghal nominated for Khel Ratna
 The Boxing Federation of India has
nominated Amit Panghal and Vikas Krishan
for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award.
 Panghal (52kg), also an Asian Games
champion, has not won any national sports
award.
 Commonwealth and Asian Games gold-
medallist Krishan won the Arjuna award in
2012.
 The BFI has nominated trio of Lovlina
Borgohain, Simranjit Kaur and Manish
Kaushik for the Arjuna awards.
BCCI nominated Rohit Sharma for an award
 BCCI has nominated India vice-captain Rohit
Sharma for the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi Khel
Ratna Award 2020.
 Meanwhile, the board has also nominated
Ishant Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, and Deepti
Sharma for the Arjuna Award.
 Named the ICC ODI Cricketer of the Year for
2019, Rohit became the first player in the
history of the game to score five ODI
centuries in one edition of the World Cup.
TCS won two Stevie Awards
  Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has won
two Stevies in the 2020 American Business
Awards, the nation's premier business
awards program, for the 2019 TCS New York
City Marathon app.
 TCS received a Gold Stevie® in the category
Mobile Marketing Campaign of the Year and
a Silver Stevie in the category Best User
Experience.
 The app was created by TCS Interactive in
2019.
Quarraisha Abdool Karim won a French prize
 Acclaimed HIV researcher Professor
Quarraisha Abdool Karim, has been awarded
one of France's top science prizes.
 She won the €500 000 Christophe Merieux
Prize for her work for the Durban-based
Centre for the AIDS Programme of Research
in South Africa (Caprisa), which she heads.
 She is best known for a study that found that
a topical gel could stop many women
catching HIV.
Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award
 Women peacekeepers from India and Brazil
have jointly won the United Nations Military
Gender Advocate of the Year 2019 Award.
 Major Suman Gawani of the Indian Army and
Commander Carla Monteiro de Castro
Araujo, a Brazilian Naval officer, have been
chosen for the award.
 They received the award during an online
ceremony presided over by UN Secretary-
General António Guterres on 29 May 2020.
Mirabai Chanu nominated for Arjuna award
53
 Lifter Mirabai Chanu has been nominated for
the Arjuna award by the national federation.
 She is already a recipient of Khel Ratna,
country’s highest sporting honour.
 The Indian Weightlifting Federation (IWLF)
has nominated Chanu along with Ragala
Venkat Rahul and Punam Yadav.
 She was also awarded the Padma Shri, the
country’s fourth-highest civilian award.
Major Suman Gawani to be awarded
 Major Suman Gawani has been selected for
the prestigious United Nations Military
Gender Advocate of the Year Award (2019).
 She is an Indian Army officer and woman
peacekeeper who has served with the United
Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).
 She has been awarded for her outstanding
contribution to peacekeeping efforts in the
UNMISS.
IBM scientist bags inventor of the year award
 Indian-American inventor Rajiv Joshi has
bagged the prestigious Inventor of the Year
award.
 He was awarded in recognition of his
pioneering work in advancing the electronic
industry and improving artificial intelligence
capabilities.
 Dr Joshi, who is a master inventor with more
than 250 patented inventions in the US,
works at the IBM Thomson Watson Research
Center in New York.
Vice Admiral Vinay Badhwar won an award
 Vice Admiral Vinay Badhwar, the National
Hydrographer to the government of India, has
 been honoured with the 2019 Alexander
Dalrymple Award.
 He was awarded in recognition of his
outstanding contribution to Indian
hydrography and across the wider Indian
Ocean region.
 The award is named after the first
Hydrographer of the Admiralty, Alexander
Dalrymple.
Pakistan's journalist nominated for UK award
 Pakistan's first Sikh female journalist,
Manmeet Kaur, has been nominated for a
prestigious award in the UK.
 Manmeet Kaur has been selected as one of
the 100 most influential Sikh personalities
under 30 years of age around the world by
the UK based 'The Sikh Group'.
 The Sikh Group is a global organisation
which awards people belonging to the
community who serve the people in different
ways.
Naval awards presented
 Lieutenant Commander Akshay Kumar of the
Anti-Submarine Warfare School of the
Southern Naval Command in Kochi was
awarded the Vice Admiral G.M. Hiranandani
Memorial Rolling Trophy for the year 2020.
 He was awarded at the Maritime Warfare
Centre, Kochi on 13 May'20.
 The trophy was instituted in 2013 for the
officer performing best in tactics during the
year-long warfare specialisation course.
Anjum Moudgil nominated for Khel Ratna
54
 The National Rifle Association of India
(NRAI) has nominated Anjum Moudgil for the
Khel Ratna -- the country's highest sporting
honour.
 Jaspal Rana was recommended for the
Dronacharya Award for the second year in a
row.
 The NRAI has sent the names of champion
pistol shooters Saurabh Chaudhary and
Abhishek Verma for the prestigious Arjuna
Award.
Bengaluru airport voted best regional airport
 The Kempegowda International Airport,
Bengaluru has won SKYTRAX Award 2020
for Best Regional Airport in India and Central
Asia.
 The airport was voted by customers as the
Best Regional Airport in India & Central Asia
for the third time in four years at the 2020
World Airport Awards.
 The Awards are based on the World Airport
Survey questionnaires.
Deutsche Welle Freedom of Speech Award
 The Wire’s founding editor Siddharth
Varadarajan is among the 17 journalists from
14 countries who are being presented the
Deutsche Welle’s Freedom of Speech Award
2020.
 It is awarded annually to a person or initiative
that has shown outstanding commitment to
human rights and freedom of expression in
the media.
 The awards are being presented since the
year 2015.
Centre awarded 12 startups
  The government on 8 May 2020 gave awards
to 12 startups for finding innovative solutions
to address problems faced by the animal
husbandry and dairy sector.
 Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and
Dairying Giriraj Singh announced the winners
of 'Startup India-Animal Husbandry Grand
Challenge'.
 Under value-added products category, the
winner was Krushak Mitra Agro Services Pvt
Ltd.
IIT Bombay professor received an award
 Professor Saurabh Lodha from Electrical
Engineering, IIT Bombay, has received the
Young Career Award in Nano Science and
Technology for the year 2020.
 The award was instituted by the Department
of Science and Technology (DST).
 The award recognised his pioneering
contributions in the development of logic
transistor technologies beyond silicon and
nano-electronic devices.
World War II medal to Kim Jong-un
 Russian President Vladimir Putin has
honoured North Korean leader Kim Jong Un
with a commemorative World War II medal to
mark the 75th anniversary of victory over
Nazi Germany.
 The medal was awarded to Kim for the role
he played in safeguarding the memories of
Soviet soldiers who died in the territory of
North Korea.
3 Indian Photojournalists won Pulitzer
55
 Three photojournalists from Jammu and
Kashmir are among the 2020 Pulitzer Prize
winners.
 The awards were announced virtually on 4
May 2020 owing to the coronavirus outbreak.
 Mukhtar Khan, Yasin Dar and Channi Anand
- working with the Associated Press (AP) -
won the top honours for their work.
 Pulitzer Prizes, the most prestigious awards
in American journalism, are
being given since 1917.
Thomas Cook India won an award
 Thomas Cook (India) Ltd. has won the silver
award for Asia's Best Integrated Report at the
5th Asia Sustainability Reporting Awards
(ASRA).
 The ceremony hosted virtually on April 29,
2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, was
broadcast live from Singapore.
 The winners were selected from 461 entries
received from 16 countries in Asia.
Sania Mirza nominated for Fed Cup Heart Award
 Sania Mirza has become the first Indian to be
nominated for the Fed Cup Heart Award from
the Asia/Oceania zone along with
Indonesia's Priska Madelyn Nugroho.
 Sania had recently made a comeback to Fed
Cup after four years.
 The winners of the Heart Awards will be
determined by online voting by fans which will
go live on May 1 and will go on until May 8,
2020.
IIT-Madras Professor chosen for an award
  IIT Madras faculty Prof. T. Pradeep has been
chosen for the Nikkei Asia Prizes 2020 in
‘Science and Technology’ category for his
work in nanotechnology-based water
purification.
 He was honoured with the Padma Shri earlier
in 2020 and is credited with developing
nanotechnology-enabled water filters.
 They have helped to deliver clean water for
at a cost of just 2 paisa per litre in India.
Manipuri doctor conferred with an honour
 A doctor from Manipur has been conferred
the 'Order of Rising Sun' by the Japan
government.
 He has been honoured for promoting a better
understanding of Japan in India and
deepening ties between the two countries.
 The 'Order of the Rising Sun' is conferred on
persons with achievements in international
relations, promotion of Japanese culture,
environmental preservation, and welfare.
CSS Corp won an award
 CSS Corp has won the Outsource Partner of
the year 2020 award by the Business
Intelligence Group at their Excellence in
Customer Service Awards.
 The company was named as the winner at
Philadelphia on April 20, 2020.
 CSS Corp was awarded for emerging as the
premier outsourcing partner of the year.
 CSS Corp is a new-age IT services and
technology company.
J&K bagged three national awards
56
 Jammu and Kashmir UT has bagged
3 national awards under separate
categories.
 The awards were given under three different
categories -Nanaji Deshmukh Rashtriya
Gaurav Gram Sabha Puraskar (NDRGGSP),
Gram Panchayat Development Plans
(GPDP) Award, Child-friendly Gram
Panchayat Award by Ministry of Panchayati
Raj, Govt of India.
 The awards are aimed to strengthen the
institution of Gram Sabhas.
Adam Higginbotham won William E. Colby Award
 Adam Higginbotham's "Midnight in
Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the World's
Greatest Nuclear Disaster" has won a $5,000
prize.
 Higginbotham has received the William E.
Colby Award, given for an outstanding book
on military or intelligence history.
 The Colby award was established in 1999.
 Previous winners include Karl Marlantes'
novel "Matterhorn" and Dexter Filkins' "The
Forever War."
Algerian novel won a prize
 The Spartan Court by Abdelouahab Aissaoui
has won the 13th International Prize for
Arabic Fiction.
 Aissaoui is the first Algerian to win the prize.
 He won USD $50,000 (£39,950), as well as
funding for the English translation of the
novel.
 The prize is sponsored by the Dept of Culture
and Tourism for Abu Dhabi and is run with
support from the Booker Prize Foundation in
London.
Naveen Patnaik honoured by Peta India
 Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik has been
honoured by Peta India for his exemplary
nobility in allocating funds to feed animals.
 CM Patnaik will be awarded ‘Hero To Animals
Award’ for showing compassion towards
animals.
 He approved of Rs 54 lakhs from a relief fund
to feed animals of the community.
 The initiative undertaken to feed animals is
being conducted in five municipal
corporations.
Winners of the Adhunik Gram program
 Indigram Labs Foundation has announced
the winners of its smart village program -
'Adhunik Gram', an initiative to empower
agribusiness in rural India.
 The winner, IndusTill FarmeTech Pvt.
Ltd., won a cash prize of Rs 1 Lakh.
 The 1st runner up, Urdhvam Environmental
Technologies Pvt. Ltd., won Rs. 50,000 and
the 2nd runner up, Impagro farming solutions
Pvt. Ltd. won Rs. 30,000.
Zoya Akhtar honoured with an Award
 8th India International Film Tourism Conclave
(IIFTC) honoured filmmaker - Zoya Akhtar
with IIFTC Tourism Impact Award 2020.
 She was awarded for her outstanding
contribution to world tourism through her
cinema.
 Another winner at the event was, Tamil
Director, K. S. Ravikumar, who has directed
43 films with starring mega stars including
Sarath Kumar, Kamal Hassan and
Rajinikanth.
57
The Abel Prize Laureates 2020 announced
 The Abel Prize 2020 has been awarded to
Hillel Furstenberg and Gregory Margulis "for
pioneering the use of methods from
probability and dynamics in group theory,
number theory and combinatorics".
 The prize is one of the highest honours in
maths and carries a prize money of around
$400,000.
 The Prize recognises extraordinary
contributions to the sector of mathematics.
Chameli Devi Jain Award conferred
 The Chameli Devi Jain Award for an
Outstanding Woman Journalist was awarded
jointly to Arfa Khanum Sherwani, senior
editor, The Wire and Rohini Mohan, a
Bengaluru-based independent journalist.
 Rukmini S., an independent data-journalist
from Chennai, received an Honourable
Mention.
 The Media Foundation instituted
the Award in 1980, named after Chameli
Devi Jain, a legendary freedom fighter.
Rajesh Chaplot honoured
 Distinguished NRI businessman, Mr. Rajesh
Chaplot was honoured with the Highest
Civilian Award (Golden Jubilee Medal-
Civilians) of Uganda.
 The award was presented by President of
Uganda, Mr Yoweri Museveni in a ceremony
in Kampala.
 The accolade was bestowed upon him for his
excellence in the field of Business &
Commerce, Social Service and for fostering
better India – Uganda ties.
V Praveen Rao won MS Swaminathan Award Times of India Sports Awards (TOISA) 2019

 V Praveen Rao, Vice-Chancellor of Professor  World champion shuttler PV Sindhu

Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural
University (PJTSAU), has won the seventh
Dr MS Swaminathan Award for the period
2017-2019.
 He has been recognised for his contributions
in the fields of agricultural research, teaching,
extension and administration.
 The award will be conferred on him in June
2020.
Nari Shakti Puraskar conferred
Jadav Payeng won an Award
 President Ram Nath Kovind gave away the
Nari Shakti Puraskar to 15 women in
Rashtrapati Bhawan on the occasion of
International Women's Day on 8 March 2020.
 The Award is given annually to individuals, or
groups in recognition of their exceptional
work towards the cause of women
empowerment.
 Some of the awardees include 103-year-old
athlete Mann Kaur, and Environmentalist
Chami Murmu.
WTI Awards to be conferred on 8 March
was named Sportsperson of the Year at the
fourth Times of India Sports Awards (TOISA)
2019 in New Delhi on 5 March 2020.
 She also bagged the Unbreakable Spirit of
Sports award.
 Former India football captain Bhaichung
Bhutia was given the Lifetime Achievement
award.
 National badminton coach Pulella Gopichand
won the Mentor of the Year award.
 Environmental activist Jadav Payeng,
popularly called the 'Forest Man', was named
as the 128th Commonwealth Points of Light
Award winner.
 Queen Elizabeth II has honoured Payeng for
his exceptional voluntary service to
environmental conservation.
 The Points of Light Award recognises people
across the 53 Commonwealth nations for the
difference they are making in their
communities and beyond.

Lalit Kala Akademi's awards conferred

 NITI Aayog’s Women Entrepreneurship
Platform is organising the 4th edition of the
 Lalit Kala Akademi's 61st annual awards
Women Transforming India (WTI) awards on
were conferred by President Ram Nath
International Women’s Day, 8 March.
Kovind to 15 artistes at the Rashtrapati
 The WTI awards will recognize 30 finalists
Bhavan on 4 March 2020.
and 15 winners will be felicitated.
 Lalit Kala Akademi awards are given to
 On this occasion, the Women
recognise the outstanding work in the field of
Entrepreneurship Platform also completes
art.
two years since its inception.
 The awardees will be honoured with a
 Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will be the
plaque, a shawl and prize money of 1 lakh
Chief Guest.
rupees during the felicitation ceremony.

58
Dr Syama Prasad Mukherjee Award presented
 Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal
was presented with the Dr Syama Prasad
Mukherjee award 2020 for Politics at the 6th
India Ideas Conclave on Feb 28, 2020.
 The award was presented by External Affairs
Minister S Jaishankar and Speaker of
People’s Majlis of Maldives Mohamed
Nasheed.
 The award carries a citation, a specially
designed trophy and a cheque of Rs. 1 lakh.
Sreekar Prasad in the Limca book of records
 Veteran editor Sreekar Prasad has entered
the Limca Book of Records for ‘films edited in
most number of languages’.
 He has edited films in 17 languages,
including Tamil, English, Hindi, Telugu,
Malayalam, Kannada, Odia, Bengali,
Assamese, Marathi, etc.
 One of the most acclaimed editors of the
country, Sreekar Prasad holds eight National
Awards including a Special Jury Award.
Jadav Payeng honoured with an award
 Forest Man of India Jadav Payeng has been
awarded Swami Vivekananda Karmayogi
Award.
 The ceremony organized by My Home India
took place at the Constitution Club in New
Delhi on February 29, 2020.
 He was also honoured with a Padma Shri a
few years ago.
 He made his own identity by planting and
tendering trees on a sandbar of the
Brahmaputra River and turned it into a forest
over the years.
59
Gujarat Assembly to start ‘Best MLA’ award
 Gujarat Assembly will start giving ‘Best MLA’
award for MLAs.
 Speaker Rajendra Trivedi has made this
announcement in the State Assembly on 28
Feb 2020.
 The award will be in the lines of Outstanding
Parliamentarian Award given to Members of
Parliament and Best MLA awards being
given in some other states.
R Pokhriyal presents Chatra Vishwakarma Award
 Union HRD Minister Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal
Nishank presents Vishwakarma Awards
2019 to the winners in New Delhi.
 The valedictory function of Vishwakarma
Awards 2019 was organised in All India
Council for Technical Education.
 A total of 23 teams under various
subcategories were the recipient of the
Chatra Vishwakarma Awards (CVA).
Best marching contingent trophy to CISF
 Defence Minister Rajnath Singh presented
trophies of best marching contingents for
Republic Day Parade-2020.
 The Indian Air Force contingent was
adjudged the best among the three services.
 The Central Industrial Security Force was
named the best marching contingent among
the Central Armed Police Forces.
 The trophy was received by DG of CISF
Rajesh Ranjan and Deputy Commandant PS
Singh.
Dr.Niti receives SERB Women Excellence Award
  Dr.Niti Kumar receives the SERB Women
Excellence Award-2020 and it will be
presented by the President of India during
National Science Day Celebrations on
February 28, 2020.
 She is a Senior Scientist from Division of
Molecular Parasitology and Immunology,
CSIR-CDRI.
 This award is presented to women scientist
below 40 years of age who have received
recognition from national academies.
‘RailMadad’ won DARPG e-Governance Award
 RailMadad, the grievance redressal portal of
Indian Railways, has been awarded Silver
under Category II of the National e-
Governance Awards – ‘Excellence in
providing Citizen-centric Delivery.’
 This award was conferred during the 23rd
National Conference on e-Governance which
was held in Mumbai.
 RailMadad is the single portal for grievance,
inquiry, and assistance for all railway
customers.
Ahmer Khan won AFP’s Kate Webb Prize
 Ahmer Khan was named the winner of the
2019 Agence France-Presse Kate Webb
Prize on 20 Feb 2020.
 He was awarded for his coverage on the
ground in Kashmir during the lockdown of the
region.
 The award, named after one of AFP's finest
correspondents, recognises journalism by
locally hired reporters in Asia operating in
risky or difficult conditions.
Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw won an award
60
 Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, chairperson and MD,
Biocon, was named the EY Entrepreneur of
the Year 2019 at the 21st edition of the
awards.
 She will now represent India at the EY World
Entrepreneur of the Year Award (WEOY) in
Monte Carlo between June 4-6, 2020.
 Mazumdar-Shaw was named the winner by
an eight-member jury panel, led by Kotak
Mahindra Bank Managing Director and CEO
Uday Kotak.
Manoj Kumar felicitated
 Veteran actor Manoj Kumar has been
felicitated by the World Book of Records,
London with the WBR Golden Era of
Bollywood honour
 He has been honoured for being a legendary
actor and for his contribution to Indian
cinema.
 He was honoured with the Padma Shri by the
Government of India in 1992.
 He has been conferred the 47th Dadasaheb
Phalke Award for the year 2015.
BRICS CCI announced awards
 BRICS Chamber of Commerce & Industry
(BRICS CCI), organised the second Annual
Direct Tax Summit & Awards 2020 in
association with Achromic Point.
 Dharampal Satyapal Limited won the award
for Best In-House Direct Tax Team of the
Year.
 The day-long summit saw an eminent list of
delegates discussing recent trends and
issues in the field of International Tax.
P V Sindhu won Sportsperson of the Year award
  World champion shuttler P V Sindhu on 20
Feb 2020 won the ESPN's Female
Sportsperson of the Year award for a third
consecutive time.
 Young shooter Saurabh Chaudhary bagged
the honour in the male category.
 Sprinter Dutee Chand became the first
winner of the Courage award for being
inspirational both on and off the field.
 Koneru Humpy won the award for the
Comeback of the Year.
2011 world cup moment: Laureus best moment
 Sachin Tendulkar being carried on the
shoulders of his team mates following India's
world cup triumph in 2011 was voted as the
Laureus best sporting moment in the past 20
years.
 Former Australian captain Steve Waugh
presented the trophy to Tendulkar on 17 Feb
2020.
 First held in 2000, the Annual Laureus Sports
Awards honour the greatest and most
inspirational sporting triumphs of the year.
Filmfare Awards 2020- I
 The 65th Filmfare Awards were held on 15
Feb 2020 at Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium,
Guwahati, Assam.
 Gully Boy, directed by Zoya Akhtar, was
awarded the Best Film.
 Ranveer Singh recieved Best Actor in a
Leading Role for Gully Boy.
 Alia Bhatt was awarded Best Actress in a
Leading Role for Gully Boy.
 Zoya Akhtar was awarded Best Director for
Gully Boy.
61
Filmfare Awards 2020- II
 Critics Best Film was awarded to Article 15
and Sonchiriya.
 Critics Best Actor in a Leading Role was
awarded to Ayushmann Khurrana for Article
15.
 Critics Best Actress in a Leading Role was
awarded to Bhumi Pednekar and Taapsee
Pannu for Saand Ki Aankh.
 Best Playback Singer Male was awarded to
Arijit Singh, while Best Playback Singer
Female was awarded to Shilpa Rao.
Indian Achievers Awards 2020
 Renowned astrologer Dr Sohini Sastri, has
been graced with prestigious Indian
Achievers Award, wherein she was adjudged
the Best Astrologer of the Year.
 The Indian Achievers Awards are aimed at
identifying significant personalities for the
year 2020.
 The award was presented by Union HRD
Minister, Dr Ramesh Pokhriyal, in a
ceremony conducted at Vigyan Bhawan in
New Delhi.
Gita Sen won Dan David Prize 2020
 India's pioneering feminist scholar and
activist Gita Sen, has won the Dan David
Prize.
 She won the award for her expansive work in
the fields of population policies, reproductive
and sexual health, women's rights, poverty,
labour markets and global governance.
 The award carries a prize of US$ 1 million for
achievements having an outstanding
scientific, technological, or social impact.
Genome Valley Excellence Award announced
 BioAsia has announced the Genome Valley
Excellence Award.
 It will be bestowed upon Dr Carl H June and
Dr Vas Narasimhan for their contributions to
life sciences.
 Dr Carl H June will be awarded for his work
in immunotherapy.
 Dr Narasimhan has been selected for his
new vision in the pharmaceutical business in
digital technology and healthcare.
President's Colour to INS Shivaji
 President Ram Nath Kovind on 13 Feb 2020
presented 'President's Colour' to the INS
Shivaji at a ceremony in Lonavala.
 INS Shivaji was commissioned in 1945.
 It is now the premier technical training
establishment of the Indian Navy with the
motto Kar-masu Kaushalam.
 It imparts training in engineering discipline to
personnel of the Navy, Coast Guard, other
sister services and allied countries.
HP Governor decorated 58 personnel
 Himachal Pradesh Governor Bandaru
Dattatraya decorated 58 personnel with
medals at the 'Investiture Ceremony' held
in Shimla on 11 Feb 2020.
 The Governor awarded President Police
Medal for distinguished services to A.P.
Siddique, Ram Dev, Parshotam Chand and
Ashok Tiwari.
 Three Correctional Service Medals were
awarded for meritorious services to Sushil
Kumar, Hari Dutt and Pankaj Sharma.
62
Pullela Gopichand honoured with an award
 Pullela Gopichand has been given an
honourable mention at the International
Olympic Committee's (IOC) Coaches
Lifetime Achievement Awards 2019.
 He received the mention in the male category
of the awards.
 Gopichand has been previously honoured
with the Dronacharya award for coaching and
has also received Padma Bhushan - India's
third-highest civilian award.
Oscars 2020- I
 The 92nd Academy Awards ceremony was
held at Dolby Theatre in Los Angles, the
United States on 9 Feb 2020.
 Renee Zellweger won the best actress
for “Judy”.
 Joaquin Phoenix picked up the best actor
trophy for his performance in "Joker".
 Brad Pitt won the Best Supporting Actor
for "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood".
 Laura Dern won the best-supporting
actress for "Marriage Story".
Oscars 2020 - II
 'Parasite' was awarded the Best Picture.
 Bong Joon-ho won the Best Director for the
film Parasite.
 "(I'm Gonna) Love Me Again" from
Rocketman won in the Music category.
 Film '1917' won in the visual effects category.
 Roger Deakins won Best Cinematography
for '1917'.
 The Neighbors' Window won in the Live-
action short film category.
Veteran journalist Raikar awarded
 Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray
presented an award to senior journalist
Dinkar Keshav Raikar for his contribution to
journalism.
 Raikar, currently consulting editor of Lokmat
group, was conferred with the lifetime
achievement award instituted by the
Mantralaya and Vidhimandal Vartahar
Sangh.
 Raikar has completed 50 years in
journalism.
Assam district won an award
 The district of South Salmara Mankachar of
Assam has received a National Award for
implementation of the Pradhan Mantri Matru
Vandana Yojana scheme.
 It was awarded in the category of State/UT
having a population of more than one crore.
 Union Minister for Women and Child
Development Smriti Irani gave away the
award in a prize distribution meeting held in
New Delhi.
Manoj Das to receive Mystic Kalinga Award
 Celebrated Odia and English writer Manoj
Das will receive the Mystic Kalinga Literary
Award (Indian and Global Languages).
 He will also deliver the festival's keynote
address on "Divine Madness: Knowledge,
Ecstasy, and Transformation".
 He was recently conferred Padma Bhushan,
the country's third-highest civilian award for
his contribution in the field of literature and
education.
63
Adi Godrej to be awarded
 EY, the global professional services
organisation, will felicitate Adi Godrej,
chairman of the Godrej group, with the
Lifetime Achievement Award at its 21st
Entrepreneur of the Year - India (EOY) 2019
Awards.
 The consulting firm has also shortlisted 17
entrepreneurs as finalists for the awards,
from among 225 nominations.
 Together, the 17 finalists have combined
revenues of Rs 100,000 cr.
International Gandhi Awards for Leprosy
 The International Gandhi Awards for Leprosy
was awarded to Dr N.S. Dharmashaktu and
the Leprosy Mission Trust in New Delhi on 6
Feb 2020.
 The award was presented by President Ram
Nath Kovind.
 The International Gandhi Awards for Leprosy
commemorates the compassion that
Mahatma Gandhi possessed and his
services towards people with leprosy.
Shaktikanta Das named best central banker
 RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das has been
named the Central Banker of the Year, Asia-
Pacific 2020, by the Banker magazine, a unit
of Financial Times (FT).
 The award is given to central bankers who
have “best managed to stimulate growth and
stabilise their economy.”
 Jorgovanka Tabakovi, National Bank of
Serbia, was adjudged the winner as the
Global Central Banker of the Year.
Waheeda Rehman honoured
 Waheeda Rehman was conferred the
Madhya Pradesh government's National
Kishore Kumar Samman on 4 Feb 2020.
 The award, for the year 2018, was given to
Rehman at her Bandra residence in Mumbai
by Madhya Pradesh Culture Minister
Vijaylaxmi Sadho.
 The award carries a Rs 2 lakh cash prize and
citation.
Vinod Shukla bagged an award
 Noted Hindi poet-novelist Vinod Kumar
Shukla has bagged the inaugural
Mathrubhumi Book of the Year award for his
translated book “Blue Is Like Blue“.
 The stories in Blue Is Like Blue, translated
into English by Arvind Krishna Mehrotra and
Sara Rai, deal with common people and their
daily struggles.
 The award carries a cash prize of Rs 5 lakh,
a plaque, and a certificate.
DTC awarded for lowest accident rate
 Delhi's public transporter DTC has received
the Transport Minister's Road Safety Award
2018-19 for the "lowest" accident rate.
 A trophy and a cheque of ₹1 lakh was
presented to Delhi Transport Corporation
(DTC) MD Manoj Kumar by Transport
Minister Nitin Gadkari
 The award was presented at the 3rd
International Conference and Exhibition on
Public Transport Innovation (ICEPTI) 2020.
Vinesh, Mary Kom nominated for BBC awards
64
 Vinesh Phogat, P.V. Sindhu and M.C. Mary
Kom will compete for the inaugural BBC
Indian sportswoman of the year award after
being nominated for the honour.
 Dutee Chand and Manasi Joshi are the other
nominees for the award, the winner of which
will be announced on the 8 March 2020.
 The nominees were picked up by a panel of
40 eminent sports journalists.
War drama ''1917'' dominated BAFTA 2020
 British filmmaker Sam Mendes' war drama
"1917" ruled the 2020 edition of BAFTA
awards with seven wins, including best film,
best British film and best director.
 South Korean director Bong Joon-ho's
"Parasite" won two awards for original
screenplay and best foreign language film.
 The award for best adapted screenplay went
to writer-director Taika Waititi for "Jojo
Rabbit".
Madhya Pradesh bagged first position
 Madhya Pradesh has bagged the first
position for the implementation of Pradhan
Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana.
 Indore district has also bagged the first place
for better performance of the scheme.
 The main objective of the scheme is to
provide incentives of Rs 5000 for the loss of
wages of working women and to ensure their
proper rest and nutrition during pregnancy.
Yusuf Jameel won PEN Gauri Lankesh Award
 Kashmiri reporter Yusuf Jameel has received
the second edition of an award set up in the
memory of journalist Gauri Lankesh.
  The inaugural “PEN Gauri Lankesh Award for
Democratic Idealism” was given to cartoonist
P Mahamood in September 2018.
 Jameel was given the 2019-2020 award for
showing an “exemplary commitment to
professional integrity and the ideals of
democracy”.
Theatre artist Sanjana Kapoor to be honoured
 Well-known theatre person Sanjana Kapoor
received the prestigious French honour of
‘Chevalier dans lOrdre des Arts et des Lettres
(Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters).
 She was honoured for her outstanding
contribution to the field of theatre.
 French Minister of Culture Franck Riester,
conferred it on her on January 28, 2020 at the
French embassy in New Delhi.
Rani Rampal won Athlete of the Year' award
 Indian women's team captain Rani Rampal
became the first-ever hockey player to win
the prestigious 'World Games Athlete of the
Year' award.
 In 2019, India won the FIH Series Finals, and
Rani was named Player of the Tournament.
 Rani was also recently named among the
Padma Shri awardees.
 The World Games announced the winner on
30 Jan 2020.
 She has won with 1,99,477 votes.
Pavan Sukhdev won 2020 Tyler Prize
 Renowned Indian environmental economist
and UN Environment Programme (UNEP)
Goodwill Ambassador Pavan Sukhdev has
won the 2020 Tyler Prize.
65
 It is regarded as the "Nobel Prize for the
Environment".
 He was awarded for his groundbreaking
"green economy" work.
 Sukhdev will receive the award alongside
conservation biologist Gretchen Daily on 1
May 2020.
Honorary D.Lit to Abhijit Bandyopadhyay
 The Calcutta University conferred Honorary
D.Lit. Degree to Nobel Laureate Prof. Abhijit
Binayak Bandyopadhyay at its Annual
Convocation on 28 Jan 2020.
 The Vice-Chancellor of the University Ms
Sonali Chakraborty Banerjee presented the
Degree to him.
 Mr Monoranjan Bapari received Rabindra
Nath Tagore Memorial Medal for his
outstanding contribution in the field of
Literature.
Dr. N Kumar honoured with Harit Ratna Award
 Dr N Kumar, Vice-Chancellor of Tamil Nadu
Agricultural University, has been conferred
'Harit Ratna Award 2019'.
 It is organised by the All India Agricultural
Students Association.
 He was awarded for the dissemination of Rs
30-crore entrepreneurship project in agri-
business and also for motivating students
towards the agriculture sector in Tamil Nadu.
Assam tableau won first prize
 Defence Minister Rajnath Singh gave away
Best Tableaux awards for Republic Day
Parade, 2020 in New Delhi on 28 Jan 2020.
  Assam's tableau which portrayed the unique
craftsmanship and culture of the state has
been chosen as the best tableau.
 The tableaux of National Disaster Relief
Force and Jal Shakti Mission were chosen as
the best among the Ministries and
Departments.
The Hindu Group chairman N. Ram honoured
 Eminent journalist and chairman of The
Hindu Group of Publications N Ram has been
selected for the Kerala Media Academy's
national media award for his outstanding
contribution to journalism.
 The award carries a purse of Rs 1 lakh, a
citation and a memento.
 Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan would
present the award during a media conclave in
March 2020.
Sneha Pamneja won award
 Graphic designer Sneha Pamneja was
awarded Oxford Bookstore Book Cover Prize
at the ongoing Jaipur Literature Festival for
designing the cover of "Tiffin: Authentic
Recipes Celebrating India's Regional
Cuisine".
 She was felicitated with a trophy and a cash
prize of Rs 1 lakh.
 The book is written by Sonal Ved and
published by Roli books.
Jagbir Rana awarded Police Medal for Gallantry
 Railway Protection Force (RPF) constable
Jagbir Rana was awarded Police Medal for
Gallantry posthumously by President Ram
Nath Kovind on Republic Day.
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 He saved three children from being run over
by Hoshiarpur Express in April 2019.
 2 RPF and Railway Protection Security Force
(RPSF) men have also been awarded
President''s Police Medal for distinguished
services.
62nd Annual Grammy Awards- I
 The 62nd annual Grammy Awards took place
in Los Angeles on 26 Jan 2020.
 Album of the year was won by "When We All
Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?” by Billie
Eilish.
 Record of the year was won by “Bad Guy" by
Billie Eilish.
 Song of the year was won by “Bad Guy” by
Billie Eilish.
 Billie Eilish won in the new artist category.
62nd Annual Grammy Awards-II
 Pop Solo Performance was won by “Truth
Hurts” by Lizzo.
 Pop Vocal Album was won by “When We All
Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?” by Billie
Eilish.
 Comedy Album was won by “Sticks &
Stones” by Dave Chappelle.
 “Social Cues” by Cage the Elephant won in
the Rock Album category.
 “This Land” by Gary Clark Jr. won in the Rock
Song category.
Two Bangladeshis get Padma awards
 Bangladeshi Career Diplomat late Syed
Muazzem Ali and veteran museologist
Enamul Haq have been nominated for the
 Padma Awards by the government of India
for 2020.
 Syed Muazzem Ali has been honoured with
the Padma Bhushan award posthumously.
He was the High Commissioner of
Bangladesh to India.
 Renowned Museologist from Bangladesh
Enamul Haq has been nominated for the
Padma Shri award.
Two Sri Lankan women receive Padma awards
 Among the Padma Shri award recipients for
2020 are two women from Sri Lanka for their
pioneering contributions in their individual
fields and for strengthening India-Sri Lanka
ties.
 The awards have been conferred on Dr.
Vajira Chitrasena for her contribution to
dance and Late Prof. Indra Dassanayake for
her contribution to Hindi literature.
Government announced 141 Padma Awards
 The government announced 141 Padma
Awards for the year 2020 on the occasion of
71st Republic Day.
 The list comprises of 7 Padma Vibhushan, 16
Padma Bhusan and 118 Padma Shri awards.
 34 awardees are women and 18 foreigners.
 12 persons are awarded posthumously.
 Former Union Ministers George Fernandes,
Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley will be
awarded Padma Vibhushan posthumously.
104 personnel awarded Fire Service Medals
 A total of 104 personnel have been awarded
Fire Service Medals on the occasion of the
Republic Day 2020.
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 Of these, President’s Fire Service Medal for
Gallantry have been awarded to 13
personnel, Fire Service Medal for Gallantry
have been awarded to 29 personnel.
 49 personnel have also been awarded Home
Guard and Civil Defence Medals on this
occasion.
Jeevan Raksha Padak Series of Awards
 President Ram Nath Kovind has approved
the conferment of Jeevan Raksha Padak
Series of Awards 2019 on 54 persons.
 This includes Sarvottam Jeevan Raksha
Padak to seven, Uttam Jeevan Raksha
Padak to eight and Jeevan Raksha Padak to
39 persons.
 5 awards are posthumous.
 Jeevan Raksha Padak series of awards are
given to a person for meritorious act of
human nature in saving the life of a person.
DMMC and Munnan Singh jointly awarded
 Disaster Mitigation And Management Centre
(DMMC), Uttarakhand and IPS officer Kumar
Munnan Singh have been named as the
winners of Subhash Chandra Bose Aapda
Prabhandan Puruskar.
 The government has instituted the annual
award in the year 2019.
 The awards are announced every year on
January 23 on the birth anniversary of Netaji
Subhash Chandra Bose.
HealthSetGo CEO Priya Prakash won award
 Priya Prakash, the founder and CEO of
HealthSetGo, has won the Cisco Youth
Leadership Award for 2019.
  She was awarded for her school health
programme that aims at providing 360-
degree healthcare support to children.
 The prestigious award honours an individual
aged 18 - 30 who is bringing about a positive
change in the world by solving some of its
biggest global challenges.
Rashtriya Bal Puraskar awards conferred
 President Ram Nath Kovind presented the
Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar,
2020 on 22 Jan 2020.
 The Bal Puraskar is given by the govt every
year to recognize the exceptional
achievements of children in various fields.
 These fields are innovation, scholastic
achievements, social service, arts and
culture, sports and bravery.
26th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards-I
 Winners of the 26th Annual Screen Actors
Guild Awards have been announced.
 Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor
in a Drama Series was awarded to Jennifer
Aniston.
 Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in
a Drama Series was given to Peter Dinklage.
 Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in
a Comedy Series was given to Tony
Shalhoub.
26th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards-II
 The event was held on 19 Jan 2020 at the
Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, USA.
 The award honours the year’s biggest
achievements in TV and film.
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 The Screen Actors Guild Awards are
presented by SAG-AFTRA, which made its
debut in 1995.
 Sam Rockwell received Outstanding
Performance by a Male Actor in a Television
Movie or Miniseries.
Ramnath Goenka Awards presented
 Ramnath Goenka Excellence Awards were
presented on 20 Jan 2020.
 President Ram Nath Kovind gave away the
awards in New Delhi.
 The Awards, instituted in 2006, honour
journalists from print, broadcast and digital
media, who have shown extraordinary
strength of character and integrity while
reporting news accurately under dangerous
circumstances.
 It carries a cash prize of Rs 1 lakh.
‘Castle of Dreams’ got Best Film Award
 The Iranian film ‘Castle of Dreams’ directed
by Reza Mirakarimi won the Best Film Award
in Asian Competition section of the 18th
Dhaka International Film Festival.
 The festival concluded on 19 Jan 2020.
 In the Asian Competition segment, Sri
Lankan director Prasanna Vithanage’s film
‘Children of the Sun’ won Special Jury
Award.
 Best Actor Award went to Lousie Abuel fo film
‘Edward’.
Sakya Singha Sen awarded
 Sakya Singha Sen from National Chemical
Laboratory (CSIR-NCL) Pune, has been
 awarded "Merck Young Scientist Award
2019".
 Sen and his research team specializes in
main group chemistry and involves in the
synthesis of compounds with main group
element and their catalytic application.
 All the catalysts currently used mostly belong
to precious metals platinum, palladium,
iridium etc.
17th edition of Crossword Books Awards held
 The 17th Crossword Book Awards were held
in Mumbai on 14 Jan 2020.
 The award is the only forum in India that gives
a face to Indian authors and Indian literature.
 Twinkle Khanna won the popular Best Fiction
Award for her novel ‘Pyjamas Are Forgiving’.
 Jayasree Kalathil and N Prabhakaran
bagged the best book in the Indian Language
Translation category for Diary of a Malayali
Madman.
Rukmini S. won award for an article
 Chennai-based journalist Rukmini S. has
won the Likho Awards for Excellence in
Media 2019 for an article on attitudes towards
homosexuality in India.
 The awards were instituted by the Humsafar
Trust to recognize exemplary works by
journalists who have a fair representation of
the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender,
intersex and queer community (LGBTQ).
 Rukmini won in the print category.
Vasdev to be conferred with Saraswati Samman
 Eminent Sindhi writer Vasdev Mohi will be
conferred with 29th Saraswati Samman.
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 He has been selected for this prestigious
literary award for his short stories collection-
Chequebook.
 Saraswati Samman carries a cash award of
15 lakh rupees, a citation and a plaque.
 Mr Mohi has authored 25 books of poetry,
stories and translations.
 He has also received Sahitya Akademi
Award.
ICC Awards 2019 announced
 The International Cricket Council (ICC) has
announced the list of winners of its annual
awards of 2019.
 Ben Stokes won the prestigious Sir Garfield
Sobers Trophy for the ICC Player of the Year
after a stunning 2019.
 Indian opener Rohit Sharma was awarded
the ODI player of the year.
 Australia fast bowler Pat Cummins has been
named the Test Player of the Year.
President Kovind will present RNG award
 President Ram Nath Kovind will present
the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in
Journalism Awards in New Delhi on 20 Jan
2020.
 The awards are administered by the
Ramnath Goenka Memorial Foundation and
are now in their fourteenth year.
 This time, the awards have 11 categories
covering critical areas in print, digital and
electronic media, including business and
economics, political reportage, etc.
National Highway Excellence Awards 2019
  Road, Transport and Highway Minister, Nitin
Gadkari presented the National Highway
Excellence Awards 2019 in New Delhi on 14
Jan 2020.
 The award was instituted in the year 2018.
 It aims to recognize the well-performing
companies in the field of construction,
operations, maintenance, toll collection and
road safety on National Highways.
Jasprit Bumrah to receive Polly Umrigar Award
 Jasprit Bumrah will receive the prestigious
Polly Umrigar Award for his super
performance in international cricket in the
2018-19 season.
 He made his Test debut during India's tour of
South Africa in Jan 2018.
 Former India captains Krishnamachari
Srikkanth and Anjum Chopra will be
presented with the Col CK Nayudu Lifetime
Achievement Award and the BCCI Lifetime
Achievement Award for women.
Two Agricultural Scientists awarded
 Dr M S Swaminathan and Dr Gutta
Muniratnam were chosen as the 1st
recipients of Muppavarapu Venkaiah Naidu
National Award for Excellence and
Muppavarapu National Award for Social
Service, respectively.
 Prof. M.S. Swaminathan was awarded for his
contributions to the field of agriculture while
Dr G Muniratnam for his contribution in
improving quality of people’s lives through
social service.
Jasbinder bagged UK children's book award
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 India-born author Jasbinder Bilan has
bagged a coveted UK children's book award
for her debut novel 'Asha and the Spirit Bird'.
 Bilan will receive 5,000 pounds as the winner
of the award.
 Bilan's book was shortlisted from 144 entries
alongside 'Crossfire' by Malorie Blackman, 'In
the Shadow of Heroes' by Nicholas Bowling
and 'Furious Thing' by Jenny Downham.
Innovation Awards Presentation Ceremony
 Innovation Awards Presentation Ceremony
will be held on the 8th of January 2020.
 These awards will be conferred at the 12th
edition of Global Intellectual Property
Convention in New Delhi.
 Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and
former Railway Minister, Suresh Prabhu will
be the chief guests at the event.
 More than 500 delegates from about 25
countries will participate in 3 day conference.
Golden Globes Awards 2020
 The 77th annual Golden Globes
Awards were held on 5 Jan 2020 in Beverly
Hills, California.
 Best motion picture — Drama was won by
'1917'.
 Best performance by an actress in a motion
picture — Drama was won by Renee
Zellweger for "Judy".
 Best performance by an actor in a motion
picture — Drama was won by Joaquin
Phoenix for "Joker".
 Best Director was won by Sam Mendes for
'1917'.
Antarrashtriya Yoga Diwas Media Samman
  Information and Broadcasting Minister
Prakash Javadekar will confer the 1st
Antarrashtriya Yoga Diwas Media
Samman to 30 media houses in New Delhi
on 7 Jan 2020.
 The awards will be conferred under
3 categories.
 The award will consist of a special medal,
plaque, trophy and a citation.
 The awards were instituted in June 2019 to
mark the contribution of media in spreading
the message of Yoga.
Ronaldo bagged best men’s player title
 Cristiano Ronaldo was named the year’s best
men’s player at the Dubai Globe Soccer
Awards.
 Ronaldo has now earned the title for the sixth
time of its nine years of existence.
 The ‘best agent’ award was won by
Ronaldo’s agent, Jorge Mendes.
 England International Lucy Bronze was
crowned the year’s best female player.
Sucheta won Global child prodigy award 2020
 A Dubai-based Indian girl, who can sing in
120 languages, has won the 'Global Child
Prodigy Awards 2020'.
 Sucheta Satish, known as the Dubai Indian
High School's nightingale, won in the singing
category.
 The Global Child Prodigy Award is a platform
to celebrate children's talent and power in
different categories.
 The award ceremony was in New Delhi on 3
Jan 2020.
Swarna Jayanti Fellowships awarded
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 Swarna Jayanti Fellowships have been
awarded to 14 Scientists associated with
projects containing innovative research idea
and with the potential of making an impact on
R&D in the respective disciplines.
 The Swarna Jayanti Fellowships scheme
was instituted by Government of India to
commemorate India's fiftieth year of
independence.
Krishi Karman Awards presented
 PM Narendra Modi distributed Krishi Karman
Awards and Commendation Awards to states
at a public meeting in Tumkur Karnataka on
2 Jan 2020.
 He also gave away Agriculture Minister’s
Krishi Karman Awards for Progressive
Farmers.
 The event also witnessed the release of the
3rd instalment of PM Kisan (Pradhan Mantri
Kisan Samman Nidhi) of Rs 2000 for the
period December 2019-March 2020.
Sanjay Gupta to be honoured an award
 Sanjay Gupta, the editor-in-chief of ‘Jagran’
will be honored with “Lokmanya Tilak
National Journalism Award” for his great
contribution in the field of Journalism.
 The award will be conferred on him in Pune
on 4 Jan 2020, coinciding with the 139th
Foundation Day of 'Kesari' -- the newspaper
started by Lokmanya Tilak.
 The award consists a cash prize Rs 1 lakh
and a memento.
Indore continues to top Swachh Survekshan
 Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs,
Hardeep Singh Puri announced the results of
Swachh Survekshan League 2020, for first
and second Quarters in New Delhi on 31 Dec
2019.
 In the 10 lakh plus population category,
Indore secured first place in both the
quarters.
 Madhya Pradesh Capital Bhopal got the
second and Surat in Gujarat third spot in first
Quarter.

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