Current Affairs April 2017 - Awards

News 1 - Bob Dylan accepted the Nobel literature award

Bob Dylan has finally accepted his 2016 Nobel Prize for Literature. He received his medal at a private event in Stockholm. The academy handed Dylan the prize "for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition".

A man with multi talents, Dylan is an American songwriter, singer, painter, and writer. In May 2012, Dylan received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama. He has also received numerous awards including eleven Grammy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and an Academy Award.

News 2 - President Pranab Mukherjee presented Gallantry Awards

President Pranab Mukherjee presented Gallantry Awards and Distinguished Service Decorations. The awards included One Kirti Chakra, thirteen Shaurya Chakra, fifteen Param Vishist Seva Medal, one Bar to the Ati Vishist Seva Medal, two Uttam Yuddh Seva Medal and 27 Ati Vishisht Seva Medal.

Lance Havldar Prem Bahdur Resmi Magar was conferred on Kirti Chakra. Jammu and Kashmir Police Head Constable Sanjewan Singh, Naib Subedar Kankara V Subba Reddy and Naik Gawade Pandurang Mahadev of Rashtriya Rifles, Lt Col. Niranjan EK of NSG, Jammu and Kashmir was awarded Shaurya Chakra.

News 3 - The 64^th National Film Awards, 2016 announced

The 64^th National Film Awards 2016 were announced on Feature Films, Non Feature Films, Best Writing on Cinema and Most Film Friendly State Award. Some of the prominent winners in various categories for this year National Film Awards included −

News 4 - National Hindi Sevi Samman Awards announced

Central Hindi Institute Director N.K. Pandey announced name of 26 writers for Hindi Sevi Samman Awards, which will be presented by President Pranab Mukherjee in May 2017.

Around 14 scholars receive this award in seven different categories every year for their contribution in the field of Hindi language and literature. Awardees receive Rs. 5 lakh each, a citation and a shawl from President Pranab Mukherjee.

Some of the major awardees were:

• For Hindi journalism - Rahul Dev and Baldev Bhai

• Foreign Hindi writers - Fujii Takeshi (Japan) and Gabriela Nik (New York)

News 5 - President of India presented the Padma Awards

The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee presented 7 Padma Vibhushan, 7 Padma Bhushan and 75 Padma Shri awards.

• Padma Vibhushan − Sharad Pawar, Murli Manohar Joshi, Sunder Lal Patwah, P.A. Sangma, K.J.Yesudas, Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev and Udipi Ramachandra Rao.

• Padma Bhushan − Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, Devi Prasad Dwivedi, Tehemton Udwadia, Ratna Sundar Maharaj, Swami Niranjana, H.R.H. Princess Maha and Cho Ramaswamy.

• Padma Shri − Kailash Kher, Virat Kohli, Dipa Karmakar, Balbir Dutt etc.

News 6 - Himachal Pradesh won Krishi Karman Award 2015-16

Himachal Pradesh has won the Krishi Karman Award 2015-16 for commendable increase in food grains production. Himachal Pradesh has been selected for this award for the third time. The award carries a trophy, citation and cash prize of Rs. 1 crore.

During last five years, the total food grains production has increased from 14.94 lakh tone to 16.34 lakh tone. The Agriculture Department has extended technological inputs and services to the farmers, which resulted in increase in food grains production.

News 7 - Indian software engineer won top prize at the UN Challenge for an Open Source Tool

Rashik won the ‘Unite Ideas #UNGAViz Textual Analysis and Visualisation Challenge’ for his ‘Global Policy’. Rashik’s prototype will be made public and shared with United Nations bodies and member states. Rashik will also receive recognition from the Department of State and the Office of Information and Communications Technology.

The first runner-up position was awarded to Maximiliano Lopez, an IT consultant from Argentina, and the second runner-up was Thomas Fournaise, an information technology manager from France.

News 8 - RR Hanchinal honored with the M.S. Swaminathan Award

M.S. Swaminathan Award, given to the people for their contribution in the field of agriculture, was honored to Rayappa Ramappa Hanchinal, Chairperson of Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers Rights Authority. He was honored for his tremendous work in the field of crop improvement under very hot dry environments, seed production technology and intellectual protection rights in plant varieties.

M.S. Swaminathan Award is instituted by retired Indian Council for Agricultural Research Employees’ Association and Nuziveedu Seeds Limited. Winner receives cash prize of Rs. 2 lakh, a medal and citation.

News 9 - Environmental engineer Trupti Jain received ‘Cartier Women’s Initiative award’

46 years old Indian environmental engineer Trupti Jain was honored with prestigious ‘Cartier Women’s Initiative Award’ for providing women working on farms with water management solutions and protecting small farmers against droughts and flash floods. Six winners were selected for Asia-Pacific laureate from a pool of nearly 1,900 applicants from over 120 countries.

Winners were felicitated with USD 100,000 prize money as well as a year of mentoring. Trupti Jain and five other winners were from countries Latin America, North America, Europe, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Middle East and North Africa.

News 10 - Gururaja Bhat Award conferred on Historian A.V. Narasimha Murthi

Dr. Paduru Gururaja Bhat Memorial Award 2017 was conferred on historian and archaeologist A.V. Narasimha Murthi his contribution to Indian Archaeology, Ancient History and Numismatics. The award carries a citation and a cash prize of ₹ 50,000.

Mr Murthi is the Chairman, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan (BVB), Mysuru and former Head, Department of Ancient History and Archaeology, University of Mysore. Paduru Gururaja Bhat was a teacher, historian, and researcher par excellence.

News 11 - Chief of Naval staff honored Naval Gallantry and Non Gallantry Award winners

Naval Investiture Ceremony, an annual event for the Indian Navy, held at Command Parade Ground, Eastern Naval Command Visakhapatnam. Admiral Sunil Lanba PVSM, AVSM, ADC, Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS), conferred Gallantry and Non Gallantry Awards to their recipients on behalf of the President of India at an impressive ceremonial parade.

Vikash Kumar Narwal, Neeraj Kumar, Veer Singh Chief and Rakesh Kumar Hull Artificer-4 were awarded Nao Sena Medals (Gallantry) for their indomitable courage. Other awards presented included eight Nao Sena Medals for Devotion to Duty and16 Vishisht Seva Medals.

News 12 - Minister of State (IC) for Labour & Employment presented the NSCI Safety Awards

Minister of State (IC) for Labour & Employment presented the National Safety Council’s – ‘NSCI Safety Awards’ for the year 2016 in New Delhi.

In the Manufacturing Sector – IOCL – Digboi Refinery; National Fertilizers Ltd, Panipat and NPCIL, Kaiga Generating Station 3 & 4, Kaiga, Karnataka under Group A, Group B and Group C respectively.

In the Construction Sector – L&T Ltd., Rawatbhata, Chittorgarh for NPCIL Atomic Power Project, Rajasthan and Godrej & Boyce Mfg. Co. Ltd. and in the MSME Sector – Electricals & Electronics, Thane, Maharashtra have won Sarva Shreshtha Suraksha Puraskar for the year 2016.

News 13 - Giuseppina (Giusi) Nicolini won the UNESCO Peace Prize

Giuseppina (Giusi) Nicolini won the UNESCO Peace Prize for her commitment to saving the lives of migrants and refugees. She is the mayor of the Italian island of Lampedusa.

Ms. Nicolini was honored for her effort that saved thousands who fled across the Mediterranean often on unseaworthy boats to find a better and peaceful life. According to the International Organization for Migration, 649 migrants died or went missing in the Mediterranean in the first three months of 2017 alone.

News 14 - GNFC wins Golden Peacock Award

The Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilisers & Chemicals Limited (GNFC) won the prestigious Golden Peacock Award in the category of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for pioneering a cashless township transformation model. The case study presented in the awards entry and ceremony focussed on the Neem Project.

The Golden Peacock Awards were established by the Institute of Directors (IOD) in India in 1991. They are considered as a benchmark of corporate excellence worldwide.

News 15 - Moushumi Chatterjee honored with the BFJA Lifetime Achievement Award

Veteran actor Moushumi Chatterjee was honored with the lifetime achievement award at the 80^th Bengal Film Journalists’ Association (BFJA) awards. Ashish Vidyarthi was honored for his contribution to Indian Cinema.

Other winners in various categories:

• Best Actor Award: Prosenjit Chatterjee for "Sankhachil" along with Chiranjeet Chakraborty for “Chotushkone”

• Best Actress Award: Rituparna Sengupta for "Rajkahini" along with Paoli Dam for “Natoker Moto”

News 16 - 'Newton' won the best film honor at the Hong Kong International Film Festival

Bollywood movie ‘Newton’ has won the Jury Prize for Best Film at the Hong Kong International Film Festival. The Rajkummar Rao-starrer movie is directed by Amit Masurkar. It is a political black comedy, which revolves around a clerk placed on election duty in a conflict-ridden area of Chhattisgarh.

The film had also won the International Federation of Art Cinemas (CICAE) award for the Forum section at its world premiere at Berlinale during the 67^th Berlin Film Festival. The film also went to 16^th Annual Tribeca Film Festival.

News 17 - Shri Kasinadhuni Viswanath to be conferred the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for the year 2016

Renowned Film Director & Actor Shri Kasinadhuni Viswanath was conferred the 48^th Dadasaheb Phalke Award for the year 2016. The Information & Broadcasting Minister, Shri M Venkaiah Naidu approved the recommendation of the Dadasaheb Phalke Award committee.

This Award is conferred by the Government of India for outstanding contribution to the growth and development of Indian Cinema. The Award consists of a Swarn Kamal (Golden Lotus), a cash prize of Rs. 10 lakhs and a shawl.

News 18 - President of India presented the CII president’s Award

The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee presented CII President’s Award for Lifetime Achievement to Mr. Rahul Bajaj and CII foundation Woman Exemplar Award in New Delhi. CII Foundation Woman Exemplar Award in 2005 is a welcome initiative to promote women’s empowerment at the community level by discovering and recognizing those who have, against all odds, excelled and contributed significantly to the development process in India.

An event was organized by a dedicated CII Foundation.

News 19 - Dileep K Nair won the Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar International Foundation Award

Dileep K Nair has won the Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar International Foundation Kerala State award for the year 2016-17. He is currently the Chancellor of the North East Frontier Technical University (NEFTU) in Arunachal Pradesh and is the youngest ever chancellor of any university in the nation.

Nair started his career at the age of 24 and has around 12 years of experience in various Educational Projects. He is also the founder of The Automobile Society (India) and The Engineer's Outlook Magazine.

News 20 - Environmental activist Prafulla Samantara selected for Goldman Environmental Prize from the Asia region

Top environmental activist Prafulla Samantara has been selected for Goldman Environmental Prize or Green Nobel from Asia region for leading a historic 12-year legal battle that affirmed the indigenous Dongria Kondh’s land rights and protected the Niyamgiri hills from a massive, open-pit aluminum ore mine.

The winners of 2017:

• Wendy Bowman, Australia
• Rodrigue Mugaruka Katembo, Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Mark Lopez, United States
• Uroš Macerl, Slovenia
• Prafulla Samantara, India
• Rodrigo Tot, Guatemala

The Goldman Environmental Prize is a prize awarded annually to grassroots environmental activists, one from each of the world's six geographic regions:Africa, Asia, Europe, Islands and Island Nations, North America, and South and Central America.

News 21 - The 52^nd Jnanpith award conferred in New Delhi

President Pranab Mukherjee conferred the 52^nd Jnanpith Award on eminent Bengali poet Professor Sankha Ghosh at a function in New Delhi. He was awarded for his outstanding contribution in the field of literature. Adim lata - gulmomay, Murkho Baro, Samajik Noy, Baborer Prarthana are some of his classic creations.

Professor Ghosh was awarded with the Sahitya Akademi in the year 1977 and 1999. He was also honored with Padma Bhushan in 2011.