Current Affairs April 2019 - Awards

1 - Dr Rajendra Joshi Conferred With Pravasi Bharatiya Samman

NRI scientist Dr Rajendra Joshi conferred with the Pravasi Bhartiya Samman Award by the President of India Ram Nath Kovind.

The Indian Ambassador to Switzerland Sibi George handed over the award citation signed by the President of India to Dr Joshi at his residence in Switzerland.

2 - Lewis Hamilton won Bahrain Grand Prix 2019

Lewis Hamilton won Bahrain Grand Prix 2019 title

He defeated Valtteri Bottas of Finland who secured the second position.

Charles Leclerc was finished with the third position and becoming Ferrari’s youngest ever race winner at the age of 21.

About Bahrain Grand Prix 2019

• First race took place at the Bahrain International Circuit on 4 April 2004.

• Number of times held: 15

• First held:2004

• Most wins (drivers): Germany Sebastian Vettel

• Most wins (constructors): Italy Ferrari

3 - Vikram Patel receives John Dirks Canada Gairdner Global Health Award

Vikram Patel, a psychiatrist and professor of global health at Harvard Medical School, has won the prestigious John Dirks Canada Gairdner Global Health Award.

Mr.Patel has led research generating knowledge on the burden and determinants of mental health problems in low and middle-income countries and pioneered approaches which utilise community resources for the prevention and treatment of mental health problems in India with global impact. Laureates received a $100,000 cash honorarium and will be formally presented with their awards on October 24, 2019, at the annual Canada Gairdner Awards Gala in Toronto.

Canada Gairdner Global Health Award

The John Dirks Canada Gairdner Global Health Award recognizes the world’s top scientists who have made outstanding achievements in Global Health Research. Since its inception, the Global Health Award has grown significantly to become one of the world’s most prestigious awards recognizing excellence in global health research.

4 - PM Modi awarded UAE's highest civilian honor Zayed medal

President of the UAE Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan honoured Prime Minister Narendra Modi with the prestigious Zayed Medal for boosting relations between the Emirates and India.

The 'Order of Zayed' is the highest civil decoration instituted by the UAE. It consists of a collar cantered by a medallion bearing the name 'Zayed' - the founding father of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

In the past, this award has been conferred to Russian President Vladimir Putin, then US President George W Bush, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Chinese President Xi Jinping and the UK's Queen Elizabeth II.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has visited UAE twice in three years.

The Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi also visited India in 2017.

5 - Shah Rukh Khan conferred with Honorary Doctorate from University of Law, London

Eminent Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan conferred with an honorary doctorate in Philanthropy by the University of Law, London.

He was awarded this for his efforts to give back to society.

He has received the merit during a graduation ceremony which had more than 350 students in attendance.

6 - Dr. Sohini Sastri honoured with D. Litt by National American University

Indian Astrologer Dr Sohini Sastri has been honoured with 'D. Litt in Astrology' by National American University, USA.

Dr Sohini Sastri is one of the most trusted names in Astrology and is known for her services over the years.

She is also a receipt of 'Champions of Change Award' which was given to her by Honourable Vice-President of India, M. Venkaiah Naidu at Vigyan Bhawan, Delhi recently.

Other prominent personalities who were also awarded Doctorates at the same event includes Bollywood singer Mohit Chauhan and choreographer Terence Lewis.

7 - Tata Steel won 'Global Slag Company of the Year' award

The award has been presented to Tata Steel for its innovative practices in development of new applications for Steel by-products (Slag).

The award was given at the 14^th Global Slag Conference and Exhibition 2019, held recently in Aachen, Germany.

The conference is one of the largest global annual slag event, attended by major steelmakers, steel mill service providers & associated companies.

About Tata Steel

• Formerly called: Tata Iron and Steel Company Limited

• It is a subsidiary of the Tata Group and is an Indian multinational steel-making company.

• Founded: 25 August 1907, Jamshedpur

• Headquarters: Mumbai

• Founder: Jamsetji Tata

8 - Presidents Certificate of Honour and Maharshi Badrayan Vyas Samman Awards Conferred

Vice President Venkaiah Naidu conferred President’s Certificate of Honour and Maharshi Badrayan Vyas Samman Awards at New Delhi.

The award of the Certificate of Honour was introduced in the year 1958 to honour the scholars of Sanskrit, Arabic and Persian Languages.

Maharshi Badrayan Vyas Samman Distinction is conferred on persons in recognition of their substantial contribution in the field of Sanskrit, Persian, Arabic, Pali, Prakrit, Classical Odiya, Classical Kannada, Classical Telugu and Classical Malayalam.

9 - AIMA Managing India Awards 2019 to Azim Premji, Mahendra Mohan Gupta and 9 others

The All India Management Association (AIMA) Managing India Awards 2019 was held on April 08, 2019 at Hotel Taj Palace, New Delhi.

Mahendra Mohan Gupta, Chairman & Managing Director, Jagran Prakashan Ltd and Editorial Director, Dainik Jagran, was awarded under Lifetime Contribution to Media category.

Complete Winners List

• Lifetime Contribution Award: Azim H Premji (Chairman, Wipro Ltd)

• Outstanding Institution Builder: Prathap C Reddy (Founder-Chairman, Apollo Hospitals Group)

• Corporate Citizen Award: Devi Prasad Shetty (Founder & Chairman Narayana Hrudalaya)

• Entrepreneur of the year: Sanjiv Bajaj (Managing Director, Bajaj Finserv Ltd)

• Business Leader of the Year: Sanjiv Mehta (Chairman & Managing Director, Hindustan Unilever Ltd)

• Lifetime Contribution to Media: Mahendra Mohan Gupta (Chairman & Managing Director, Jagran Prakashan Ltd and Editorial Director, Dainik Jagran)

• Outstanding Contribution to Media: Uday Shankar (President, 21^st Century Fox, Asia and Chairman and CEO, Star India)

• Indian MNC of the Year: Pawan Goenka (Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd, Managing Director and Member of the Group Executive Board)

• MNC in India of the Year: T Krishnakumar (Coca-Cola India, President & CEO, India & Southwest Asia)

• Outstanding PSU of the Year: Sanjiv Singh (Chairman, Indian Oil Corporation Ltd)

• Director of the Year: Rajkumar Hirani (Director, Producer, Writer & Editor - Sanju Movie

10 - Dost Education won the Next Billion Edtech Prize

India's education technology startup 'Dost Education' has bagged a $25,000 Next Billion Edtech Prize 2019. Two other startups, Ubongo (Tanzania) and PraxiLabs (Egypt), also won the award.

Dost Education was awarded for its ability to empower parents to take charge of their child's early education by creating short, friendly audio content that is sent to them via their mobile phones. Because of this app low-income families need no longer send their children to primary school behind and without a chance to catch up.

Next Billion Edtech Prize 2019

• Next Billion Edtech Prize 2019 is awarded by the UK-based Varkey Foundation

• The award recognises the most innovative technology destined to have a radical impact on education in low income and emerging world countries

• The award also highlights technologies potential to tackle the problems that have proven too difficult for successive generations of politicians to solve

11 - Namami Gange got Public Water Agency of the Year award at Global Water Summit

India's flagship programme, National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) or Namami Gange was felicitated with ‘Public Water Agency of the Year’ award by Global Water Intelligence at the Global Water Summit in London.

Namami Gange Mission

• The Namami Gange programme is an integrated mission for Ganga rejuvenation, and approved by the Union Government in June 2014 with budget outlay of Rs.20,000 Crore.

• Kanpur has been the hotspot of major pollution on the Ganga stem.

• In Namami Gange programme, a total of 289 projects have so far been sanctioned at a cost of Rs 28,377 crore out of which 87 projects have been completed.

Global Water Summit

• Global Water Summit is the major business conference for the water industry worldwide.

• Global Water Awards recognise excellence across the entire international water industry and reward those initiatives in the water, wastewater, and desalination sectors which bring remarkable improvements in the lives of people.

12 - Russia honours PM Narendra Modi with its highest civilian award

Prime Minister Narendra Modi honoured with Russia’s highest state decoration, the Order of St Andrew the Apostle.

The award has been given to PM Modi for “exceptional services in promoting a special and privileged strategic partnership between the Russian Federation and the Republic of India and friendly relations between the Russian and Indian peoples.

This is the seventh award conferred on PM Modi by a foreign country.

The award was established at the end of the 17^th century by Tsar Peter I in honour of Apostle Andrew the First-Called.

The award has been given to only 18 people, including weapons designer Mikhail Kalashnikov; writers Alexander Solzhenitsyn, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy II; doctors Valery Shumakov and Boris Petrovsky; singers Lyudmila Zykina and Irina Arkhipova; choreographer Yuri Grigorovich; and former Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev.

13 - Alice G. Vaidyan awarded the Freedom of the City of London

Alice G. Vaidyan, Chairman and Managing Director of the General Insurance Corporation (GIC) of India, India’s reinsurance major awarded the Freedom of the City of London in recognition of her work to promote insurance ties between India and the UK.

Alice G. Vaidyan holds post graduate degree in English literature trained at Harvard Business School, Boston, USA.

She is a Fellow of the Insurance Institute of India.

Alice G. Vaidyan was the first lady officer to assume the post of Chairman-cum-Managing Director of General Insurance Corporation of India.

She was also the first lady chairman cum managing director of General Insurance Corporation of India.

Freedom of the City is an honour bestowed by a City of London Corporation upon a valued member of the community, or upon a visiting celebrity or dignitary.

14 - Two schemes of West Bengal won WSIS awards

Two schemes, Utkarsh Bangla and Sabooj Sathi, of the West Bengal government for skill development and distribution of bicycles to students have won the prestigious World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) awards of the United Nations.

The announcement was made by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

Utkarsh Bangla Scheme

The scheme is to give vocational training to school dropouts by providing training ranging from 400 to 1200 hours free of charge.

Under this scheme, beneficiaries will be trained in driving, tailoring, repairing television and other electronic equipment's, beautician courses, etc.

Sabooj Sathi scheme

The objective of the scheme is to empower the students, especially the girls and reduce drop-outs in higher education.

Under the scheme, 34.94 lakh bicycles are already procured and distributed to target group students of class 9 to 12.

About West Bengal

• Capital: Kolkata

• Chief Minister: Mamata Banerjee

• Governor: Keshari Nath Tripathi

15 - UNESCO/Guillermo Cano Press Freedom Prize 2019 announced

The UNESCO/Guillermo Cano Press Freedom Prize 2019 has been awarded to Reuters reporters Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo. The prize carries a reward of $25,000 Prize. It is funded by the Guillermo Cano Isaza Foundation (Colombia), the Helsingin Sanomat Foundation (Finland), and The Namibia Media Trust.

The award recognises their exceptional courage in reporting on alleged human rights violations in Myanmar's state of Rakhine. Both Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo's documentary on the taboo topic regarding crimes committed against Rohingyas landed them behind the bars. The award paid a tribute to their courage, resistance and commitment to freedom of expression.

UNESCO/Guillermo Cano Press Freedom Prize

The award was established in 1997. The Prize is named after Guillermo Cano Isaza, the Colombian journalist who was assassinated in front of the offices of his newspaper El Espectador in Bogota, Colombia, on 17 December 1986.

It is an initiative of UNESCO's Executive Board. It honours a person, organization that has made an outstanding contribution to the defence and, or promotion of press freedom anywhere in the world in the face of danger.

16 - Telugu Poet K Siva Reddy Selected For Prestigious Saraswati Samman 2018

Telugu poet K Siva Reddy selected for the prestigious Saraswati Samman 2018 for his collection of poetry titled Pakkaki Ottigilite.

The award carries a cash prize of 15 lakh rupees, a citation and a plaque.

About Saraswati Samman 2018 Awards

The Saraswati Samman is an annual award for outstanding prose or poetry literary works in any 22 Indian languages listed in Schedule VIII of the Constitution of India.

It is named after an Indian goddess of learning and is considered to be among the highest literary awards in India.

Currently held by Sitanshu Yashaschandra.

17 - Dr. A K Singh honoured with 2019 Lifetime Achievement Award

Dr. A K Singh, director at Life Sciences, DRDO has been honoured with Lifetime Achievement Award 2019 during 4^th APJ Abdul Kalam Innovation Conclave at Chandigarh University, Mohali.

He has made notable contributions in Internal Decorporation of Fission Produced Radionuclides and Infection Imaging. He also discovered a Diagnobact Kit to detect the infectious lesion. He also introduced Pharmacosyntigraphy, i.e. application of nuclear medicine imaging in drug research.

4^th Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Innovation Conclave

For Best Innovative Project Awards 2019, 965 innovative projects competed against each other. Pankaj Sharma bagged the first position and Best Innovation of the Year Award 2019, for Smart Trolley Bag project.

Pratul and Abhishek shared second place. Pratul acquired award for Automatic Toilet Cleaner project. Abhishek won for prototype model for Accident Management System respectively.

Third prize was jointly won by Vaibhav and Daniyal for treatment of textile affluent and plastic with bio-mass to help in controlling water and air pollution.

Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)

• Formed on: 1958

• Headquarters: New Delhi

• Chairman: Dr.G.Satheesh Reddy

• Minister responsible: Nirmala Sitharaman

• Parent: Ministry of Defence

• It is charged with the military's research and development

18 - Digital Sukoon founder, Sudhanshu Kumar received Best Digital Agency award

International Human Rights Council at Hotel Sea Princess Juhu Mumbai honoured digital Sukoon founder, Sudhanshu Kumar with the Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Nobel Award.

Among the awardee, Digital Sukoon was the Best Digital Agency of the Year 2019 to receive the award.

Yogesh Lakhani of Bright Outdoor Media, Actor Johnny Lever, Jasleen Matharu also received awards in various other categories.

19 - Pulitzer Prize for New York Times and Wall Street Journal

The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal were awarded Pulitzer Prizes for their separate investigations of President Donald Trump and his family.

The Times won the prestigious journalism award for a probe of the Trump family’s finances that debunked his claims of self-made wealth and revealed a business empire riddled with tax dodges.

The Associated Press won a Pulitzer for international reporting for its coverage of the war in Yemen. Reuters was honoured for international reporting for its coverage of atrocities committed against Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar.

20 - Crying Girl photo by John Moore won the World Press Photo of the Year Award

Veteran Getty Images photographer John Moore’s photograph of a young girl Yanela Sanchez crying as she and her mother are taken into custody by US border officials in McAllen, Texas, USA, after crossing into the US from Mexico won the World Press Photo of the Year and the first prize in the Spot News, Singles, category.

He received €10,000 (£8,600) as prize amount.

Dutch-Swedish photographer Pieter Ten Hoopen won the “World Press Photo Story of the Year Award” for the image of 2018 mass-migrant caravan to the US border.

For 62 years, the World Press Photo Foundation has recognized the best contributions to visual journalism by professional photographers through its international World Press Photo Contest.

This year's winners were selected from 78,801 images entered by 4,738 photographers world-wide.

21 - Three teams from India awarded in NASAs Human Exploration Rover Challenge

NASA has awarded three teams from India as part its annual Human Exploration Rover Challenge, which invites high school and college students to build and test roving vehicles for future missions to the Moon, Mars and beyond. Nearly 100 teams took part in the competition.

The team from KIET Group of Institutions in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, won the “AIAA Neil Armstrong Best Design Award”.

The Mukesh Patel School of Technology Management and Engineering from Mumbai, Maharashtra, won the “Frank Joe Sexton Memorial Pit Crew Award”.

A team from Lovely Professional University in Phagwara, Punjab, won the “STEM Engagement Award”.

NASA Human Exploration Rover Challenge

The NASA Human Exploration Rover Challenge is to encourage research and development of new technology for future mission planning and crewed space missions to other worlds. The NASA Human Exploration Rover Challenge prior to 2014 referred to as the Great Moonbuggy Race. It is an annual competition for high school and college students to design, build, and race human-powered, collapsible vehicles over simulated lunar/Martian terrain. The competition was first held in 1994. NASA sponsors the competition since 1996, the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, hosts.

22 - Cipla chairman Hamied receives UK Royal Society honour

Prominent scientist and businessman Yusuf Hamied is among a host of Indian-origin experts honoured in the 2019 list of new fellows of the UK's Royal Society.

He is known for his effort to produce low-cost drugs to treat diabetes, cancer and other diseases.

The Royal Society is an independent scientific academy of the UK and the Commonwealth, dedicated to promoting excellence in science.

His honorary fellowship of the world's oldest scientific academy came alongside 51 new fellows and 10 new foreign members as part of the 2019 cohort.

Other Indian scientists elected fellows were Gurdyal Besra, Manjul Bhargava, Anant Parekh, Akshay Venkatesh, Gagandeep Kang who has become the first Indian woman scientist to be selected as a fellow of the UK’s Royal Society.

23 - Malayalam film Bhayanakam won best cinematography at 2019 Beijing International Film Festival

Malayalam film Bhayanakam (Fear) directed by Jayaraj won the best cinematography award at the Beijing International Film Festival.

The cinematography was done by Nikihil S Praveen.

The film had also won the best cinematography award at the 65^th National Film Awards.

The film portrays the visits of first World War veteran to a small village in the backwaters of Kerala's Kuttanand as a postman during the World War-II. He shares with the families the good and bad news of the soldiers who took part in the war.

Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Zero was screened at the end of the festival.

The festival also screened five Indian films, including Satyajit Ray's "Pather Panchali", "Apur Sansar", "Aparajito", the romantic comedy "Love Per Square Foot", the 2018 Indian romantic comedy and the thriller "Ittefaq".

24 - KAU IPR Cell Won The National IP Award 2019

Intellectual Property Rights Cell (IPR Cell) of Kerala Agricultural University (KAU)

The award comprises of INR 1 lakh, citation and memento.

About World IP Day

World IP Day is observed on April 26.

The award constituted by the Indian Intellectual Property Office under the Union Ministry of Industry and Commerce

It is conferred on persons and organisations working in the field of patents, trademarks, and Geographical Indications.

25 - Swacchta Pakhwada Awards 2019 awarded to All India Radio

All India Radio, Publication Division and Children’s Film Society of India were given Swacchta Pakhwada Awards-2019 in New Delhi.

Secretary in the Information and Broadcasting Ministry Amit Khare gave away the awards.

Director General of All India Radio F. Sheheryar and Director General (News) Ms. Ira Joshi received the Award for All India Radio.

Press Council of India, Press Information Bureau and BECIL were also mentioned during the award ceremony for their efforts during the Swacchta Pakhwada.

Swachhata Pakhwada

Swachhata Pakhwada started in April 2016 with the objective of bringing a fortnight of intense focus on the issues and practices of Swachhata by engaging GOI Ministries/Departments in their jurisdictions.

26 - Benny Antony won National Intellectual Property Award

Benny Antony, Joint Managing Director, the Kochi-based Arjuna Natural Ltd, has been conferred with the National Intellectual Property Award for 2019 in the category of Top Individual for Patents and Commercialization.

He is the inventor of BCM-95, the world’s leading patented turmeric extract formulation, with over 80 international patents to his credit.

Antony was also conferred with the ‘WIPO Medal for Inventors’ jointly by Intellectual Property Office India and the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO).

National Intellectual Property (IP) awards

The Indian Intellectual Property Office bestows National Intellectual Property (IP) awards to outstanding innovators, organisations and companies in the field of patents, designs, trademarks and geographical indications on the occasion of World IP Day every year.

Both the awards will be given away on April 26 at a function jointly organised by the Indian Intellectual Property Office and the Confederation of Indian Chamber of Commerce & Industry (CII) in New Delhi.

27 - Rana Dasgupta received the 2019 Rabindranath Tagore Literary Prize

Author Rana Dasgupta was awarded the Rabindranath Tagore Literary Prize 2019 for his 2010 novel Solo that is a tale of estrangement and the ultimate failure of material existence. It is the second edition of the Rabindranath Tagore Literary Prize. The Prize aims to revive poetry and booksthat can change lives. The prize consists of an amount of $10,000, a Tagore statue and a certificate for contribution to literature will be given to the awardee.

Other Awardees

Yohei Sasakawa, the World Health Organization Goodwill Ambassador for Leprosy Elimination was awarded for the category of social achievement. He was recognized for his incredible efforts to uproot leprosy and great contribution to world peace. Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen was awarded as a beacon of democracy.

About the Tagore Awards

Tagore Prize is founded and launched with a strong vision to be a platform and a vehicle for improving and inspiring World Peace, Literature, Art and Education. The prizes promote the culture and beauty of literature just as Rabindranath Tagore had taught us to, but also, the culture and society of tolerance, harmony and non - discrimination.

Rabindranath Tagore

Rabindranath Tagore was a Bengali polymath, poet, musician, and artist from the Indian subcontinent. He reshaped Bengali literature and music, as well as Indian art with Contextual Modernism in the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries. Author of the profoundly sensitive, fresh and beautiful verse of Gitanjali, he became the first non-European to win the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913.

Tagore's poetic songs were viewed as spiritual and mercurial. He is sometimes referred to as the Bard of Bengal. His compositions were chosen by two nations as national anthems: India's Jana Gana Mana and Bangladesh's Amar Shonar Bangla. The Sri Lankan national anthem was inspired by his work.

28 - Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Award 2019 was announced

The prestigious Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Award 2019 was awarded to National Award-winning filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar, popular scriptwriter Salim Khanand dancing diva Helen. The award aims to encourage legends from the fields of music, drama, art and social work.

Complete list of Awardees

Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Award 2019

Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Smruti Pratishthan, Pune, a charitable trust established and nurtured over the last 30 years by the Mangeshkar family, felicitated legends from the fields of music, drama, art and social work with the Deenanath Award and other awards.

29 - Gagandeep Kang: The 1^st Indian to be receive Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS)

Gagandeep Kang becomes first Indian woman scientist to be awarded Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS), United Kingdom. Gagandeep Kang is a clinician-scientist. She is well known for her key role in the development of Rotavac. She is currently appointed as executive director of Translational Health Science and Technology Institute (THSTI), Faridabad.

Rotavac

Rotavac is India's first indigenously developed vaccine for rotavirus infections, which is responsible for childhood diarrhea. It was developed by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech Limited and Pune-based Serum International. Rotavac was licensed for use in India in 2014 and is manufactured by Bharat Biotech International Limited.

Rotavirus vaccine is a vaccine used to protect against rotavirus infections. Rotavirus is the leading cause of severe diarrhea among young children. Rotavac is a live attenuated, monovalent vaccine containing a G9P[11] human strain isolated from an Indian child. It is given by mouth in a three-dose series, 4 weeks apart, beginning at 6 weeks of age up until 8 months of age.

The vaccines prevent 15–34% of severe diarrhea in the developing world and 37–96% of severe diarrhea in the developed world. Vaccines decrease the risk of death among young children due to diarrhea. Immunizing babies decreases rates of disease among older people and those who have not been immunized. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that rotavirus vaccine be included in national routine vaccinations programs.

Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS)

It is the oldest scientific academy since 1663. The award is sponsored by Royal Society of London. The award recognizes the individuals who made a substantial contribution to the improvement of natural knowledge in fields of natural knowledge, including mathematics, engineering science, and medical science.

30 - Jacques Kallis has been honoured with the Order of Ikhamanga in the Silver Division

Ex-South Africa all-rounder Jacques Kallis has been honoured with the Order of Ikhamanga in theSilver Division. Kallis has been rewarded for his successful cricketing career. He played 166 Tests, 328 ODIs and 25 T20Is, returning 62 hundred and 577 wickets.

The national honour is bestowed by the President of South Africa. The honour recognizes the citizens who have made significant contributions to arts, literature, music, journalism, culture, and sports.

Order of Ikhamanga Grades

• Gold (OIG) - For exceptional achievement

• Silver (OIS) - For excellent achievement

• Bronze (OIB) - For outstanding achievement

• Eligibility: South African citizens

South Africa

• President: Cyril Ramaphosa

• Deputy President: David Mabuza

• Currency: South African Rand (ZAR)

31 - Alfred Brownell was awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize

Alfred Brownell, an environmental lawyer, and activist was awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize. He was awarded for exposing alleged abuse by the palm oil company Golden Veroleum Liberia and helping to prevent it from converting about 50 km2 of forest that is home to elephants, pygmy hippopotamuses, and chimpanzees.

The company had been given a green light in 2010 by the government to expand in the country and was poised to turn more than 2,000 km2 of the lush forest into palm oil plantations. He won the Goldman prize along with five others for grassroots environmental activism.

Other Awardees

• Linda Garcia of Vancouver, Washington, who rallied local communities to successfully prevent the construction of North America’s largest oil terminal.

• Ana Colovic Lesoska of North Macedonia, whose seven-year campaign helped stop hydroelectric projects from being built in the country’s largest national park.

• Bayarjargal Agvaantseren of Mongolia, who led the fight to create the Tost Tosonbumba Nature Reserve.

• Jacqueline Evans of the Cook Islands, whose work led to the conservation and sustainable management of all of the Cook Islands’ ocean territory and creation of 15 marine protected areas.

• Alberto Curamil of Chile, a jailed indigenous activist who had protested several hydroelectric projects in the country.

About Goldman Environmental Prize

The prize was created in 1989 by philanthropists Richard and Rhoda Goldman. Winners are selected from nominations made by environmental organisations and others. The prize carries a $200,000 award.

32 - AIFF recommends names of Gurpreet Singh Sandhu and Jeje Lalpekhlua for Arjuna award 2019

All India Football Federation (AIFF)recommended the names of Gurpreet Singh Sandhu and Jeje Lalpekhlua for the prestigious Arjuna award this year.

The federation had been pushing the cases of the two footballers since 2017 but the Arjuna award committee continued to ignore their claims.

In 2017, the AIFF recommended the two footballers along with then Indian women`s team captain Bembem Devi but only the last named was conferred with the award.

Sandhu and Jeje`s names were sent again last year but they did not receive the approval.