General Awareness

AWARDS AND HONOURS - July 2019

Jul 2019

Oct 17, 2019

ICMR Awards For Excellence In Biomedical Research Given To 46 Scientists

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) honoured 46 biomedical scientists who have done pioneering work in the area of health research to solve various health issues.
A total 39 awards for 2017 and 2018 were presented to 46 scientists, including 14 women scientists. Of the 39 awards, two were given to scientists belonging to underprivileged communities and one to a scientist who has conducted research in under-developed areas.
The awardees belong to ICMR, CSIR-labs, AIIMS, New Delhi, PGI, Chandigarh, SGPGI, Lucknow, IITs, JIPMER, Puducherry, SCTIMST, Thiruvananthapuram, Lady Hardinge Medical College, New Delhi, state and central universities and other reputed institutions.

Goair Bags 'Best Airline' Award At Andaman Tourism Award 2019

GoAir has received the 'Best Airline' award by Andaman Tourism Award - 2019 in its first edition for its leadership in attaining on-time performance for 12 consecutive months.
Andaman Tourism Award was organised at Port Blair in association with the tourism ministry and Andaman Association of Tour Operators.
Andaman Association of Tour Operators President M Vinod and actor R Sarath Kumar presented the award to General Manager - Airports Sarvesh Tiwari and Airport Manager, Port Blair Aman Kohli of GoAir.
Along with prominent hotel chains, tour operators and restaurants GoAir was felicitated for playing a prominent role in boosting tourism in Andaman & Nicobar islands.

Oct 15, 2019

Margaret Atwood, Lucy Ellmann Favorites To Win Fiction's Booker Prize

Booker Prize winner Margaret Atwood is the bookies' favorite to win the coveted fiction trophy again for "The Testaments," her follow-up to dystopian saga "The Handmaid's Tale."
Atwood, who won in 2000 for "The Blind Assassin," is one of six finalists for the 50,000-pound ($63,000) prize, whose winner will be announced.
British bookmakers also give strong odds to British-Turkish author Elif Shafak for the Istanbul-set story "10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World" and U.S.-British writer Lucy Ellmann for her 1,000-page stream-of-consciousness novel "Ducks, Newburyport."
The other contenders are Salman Rushdie for "Quichotte," a modern-day retelling of "Don Quixote"; Britain's Bernardine Evaristo for "Girl, Woman, Other"; and Nigeria's Chigozie Obioma for "An Orchestra of Minorities."

Dalai Lama Receives Honorary Doctorate

"Imbibe kindness and affection as it brings humanity together," said the Dalai Lama at Chitkara University, where he was felicitated with an honorary doctorate for his invaluable contribution to humanity, world peace and education, and in recognition of his outstanding achievements in promoting peace globally and for his inspirational spiritual guidance and leadership.
The Tibetan spiritual leader believes that the shape of the future is in our hands – the 21st century teachers and learners: "You, who belong to the present century, can create a world that will be happier and more peaceful," he said.

UNESCO Awards

Mumbai dominated UNESCO's Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation held in Malaysia, with efforts to restore the city's monuments winning three awards.
The Keneseth Eliyahoo synagogue in Fort and Our Lady of Glory Church in Byculla received awards of merit while Flora Fountain received an honourable mention.
Ahmedabad's Vikram Sarabhai Library won the award of distinction.
The UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation programme recognises the efforts of private individuals and organisations that have restored and conserved structures of heritage value in the region.
This year marked 20 years of the awards and the jury met in August 2019 to review 57 entries from 14 countries across the Asia-Pacific.
At least 16 projects from five countries, Australia, Bhutan, China, India and New Zealand, were recognised by the international jury of conservation experts in this year's awards.
The renewal of the historic Tai Kwun — Centre for Heritage and Arts in Hong Kong won the Award of Excellence.

Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo: The Nobel couple fighting poverty

Abhijit Banerjee, 58, and Esther Duflo, 46, won the Nobel Prize in Economics, along with economist Michael Kremer, for their "experimental approach to alleviating global poverty". More than 700 million people live in extreme poverty, according to World Bank.
Both Mr Banerjee and Ms Duflo are professors at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Ms Duflo is the second woman to be awarded a Nobel in economics.
The Indian-born Mr Banerjee and Paris-born Ms Duflo grew up in completely different worlds.

Oct 14, 2019

Director Priyadarshan gets MP Govt's Kishore Kumar Award

Noted director and producer Priyadarshan, who has made several blockbuster Malayalam and Hindi films, was conferred the Madhya Pradesh government's National Kishore Kumar Samman for 2018-19 at a function in Khandwa, the birthplace of the legendary singer- actor.
Kishore Kumar died on October 13, 1987 in Mumbai.
The award, instituted by MP Department of Culture, carries a cash prize of Rs 2 lakh and a citation.
According to the official, the Kishore Kumar Samman jury selected noted actor Waheeda Rehman for the award for 2017-18.

Oct 12, 2019

Winners of PII-ICRC Annual Awards Declared

Winners of the 13th edition of the PII-ICRC annual awards for best article and best photograph on a humanitarian subject, jointly organised by the Press Institute of India (PII) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) New Delhi Regional Delegation, were announced.

In 2019, the awards were given on the theme 'Impact of Climate Change on Humanitarian Issues'.
An independent journalist, Urvashi Sarkar, won the first prize for her article, 'Our houses are vanishing. Nobody cares', that appeared on the PARI (People's Archive of Rural India) website.
In the best photograph category, the first prize was shared by G. Sivaprasad, news photographer, Mathrubhumi, for his picture, 'Close to the heart', and Rijo Joseph, chief photographer, Malayala Manorama, for his photograph, 'Running for life'.
While Rinku Raj, senior photographer, Malayala Manorama, won second place for his photo, 'Rough sea, tough life', the third prize was given to Bibin Xavier, photojournalist, Deepika daily, for his picture, 'It was life'.
Special awards were presented in the best article category to Chennai-based independent journalist Jency Samuel for her article, 'Unpredictable seas push fishers away from home', and Nikhil Ghanekar, Delhi-based independent journalist, for his piece, 'When the hills go thirsty'.
In the best photograph category, Prashant K, senior photographer, Lokmat, Pune, won the special mention for his picture, 'Mining the aquifer'.

Russia Bestows Medal On US Astronaut In Failed Launch

Russia has decorated NASA astronaut Nick Hague, who survived an aborted space launch in 2018 with one of its highest honours, the Order of Courage.
Hague along with Russian cosmonaut Aleksey Ovchinin had a close brush with death when their Soyuz rocket failed minutes after blast-off from Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan in October, 2018.
They were forced to eject and make a harrowing emergency landing.
It was the first such accident in Russia's post-Soviet history.
In a decree released, the Kremlin commended 44-year-old Hague for his "courage and high professionalism" shown during life-threatening conditions.

Nobel Peace Prize: Ethiopia PM Abiy Ahmed wins

The 2019 Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed who made peace in 2018 with bitter foe Eritrea.
He was awarded the prize for his efforts to "achieve peace and international cooperation".
Mr Abiy's peace deal with Eritrea ended a 20-year military stalemate following their 1998-2000 border war.
He was named as the winner of the 100th Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, where he will receive the award in December 2019.
It is worth some nine million Swedish crowns (about £730,000; $900,000).

Chipko Movement Founder Chandi Prasad Bhatt Gets Congress' Indira Gandhi Award For National Integ...

Noted environmentalist and social activist Chandi Prasad Bhatt is to be awarded the Indira Gandhi award for national integration for the years 2017 and 2018.
The award was instituted by the Congress in the memory of the former prime minister and it would be presented on October 31, 2019 in a function at Jawahar Bhawan.
This award consists of a citation and Rs 10 lakh in cash to be given to the awardee by chairperson Sonia Gandhi, the Congress president. It would be presented on October 31, 2019 the day former prime minister Indira Gandhi was killed.
Bhatt (85), who hails from Uttarakhand, had founded the Dasholi Gram Swarajya Sangh (DGSS) in Gopeshwar in 1964, which later became a mother organisation to the Chipko Movement, in which he was one of the pioneers.
He has earlier been awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award for community leadership in 1982, followed by the Padma Bhushan in 2005. He has also been a recipient of the Gandhi Peace Prize.

Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu Conferred Highest Civilian Honour Of Comoros

Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu was conferred the highest Civilian Honour of Comoros — The Order of the Green Crescent.
The honour was conferred by the President of the Union of Comoros Azali Assoumani in Moroni, the capital city of Comoros. Naidu is on a first-ever high-level visit to Comoros.
India and Comoros also signed six agreements on defence, health and culture. Both the countries also decided to exempt each other from Visa for diplomatic and official passport holders for short visits.
Naidu said that India as a maritime neighbour is ready to share the experience of its progress with the people of Comoros.

Kayakalp Awards: AIIMS Delhi Wins Top Cleanliness Award

The All India Institutes of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) has proved its mettle not only in medical expertise but also in hygiene and cleanliness.
The premier medical institute has bagged the first prize of ₹3 crore under the government's Kayakalp scheme for 2018-19.
The Kayakalp Award was instituted as part of the 'Swachh Bharat Abhiyan' on 15 May, 2015 as a national initiative to recognize and felicitate public health facilities that demonstrate high levels of cleanliness, hygiene and infection control measure on promoting cleanliness in public spaces.
Under the Central Government Hospitals A category, after AIIMS Delhi, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), Puducherry was judged as the runner-up in this category with ₹1.5 crore prize money, and Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh and Safdarjung Hospital, Delhi won the Commendation Award of Rs. 50 Lakh each.
In the group B category, the winner was Shri Vinoba Bhave Civil Hospital (VBCH), Silvassa winning ₹2 crore, with AIIMS Bhubaneswar as the runner-up winning ₹1 crore.
North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health and Medical Sciences (NEIGRIHMS), Shillong, Lokopriya Gopinath Bordoloi Regional Institute of Mental Health (LGBRIMH,) Tezpur and AIIMS, Bhopal each won ₹50 lakh as Commendation Award.

Milkha Singh, Batsmwoman Smriti Mandhana Among Winners Of Indian Sports Honours

Legendary Milkha Singh and star batsmwoman Smriti Mandhana were among the winners during the second edition of the Indian Sports Honours (ISH).
The ISH is an initiative by Sanjiv Goenka, Chairman, RP-SG Group and India cricket team captain Virat Kohli.
A total of seventeen honours were presented during the ceremony, comprising eleven Jury Honours, including one Lifetime Achievement Honour, and six popular choice honours.
Milkha Singh, 92, best known as the 'Flying Sikh' and most remembered for finishing fourth in the 400m final in the 1960 Rome Olympic Games, was bestowed with the lifetime achievement award.
While 23-year-old Mandhana, who was ruled out due to a fracture in her right toe against the ongoing ODI series against South Africa, got the sportswoman of the year award for the team category.

Oct 11, 2019

Poland's Olga Tokarczuk, Austria's Peter Handke Win Literature Nobels

Polish novelist Olga Tokarczuk and Austrian author Peter Handke, two writers whose works are deeply intertwined in Europe's religious, ethnic and social fault lines, won the 2018 and 2019 Nobel Prizes for literature.
The rare double announcement came after no literature prize was awarded in 2018 due to sex abuse allegations that tarnished the Swedish Academy, the group that awards the literature prize. Jean-Claude Arnault, the husband of a former academy member, was convicted last year of two rapes in 2011.
The Nobel Foundation had warned that another group could award the literature prize if the academy didn't improve its tarnished image, but said in March 2019 that it was satisfied the Swedish Academy had revamped itself and restored trust.
Both winners will receive a full cash prize, valued this year at 9-million kronor ($918,000), a gold medal and a diploma.

President's Colour Awarded to Army Aviation Corps

President Ram Nath Kovind presented the prestigious Colours to the Army Aviation Corps in Nashik and lauded them for their contribution to the nation.
Speaking on the occasion, the President said that the Army Aviation Corps has earned 273 honours and awards for conspicuous gallantry and distinguished service.
This speaks volumes about the exceptional valour and high spirit of the Corps personnel and is a model for all soldiers and officers of our armed forces.
Kovind is on a five-day visit to Maharashtra, Karnataka and Gujarat. During his visit to the three states between October 9 to 13, the President will be participating in various official engagements.

Share on

TCY Analytics (View Subscription Plans)

Subscribe to GK Updates

I want to receive

GK Tags

October GK, September GK, August GK, INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS, ENVIRONMENT, BUSINESS AND ECONOMY, SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY, SPORTS, NATIONAL AFFAIRS, DEFENCE, PERSONS IN NEWS, DAYS AND EVENTS, AWARDS AND HONOURS, GOVERNMENT POLICIES AND SCHEMES, GENDER/ HEALTH/ EDUCATION, ART AND CULTURE, BOOKS AND AUTHORS, TOURISM AND HOTEL INDUSTRY AWARENESS, ART AND CULTURE, LAW AND CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

Start Discussion

On any topic

Take Tests

Compiled from GK updates

Login

Sign Up

Forgot Password

Download TCY App

Unlock All Services and Enjoy The Premium Benefits

US$ 10

US$ 13

US$ 15

US$ 17

US$ 19

US$ 20

US$ 21

US$ 22

US$ 23

US$ 24

US$ 25

US$ 26