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14th Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Awards held in New Delhi

January 22, 2020

President, Ram Nath Kovind, presented the 14th Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Awards at a ceremony held in New Delhi. The awardees were selected by a jury constituted of members including Tom Goldstein (Professor and Dean, Jindal School of Journalism & Communication, O P Jindal Global University), S Y Quraishi (Former Chief Election Commissioner), Pamela Philipose (journalist and Senior Fellow at the Indian Council of Social Science Research) and Justice B N Srikrishna (Former Supreme Court judge).

The Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Award was instituted in 2016. It honours those journalists from print, broadcast and digital media who have maintained the highest standards of their profession and, despite immense challenges, produced work that sustains public trust in the media and impacts the lives of people. The awards are meant to felicitate those who hold their pen for truth.

Veteran Congress leader Shamsher Surjewala passes away

January 21, 2020

Veteran Congress leader Shamsher Singh Surjewala passed away on Monday following prolonged illness. He was 87. Surjewala, father of party leader Randeep Surjewala, breathed his last at the AIIMS hospital in Delhi.

Shamsher Surjewala remained a five-time MLA and one-time Rajya Sabha MP. He was also the former president of the Haryana Congress and a former minister. He was a president of the Haryana Krishak Samaj and fought for the rights of farmers.

W.V. Raman released his book ‘The Winning Sixer’

January 21, 2020

Former India cricketer and the current coach of the Indian women’s team, Woorkeri Venkat Raman’s book ‘The Winning Sixer’ was unveiled by Indian cricketer Abhinav Mukund at Higginbothams in Chennai. The book is published by Rupa Publications, India.

Anil Radhakrishna Kumble a former India Captain, P.Madhavan, Executive Vice-President, TVS Tyres and Rahul Dravid (former Indian Cricketer) were also present at the book launch event. Raman revealed that in the book he has focused more on his journey to the top rather than just the winning moments from the lives of successful people.

During a session moderated by cricket journalist V. Balaji, Raman spoke about the leadership potential within every individual. Introspecting his own cricketing life and his interactions with various sportspersons from the yesteryear, the book sees him bring out his perspectives on one’s ability to lead and the importance of leadership.

Book on jurist Nani A Palkhivala released

January 21, 2020

A book of essays and reminiscences on Nani A Palkhivala has been released to mark the birth centenary of the noted jurist and economist. The book was released on January 16.

The book, commissioned by the Nani A Palkhivala Memorial Trust, is published by LexisNexis publicat and edited by senior advocate Arvind Datar. All the royalties from the book will go to the trust.

The book, ”Essays and Reminiscences”, is primarily divided in two parts — essays written in honour of Palkhivala on a variety of subjects and reminiscences of those who knew and interacted with the late jurist closely.

Some of the prominent contributors to the book include former RBI Governor Raghuram G Rajan, industrialist Ratan N Tata, jurists Fali S Nariman, Soli J Sorabjee and K Parasaran and Justice (retired) S Ranganathan.

Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren honoured with ‘Champion of Change Award’

January 21, 2020

Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren was honoured with the “Champion of Change Award-2019” for his work in the Barhait and Dumka assembly constituencies in the state. Former president Pranab Mukherjee gave the award to Soren at a function in New Delhi.

Soren, who had won the Dumka seat in 2009, was defeated in the following assembly elections but regained it in the recently-concluded polls. Soren, who also won the Barhait seat for the second consecutive term, dedicated the award to his father Shibu Soren and the people of Jharkhand.

India International Leather Fair to be held in Chennai from January 31

January 21, 2020

The 35th edition of India International Leather Fair (IILF) will be held from January 31 to February 3 in Chennai. The event will be organised by the Indian Finished Leather Manufacturers and Exporters Association. It will provide an insight about the latest trends and designs in the industry. The highlight of the event will be the Leather Fashion Show scheduled to be held on February 2.

From raw material to finished products like leather footwear, garments and fashion accessories will be showcased at the event. Stakeholders like raw material suppliers, manufacturing equipment suppliers and tanneries will participate in the event and showcase their products.

About 450 exhibitors will display their products during the show. Apart from public, the fair will provide an exposure to the industry people about the latest technology, equipment and trends in the market.

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw awarded highest Australian civilian honour

January 21, 2020

Biocon chairperson and managing director Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw has been awarded the Order of Australia, the country’s highest civilian honour, for her significant contribution towards advancing bilateral relationship with Australia.

The recognition is given to foreign nationals who have made an outstanding contribution to Australia or humanity at large. Ms. Mazumdar-Shaw is the fourth Indian to receive it after master batsman Sachin Tendulkar in 2012, former Attorney General of India, Soli Jehangir Sorabjee in 2006 and Mother Teresa in 1982.

Australia’s High Commissioner to India Harinder Sidhu invested Mazumdar-Shaw as an Honorary Member within the Order of Australia (AM) in the General Division at a ceremony in Bengaluru.

ECI gets ‘Award of Excellence’ for cVIGIL and Voter Helpline App

January 21, 2020

‘cVIGIL‘ and ‘Voter Helpline App’ — two innovative ICT applications of the Election Commission of India, developed in-house, have won the eGovernance ‘Award of Excellence’ for the year 2019. These awards were given by the Computer Society of India (CSI), Special Interest Group on e-Governance (CSI SIG e-Gov) at KiiT, Bhubaneswar.

Dr Kushal Pathak, Director, ICT and CISO, ECI and Chief Electoral Officer of Odisha, Sushil Kumar Lohani, received the award on behalf of the Election Commission. cVIGIL empowers citizens to report the Model Code of Conduct violations such as bribery, free gift, liquor distribution, playing loudspeakers beyond the permissible time during the elections. Voter helpline App with 16 crore downloads has taken roots as a major tool for citizen empowerment.

IMF cuts India’s growth rate for 2019-20 further

January 21, 2020

The number of agencies revising India’s growth estimate is increasing, with the latest being the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The IMF on Monday slashed India’s GDP growth rate to 4.8 per cent for the current fiscal and 5.8 per cent for 2020-21.

The agency also said that a more subdued growth forecast for India accounts for the lion’s share of the downward revisions in global forecast. In its update to the World Economic Outlook, the agency lowered the growth projection for entire Asia from the October forecast.

The growth markdown largely reflects a downward revision to India’s projection, where domestic demand has slowed more sharply than expected amid stress in the non-bank financial sector and a decline in credit growth.

Government approves appointment of heads of 4 PSBs

January 21, 2020

The government approved the selection of heads of four public sector banks (PSBs) – State Bank of India (SBI), Canara Bank, Bank of Baroda and Bank of India.

The appointments committee of the Cabinet has approved the proposal of the Department of the Financial Services for appointment of Challa Sreenivasulu Setty as the MD of SBI for a period of three years. He is currently serving as the deputy MD of the SBI.

Sanjiv Chadha has been appointed as Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Bank of Baroda. Chadha, who is at present Deputy Managing Director in State Bank of India, has been appointed to the new post for a period of three years.

Lingam Venkata Prabhakar, Executive Director in Punjab National Bank, will be MD and CEO in Canara Bank. His tenure, from the date of assumption of charge on or after February 1, will be till December 31, 2022.

Atanu Kumar Das has been appointed as the MD and CEO in Bank of India for a three-year term. He is at present working as the Executive Director in the same bank.