Recent 6 months news in Awards

Theja Rio, a filmmaker from Nagaland, has won the “Platform Prize” for his debut feature film “Angh” at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). The award carries a trophy and a cash prize of CAD 20,000.

It is to be noted that the win grants the film a direct qualifying pathway for the Best International Feature Film category at the 99th Academy Awards (2027).

Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has presented the eighth edition of the “businessline Changemaker Awards” in New Delhi. Purnima Devi Barman, known as the “Stork Sister”, was named the “Changemaker of the Year” for her work in the conservation of Greater Adjutant Stork and women empowerment.

The “Iconic Changemaker” award was given to the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) for modernising border infrastructure and Dr. MR Rajagopal for community-based palliative care.

Other winners include ARMAAN for “Digital Transformation” (healthcare via mobile technology), Gourmet Popcornica for “Financial Transformation” (agro-processing), and “Project Sambandh” for “Social Transformation” (aiding bereaved military families).

Eknath Shinde, the Deputy CM of Maharashtra, has been conferred with three international awards during his visit to London.

The honours include the ‘Commonwealth Public Leadership Recognition’, the ‘Statesmanship Award for Transformative Leadership’, and the ‘Global Pride of Maharashtra Award’.

Joheirry Mola of the Dominican Republic has been crowned Miss World 2026 at the 73rd edition of the pageant held in Nha Trang, Vietnam. She was crowned by Opal Chuangsri, Miss World 2025 from Thailand.

Nikita Porwal from Madhya Pradesh represented India at the international competition. It is to be noted that the Miss World Organisation (MWO) has scheduled the next edition of the pageant to be hosted in Tanzania in 2027.

Union Minister Amit Shah has presented the “President’s Colour” to the Goa Police during a ceremony held in Panaji, Goa.

The award was conferred recognising the distinguished service and dedication to public safety of the force for a period of more than 80 years.

The Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation (RMAF) has announced the winners of the 68th edition of the Ramon Magsaysay Awards 2026, which is frequently referred to as the “Nobel Prize of Asia”. The recipients include Tommy Koh from Singapore, Runa Khan from Bangladesh, and Bo Kyi from Myanmar.

The announcement was made on the occasion of the 119th birth anniversary of Ramon Magsaysay, the 7th President of Philippines. Each recipient of the award will receive a cash prize of $50,000.

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has announced the winners of the Green Highways Excellence Awards 2026. The awards were instituted in 2025.

In the ‘Avenue Plantations’ category (Category I), the Chilakaluripet Bypass on NH-16 (Vijayawada) secured the first position. The Hyderabad-Yadgiri section of NH-163 (Hyderabad) was ranked first in the ‘Median Plantations’ category (Category II). The Jamtha Clover Leaf on NH-44 (Nagpur) received the top award in Category III, which pertains to ‘Plantation in Land Parcels’.

The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MYAS) has announced four recipients of the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Awards (TNNAA) for 2024. The TNNAA is the highest national recognition of India for excellence in the field of adventure sports.

Baljeet Kaur and Skalzang Rigzin have been selected for the Land Adventure category, while Rimo Saha has been selected for the Water Adventure category. Shiv Prasad Chamoli has been honoured with the Lifetime Achievement award. Each recipient will receive a bronze statuette, a certificate, and a cash prize of ₹15 lakh.

Roger Federer, a Swiss tennis professional, has been inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame (ITHF).

Mary Carillo, a tennis journalist and broadcaster, was also inducted into the ITHF under the “Contributor Category” for her contributions to tennis media and storytelling. The induction is considered one of the most prestigious honours in the sport.

The Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG) has been selected for the special “Rajbhasha Utkrishtta Sammaan” for the 2025-26 period. The award is conferred by the Department of Official Language (DoL) under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).

It is to be noted that DARPG secured the first position in the category of Ministries and Departments with a personnel strength of fewer than 300 for its efforts in promoting Hindi as the Official Language.

Ashutosh Parida, a renowned Odia poet and former scientist, has been selected for the 47th edition of the Sarala Puraskar for his poetry collection titled “Bishwas De Pruthwi” (2024). The award carries a cash prize of ₹7 lakh.

The Publications Division under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) has won seven awards for excellence in book production at the 46th edition of the Federation of Indian Publishers (FIP) Awards 2026.

The accolades secured by the division comprise four Second Prizes and three Third Prizes across various categories.

Dr Jal Ratanji Patel (a physician) and Dr Jal Dhaybho-Koo (a radiologist), Mumbai-based Parsi doctors, have been nominated for the “Nishan-e-Imtiaz”, the highest civilian award of Pakistan.

The nomination is given recognising their role in maintaining the confidentiality of the terminal illness of Muhammad Ali Jinnah prior to the Partition of India in 1947.

Kaziah Liz Mejo, a 19-year-old from Kerala, has won the Miss Universe India 2026 title at an event organised by the Glamanand Group in Jaipur, Rajasthan.

With this, she has become the first woman from Kerala to secure the title.

It is to be noted that she will officially represent India at the 75th Miss Universe pageant, scheduled to be held in November 2026 in Puerto Rico.

Union Minister Jitendra Singh has presented the 9th National Anubhav Awards at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi. The awards were conferred alongside the 60th Pre-Retirement Counselling (PRC) Workshop.

A total of 15 awardees were honoured, including 5 Anubhav awardees and 10 Jury Certificate winners. The recipients of the National Anubhav Awards received a medal, a certificate, and a cash prize of ₹10,000. It is to be noted that the ‘Handbook on Pension Mitra’ and the operational guidelines for the ‘Nationwide Digital Life Certificate (DLC) Campaign-5’ were also released during the event.

The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports has announced the National Sports Awards 2025. The winners were selected based on the recommendations of a committee chaired by Arun Kumar Mishra, a former judge of the Supreme Court.

A total of 17 athletes have been selected for the Arjuna Award, including Tejaswin Shankar (Athletics), Divya Deshmukh (Chess), Treesa Jolly (Badminton), and Gayatri Gopichand (Badminton). I Arumainayagam, a former footballer and 1962 Asian Games gold medallist, was honoured with the Arjuna Award (Lifetime) for his long-term contributions.

The Dronacharya Award (Regular) was presented to Parveer Singh (Athletics), Chhote Lal Yadav (Boxing), and Neha Nandkumar Chavan (Shooting), while the Lifetime category recognized Dharmendra Singh Yadav (Boxing) and Virender Kumar (Wrestling). Additionally, the Army Paralympic Node in Pune, received the Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar.

Lakshmanan Meyyappan, an Indian-origin finance professional based in Dubai, has been recognized by the Guinness World Records as the youngest male Chartered Accountant (CA) in the world. He achieved this milestone at the age of 16 years and 141 days.

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has conferred the “Gaj Gaurav Awards 2026” during the national celebrations of World Elephant Day in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh.

7 Mahouts and Elephant Handlers from Jaldapara National Park in West Bengal were honoured with the award. They were recognised for their exceptional bravery during severe flash floods.

The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has organised the “PMIS Industry Awards 2026” in New Delhi to recognize partner companies participating in the Prime Minister Internship Scheme (PMIS). Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd was named the “Overall Industry Champion” during the ceremony.

HDFC Bank was conferred the “Pre-Internship Excellence Award”, and Shriram Finance Ltd received the “Internship Management Excellence Award”. Additionally, IBM India Pvt Ltd was recognized for “Innovation in Program Implementation”, while Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd (POWERGRID) was honoured for “Innovation in Exit Pathways”.

Dr Padma Gurmet has been conferred the Ladakh State Award for the year 2025 in recognition of his contributions to the preservation, promotion, and development of the Sowa-Rigpa system of medicine.