• The Union Higher Education Ministry has discontinued the ‘Shiksha Puraskar’ and the ‘Hinditar Bhashi Hindi Lekhak Puraskar’.
• The decision is part of the Union Home Ministry’s move to rationalise various awards instituted by the Centre.

ABOUT ‘SHIKSHA PURASKAR’

• It was launched by the Centre in 1992 for encouraging original writings in Hindi.
• Under the ‘Shiksha Puraskar’, five awards worth ₹1 lakh each is given every year.
• The ‘Shiksha Puraskar’ is given to books originally written in Hindi by Hindi and non-Hindi-speaking authors in various fields of knowledge such as education policy, method of teaching, Social Sciences, Philosophy, political thought, culture, communication, moral science, science and technology, medical science, law, Political Science, Environment, and other subjects related to education.

ABOUT HINDITAR BHASHI HINDI LEKHAK PURASKAR

• It is an award given to promote writings in Hindi by writers from non-Hindi speaking areas.
• It carries a cash prize of ₹50,000.