Current Context : Recently,  PM Narendra Modi receives Russia's highest civilian honour from President Vladimir Putin for strengthening strategic partnership. ABOUT RUSSIA'S HIGHEST CIVILIAN HONOUR - ORDER OF ST. ANDREW THE APOSTLE. Established in 1698 by Tsar Peter the Great, the Order of St. Andrew is the highest order of chivalry in Russia. It holds deep historical and cultural significance as a symbol of honour and achievement. The order is bestowed upon distinguished leaders in government, military, science, culture, and the economy for exceptional contributions to Russia's prosperity, security, and sovereignty.Read More

Current Context : Recently, Olympic gold medal winning shooter Abhinav Bindra was  awarded with Olympic Order by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The award which was presented to Bindra for his outstanding services to the Olympic Movement, will be officially handed over to him during the 142nd IOC Session in Paris on August 10, a day before the closing of the Paris Olympics. The Olympic Order is the highest award of the IOC, given for distinguished contributions to the Olympic Movement. Nominations are proposed by the Olympic Orders Council and decided upon by the Executive Board. ABOUT ABHINAV BINDRA Bindra....Read More

Current Context : Renowned sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik won the Golden Sand Master award at an international championship in Russia. International Sand Sculpture Championship — was organised from July 4-12 in St Petersburg at the iconic Peter and Paul Fortress. Pattnaik had created a 12-foot sculpture depicting a chariot and Lord Jagannath with his devotee Balaram Das, the famous Odia poet of the 14th century.Read More

Current Context : Andhra Pradesh Community Managed Natural Farming (APCNF), has won the 2024 Gulbenkian Prize for Humanity. ABOUT PRIZE : Award instituted by Portugal-based Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation (CGF). It is presented annually to individuals and organisations contributing to global food security, climate resilience and ecosystem protection. The total prize money is one million euros. ABOUT ANDHRA PRADESH COMMUNITY MANAGED NATURAL FARMING (APCNF) : The APCNF is a Statewide programme supporting smallholder farmers to switch from chemically intensive agriculture to ‘natural farming’. Practices such as using organic residues and minimising tillage to improve soil health, reintroducing indigenous seeds and diversifying....Read More

Current Context : Nagaland won the “Best State in Horticulture Award 2024” at the 15th Agriculture Leadership Awards. Award was bagged by state for introducing innovative programmes and policies for horticulture development, positively touching the lives of large number of farmers and rural people. ADDITIONAL FACTS: The state has achieved geographical indication (GI) registration of three horticultural crops — Naga Mircha, Naga Tree Tomato and Naga Sweet Cucumber. The Department of Horticulture has mobilised the formation of 13 farmers producers companies (FPCs) and so far been able to bring an area of 6,800 ha under organic certification. The department has....Read More

Current Context : Maharastra has won the Best Agriculture State Award for 2024. Award is announced by the 15th Agriculture Leadership Awards Committee. Maharashtra has been chosen for this award for its innovative agricultural and rural initiatives, which have led to the advancement of agricultural and rural prosperity in the state. ABOUT AWARD The annual Agricultural Leadership Award was instituted by Agricultural Today magazine in 2008. The award honours the contributions of various stakeholders—government, individuals, and organisations—who have demonstrated exemplary leadership in agriculture.Read More

Current Context : Booker prize winner Arundhati Roy wins PEN Pinter Prize 2024. Arundhati Roy will receive the award in a ceremony co-hosted by the British Library on October 10. ABOUT AWARD The PEN (Poet, Playwright, Editors Essayist, Novelist) Pinter is an annual award set up in 2009 by English PEN in the memory of Nobel laureate playwright Harold Pinter. It is awarded annually to a writer of outstanding literary merit resident in the United Kingdom. The award is given to writers in the English language who have produced outstanding literary work in plays, poetry, essays, or fiction. ABOUT ARUNDHATI....Read More

Current Context : Recently, a project by the Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology, Delhi (IIIT-Delhi), has won the joint second prize in Trinity Challenge’s second competition. ABOUT TRINITY CHALLENGE It is a charity supporting the creation of data-driven solutions to help protect against global health threats. It was launched in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, which highlighted a global need to be better prepared to tackle healthcare emergencies. It is a partnership of over 40 leading global organizations including the private, public, and social sectors. About IIIT-Delhi's project 'AMRSense: Empowering Communities with a Proactive One Health Ecosystem: It was led....Read More

Current Context : Vinod Ganatra becomes first Indian, Honoured With ‘Nelson Mandela Lifetime Achievement Award’. ABOUT VINOD GANATRA He is honoured for his immense contributions to the world of cinema for kids in 7th Nelson Mandela Children’s Film Festival. Ganatra has bagged 36 national and international awards, including the ‘Janakinath Gaur Award’ from Doordarshan for his children’s programme, ‘Baingan Raja.’ He became the only Indian filmmaker to receive the ‘Liv Ullmann Peace Prize’, in Chicago, for his Gujarati film, ‘Harun-Arun’. ABOUT NELSON MANDELA Nelson Mandela (1918-2013) was the first black President of South Africa. He was born in South Africa,....Read More

Current Context : Recently, 2024 Kavli Prize winners were announced to honoring great work in neuroscience, astrophysics and nanoscience. Eight well-known scholars from American colleges were recognized for their groundbreaking work in these areas. WINNERS ASTROPHYSICS : David Charbonneau and Sara Seager. NANOSCIENCE : Robert Langer, Armand Paul Alivisatos, and Chad Mirkin NEUROSCIENCE : Nancy Kanwisher, Winrich Freiwald, and Doris Tsao made big steps toward understanding how facial recognition works in the brain. ABOUT KAVLI PRIZE The Kavli Prize is named after Norwegian-American philanthropist Fred Kavli, donors’ significant achievements in astrophysics, neuroscience, and nanoscience. Established by the Kavli Foundation in....Read More