Category: Micro

Indian-origin official Anita Bhatia has been appointed as the Deputy Executive Director of the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN-Women) for Resource Management, Sustainability and Partnerships. She was appointed by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in the global body’s agency focussed on women empowerment and gender equality. She is a veteran in strategic partnerships, resource mobilisation and management and has had a distinguished career at the Read More …

Flight Lt. Mohana Singh has become the first woman fighter pilot to fly by day on a Hawk advanced jet aircraft. According to the Indian Air Force, the woman officer landed after a gruelling 4-aircraft combat sortie at Kalaikunda Air Force station in West Bengal, which was the last syllabus sortie of being fully operational on the Hawk jets. She and two other women officers joined the fighter stream in Read More …

Mumbai-based writer Annie Zaidi has won $100,000 Nine Dots Prize 2019, an award for creative thinking that tackles contemporary societal issues. Annie Zaidi is a freelance writer whose work includes reportage, essays, short stories, poetry and plays. She won the prize for her entry ‘Bread, Cement, Cactus’ — a piece that combined memoir and reportage to explore concepts of home and belonging. The prize challenged entrants to answer the question Read More …

The 72nd edition of the Cannes Film Festival 2019, held in French town of Cannes, wrapped with jury president Alejandro González Iñárritu announcing the group’s unanimous decision to award the Palme d’Or to South Korean director Bong Joon-ho for his sly, politically charged “Parasite. Franco-Senegalese filmmaker Mati Diop made history as the first black female filmmaker in competition. Beyond the Cannes award, the young Indian director of photography, Modhura Palit, was given a special Read More …

Jokha Alharthi, the first female Omani novelist to be translated into English, has won the Man Booker International prize for her novel ‘Celestial Bodies’. The novel tells the story of three sisters of a desert country confronting its slave-owning past and a complex modern world. Jokha Alharthi is the first Arabic-language writer to take the prize, and the prize will split the 50,000 pounds or 64,000 US dollar purse with Read More …

Achyutanand Dwivedi’s film, “Seed Mother”, has won the third prize in the international section of Nespresso Talents 2019 in Cannes on May 17, 2019. The three-minute film by Indian filmmaker, celebrates the exceptional spirit of Rahibai Soma Popere, a woman who champions the use of local seeds and traditional methods of farming in villages of Maharashtra. According to the Dwivedi, he discovered the work of Rahibai Soma Popere when he Read More …

Prime minister’s additional principal secretary P K Mishra is among three winners of the prestigious Sasakawa award 2019, the UNDDR’s top honour given every two years to an individual or institutions for their exemplary contribution in the field of disaster mitigation. Another awardee from India is Mahila Housing SEWA Trust. The Mahila Housing SEWA Trust has been recognised for its innovative and inclusive approach in empowering women living in slums.Mishra Read More …

Renowned Hindi Author Manisha Kulshreshtha will receive the 28th Bihari puraskar for her Hindi novel “Swapnpash’ which delves into the dark world of schizophrenia. Kulshreshtha is a renowned Hindi author and was born on August 26, 1967 in Jodhpur. Her work includes; Kathputliyan, Kuch Bhi To Romani Nahin, Care of Swat Ghati, Gandharv Katha etc. The prestigious Bihari Puraskar is presented by the KK Birla Foundation and was instituted in Read More …

Gagandeep Kang, executive director of the Translational Health Science and Technology Institute (THSTI), Faridabad has became the first Indian woman scientist Fellow of the Royal Society, London. Kang is known for her inter-disciplinary research and work in prevention of enteric infections and their sequelae in children in India. She has built national rotavirus and typhoid surveillance networks, established laboratories to support vaccine trials and conducted phase 1-3 clinical trials of Read More …

Russia has announced to confer the Order of St Andrew the Apostle – the highest state decoration of the country on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. PM Modi has been decorated for his exceptional services in promoting special and privileged strategic partnership between the Russia and India and friendly relations between the Russian and Indian people. Honoured to receive this prestigious award. I thank President Putin and the people of Russia. Read More …

Telugu poet K Siva Reddy has been selected for the prestigious Saraswati Samman, 2018 (28th) for his collection of poetry titled Pakkaki Ottigilite (Turning Aside While Lying Down). Published in 2016, Pakkaki Ottigilite is an anthology of 104 poems in blank verse. It captures the responses of the poet over the years to social change, the evolution of his own self and his dynamic relationship with the world. Mr. Reddy Read More …

The 64th Filmfare Award ceremony was held in Mumbai on March 23, 2019. Here are the list of winners Best Film: Raazi Critics Best Film: Andhadhun Best Actor : Ranbir Kapoor (Sanju) Best Actress : Alia Bhatt for Raazi Critics Best Actor: Ranveer Singh (Padmaavat) and Ayushmann Khurrana (Andhadhun) Critics Best Actress: Neena Gupta (Badhaai Ho) Best Director: Meghna Gulzar (Raazi) Best Actor In A Supporting Role: Gajraj Rao (Badhaai Ho) Read More …

By Umashankar Mishra (Twitter handle: @usm_1984) New Delhi, 25 February (India Science Wire): Four young scientists selected in the national level competition – Augmenting Writing Skills for Articulating Research (AWSAR) – will be awarded on the occasion of National Science Day on 28th February, 2019. Under the PhD category of this competition, the first prize of Rs. 1 lakh will be given to Ashish Srivastava (School of Engineering and Technology, Read More …