1) T.M. Krishna and Bezwada Wilson win Ramon Magsaysay Award 2016.
- Social activist Bezwada Wilson and musician T.M. Krishna, have won the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award 2016.
- Bezwada Wilson was recognized for asserting the inalienable right to a life of human dignity. Mr. Wilson was born into a Dalit family in Karnataka. He is the National Convener of the Safai Karmachari Andolan (SKA).
- T.M. Krishna was recognized for ensuring social inclusiveness in culture. He is a Carnatic music vocalist.
- Other winners are Conchita Carpio-Morales from Philippines, Dompet Dhuafa from Indonesia, Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers and Vientiane Rescue from Laos.
- Ramon Magsaysay Award is Asia’s highest honour and is often regarded as the region’s equivalent of the Nobel Prize.
2) Legendary Milkha Singh to be honoured with `Bharat Gaurav` Award.
- Kolkata’s football club East Bengal has announced that the 2016 Bharat Gaurav Award, also known as Pride of India Award will be conferred on legendary athlete Milkha Singh.
- Singh will be honoured with the prestigious award on the East Bengal Foundation Day (1 August 2016).
- Milkha Singh also known as The Flying Sikh, is a former Indian track and field sprinter who was introduced to the sport while serving in the Indian Army.
- He was the only Indian athlete to win an individual athletics gold medal at a Commonwealth Games.
- His birthplace was Govindpura a village 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from Muzaffargarh city in Punjab Province.
3) Oldest elephant from Kerala set to enter Guinness World Records.
- Dakshayani, 86, is all set to enter the Guinness World Records as the oldest living elephant, was honoured in Thiruvananthapuram, the capital of Kerala.
- The Travancore Devasom Board (TDB) the owner of the elephant has already written to the Guinness authorities staking claim to Dakshayani being the oldest living elephant in the world.
- The TDB claims that Dakshayani is with them since 1949.
4) West Bengal wins All India Coordinated Rice Improvement Project Award 2015.
- West Bengal has been selected for the All India Coordinated Rice Improvement Project Award 2015.
- The state has been selected for the award for its achievement in four key areas that include scientific research for seeds.
- This is the first time the state will be receiving this award. It was selected by the 51st committee from the Indira Gandhi Krishi Bikash Kendra. Earlier, West Bengal won the Krishi Kamran Puraskar for three consecutive years.
5) Four New Writers Get Jnanpith `Navlekhan` Award.
- Four new writers have got the Bharatiya Jnanpith`s 11th Navlekhan award for the year 2015 in a ceremony held in New Delhi. Out of these four, three are from Rajasthan.
- Amlendu Tiwari and Balram Kawant were awarded for their respective novels `Parityakt`, and `Sara Morila`, while Om Naagar and Tasneem Khan were awarded for their non-fictions `Nib Ke Chire Se` and `Yeh Mere Rahnuma` respectively.
- The awardees were chosen by a selection panel headed by senior writer and journalist Madhusudan Anand and comprising of eminent literary figures Vishnu Nagar, Govind Prasad and Om Nischal.
6) Kerala Tourism bags six National Tourism awards.
- Kerala Tourism has bagged six National Tourism awards for 2014-15 in the marketing category for states.
- It received two more awards, including the one for its Responsible Tourism (RT) initiative in Wayanad.
- Kerala Tourism received three out of the six awards for states in the Tourism Promotion and Publishing category, including the one for `Most Innovative use of Information Technology` – social media/ mobile app.
7) AAAI confers Lifetime Achievement Award on adman Srinivasan Swamy.
- The Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) conferred its Lifetime Achievement Award on famous adman Srinivasan K. Swamy.
- Popularly known as Sundar, Swamy is Chairman of R.K. Swamy Hansa, a diversified marketing communications group.
- He is also the Vice Chairman of the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) and a Board Member of the Audit Bureau of Circulations.
- The AAAI’s Lifetime Award, instituted in 1988, is the highest recognition bestowed on an individual in India for outstanding contribution to the advertising industry.
8) Nayeemuddin conferred Mohun Bagan Ratna.
- The Mohun Bagan FC has conferred club’s highest decoration Mohun Bagan Ratna (jewel) on legendary Indian Footballer Syed Nayeemuddin.
- Nayeemuddin was chosen for the prestigious award for his overall contribution to the club and the country both as a player and as a coach.
- The former India captain became the 16th recipient of the prestigious award.
- He is also the only sportsperson awarded with the prestigious Arjuna and Dronacharya Awards for football.
- Syed Nayeemuddin is former football player and Indian football team coach. He had captained the Indian national football team which had won the bronze medal at the 1970 Asian Games.