43 journalists feted at Ramnath Goenka Awards

Press must remain free, says Chief Justice Chandrachud at event

3022
Ramnath Goenka Awards
Some of the winners of the Ramnath Goenka Awards. Photo courtesy: The Indian Express

A total of 43 winners of the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Awards from 2019 and 2020 were honored at the 16th edition of the prestigious awards held in New Delhi on 23 March 2023. The awardees could not be feted earlier because of the pandemic, The Indian Express reported.

Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, was the chief guest at the event. As part of the centenary year celebrations of its founder, Ramnath Goenka, the Indian Express Group instituted the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Awards. The awards aim to celebrate excellence in journalism, recognize courage and commitment and showcase outstanding contributions and individuals every year.

The prize-winning stories revolved around the pandemic, including, overburdened health infrastructure, migrant exodus, the plight of frontline workers, unemployment, rumors, and unreported deaths. Other stories ranged from the aftermath of the Hathras gangrape case, cybersecurity, and climate change, to sexual harassment of athletes, among others.

Speaking at the ceremony, Chief Justice Chandrachud said the press must remain free if the country has to remain a democracy, adding fake news poses a serious threat to society.

I am tremendously impressed by the depth and breadth of the reportage that journalists in our country engage in. To those journalists who have not won today – you are no less a winner in the game of life for yours is a noble profession,” The Indian Express quoted him as saying.

Speaking on law and journalism, he said, “Journalists and lawyers (or judges, as in my case) share some things in common. Of course, persons of both professions are fierce believers in the aphorism that the pen is mightier than the sword. But, they also share the occupational hazard of being disliked by virtue of their professions – no easy cross to bear. But members of both professions keep at their daily tasks and hope that one day, the reputations of their professions will receive a makeover.”

The full list of winners, courtesy The Indian Express:

Winner Category Media Organization Story
Anand Choudhary Hindi — Print (2019) Dainik Bhaskar Exploring the dark underbelly of Rajasthan’s villages in its three tribal districts, where children can be “bought” for just Rs 50-150
Sushil Kumar Mohapatra Hindi — Broadcast (2019) NDTV India How Haryana suddenly had the most cancer deaths in the country in 2017 even though it did not figure at the top in 2016
Jyoti Yadav & Bismee Taskin Hindi — Print (2020) The Print The migrant exodus across rural Uttar Pradesh and Bihar; the dejection, the exhaustion, the hunger and more
Ashutosh Mishra Hindi — Broadcast (2020) Aaj Tak Bodies floating in the Ganga in May 2021; the scale, the specter of death and the apathy
Aniket Vasant Sathe Regional Languages – Print (2019) Loksatta 296 dams in urgent need of repairs in a state with the highest number of dams in India; the neglect, the apathy and the failure
Sunil Baby Regional Languages – Broadcast (2019) Media One TV Jharkhand’s Jharia village that has been living over a subterranean fire burning for over a century; the trials, the tribulations and the danger
Sreelakshmi M, Rose Maria Vincent, Shabitha MK Regional Languages — Print (2020) Mathrubhumi.Com Children’s safety in the virtual world during the lockdown; the concern, the predators and the victims
Shrikant Bangale Regional Languages – Broadcast (2020) BBC News Marathi The rise, the fall and the rise of the ‘Masala Queen’ in a tiny Maharashtra village; the grit, the impact and the resurgence
Team PARI Environment, Sciences and Technology Reporting – Print (2019) People’s Archive of Rural India Relentless, tenacious and unmatched coverage of the effects of climate change on farmers, pastoral communities, fisherfolk, nomadic communities, etc., across India
Team Scroll.in Environment, Sciences and Technology Reporting – Broadcast (2019) Scroll.in Women agricultural labourers in Maharashtra learning sustainable agriculture techniques and becoming independent decision-makers
Manish Mishra Environment, Sciences and Technology Reporting – Print (2020) Amar Ujala Climate change and its impact on farmers across the country; the loss and the suicides
Faye D’Souza & Arun Rengaswamy Environment, Sciences and Technology Reporting – Broadcast (2020) Freemedia Interactive Frontline workers dealing with the Covid-19 outbreak in Dharavi; the challenges, the fears and the motivation
Shiv Sahay Singh Uncovering India Invisible – Print (2019) The Hindu Digital exclusions in Jharkhand due to the state linking the public distribution system with Aadhaar cards
Tridip K Mandal Uncovering India Invisible – Broadcast (2019) TheQuint.com 19 lakh “foreigners”, including his own family, as per the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam
Team Uncovering India Invisible – Print (2020) Thomson Reuters Migrant exodus, unemployment in villages and healthcare infrastructure buckling under the strain of record COVID-19 cases; the fear, the fortitude and the aftermath
Sanjay Nandan Uncovering India Invisible – Broadcast (2020) ABP News What goes into the making of a Naxal in India; the perspective, the lens and the voices
Sumant Banerji Business and Economics – Print (2019) Business Today The unorganised sector responsible for the thousands of critical parts needed by India’s vibrant automobile industry
Ayushi Jindal Business and Economics – Broadcast (2019) India Today TV Complicated economics of single-use plastic in the country; the issue, the pollution, and the humans
Omkar Khandekar Business and Economics – Print (2020) HT Mint How WhatsApp forwards nearly destroyed the Indian poultry industry during the pandemic; the rumours, the crisis and the fake news
Dheeraj Mishra Politics and Govt. – Print (2019) The Wire Crores spent illegally on hotels, food and travel during parliamentary committee study tours; the violation, the misuse and the scrutiny
Seemi Pasha Politics and Govt. – Broadcast (2019) TheWire.in Worries and fears of Jamia Nagar residents after the police crackdown at Jamia Millia Islamia; the stereotyping, the discrimination, and the suspicion
Bipasha Mukherjea Politics and Govt. – Broadcast (2020) India Today TV Whether the Popular Front of India was a punching bag or simply a tool to deviate public attention from real issues
Nihal Koshie Sports – Print (2019) The Indian Express Groundbreaking interview with sprinter Dutee Chand in which she acknowledged publicly for the first time that she was in a same-sex relationship
Team NewsX Sports – Broadcast (2019) NewsX Volleyball Federation of India’s corrupt practices irrevocably risking the future of the country’s third most popular sport and sportspersons
Mihir Vasavda Sports – Print (2020) The Indian Express Sexual harassment complaints made by athletes against their coaches; the data, the leniency and the investigations
Ajay Singh Sports – Broadcast (2020) NDTV India Contractual coaches in UP making samosas, selling pakodas and working as labourers to make ends meet
Kaunain Sheriff M Investigative Reporting – Print (2019) The Indian Express Exposé on the miscarriage of justice in the 2013 Muzaffarnagar communal riots, where men accused of murder, gang rape and rioting walked free
S Mahesh Kumar Investigative Reporting – Broadcast (2019) Manorama News Gold smuggling from Nepal into India, which led to the discovery of gold being smuggled through Trivandrum airport in a diplomatic pouch
Tanushree Pandey Investigative Reporting – Print (2020) India Today Ccoverage of the forcible cremation of the Hathras gang-rape victim; the threats, the witch-hunt and the quest for justice
Milan Sharma Investigative Reporting – Broadcast (2020) India Today TV Mismatch in the Covid-19 toll released by the Centre and the figures provided by states; the reality, the underreporting and the impact
Tora Agarwala Reporting on Arts, Culture & Entertainment – Print (2020) The Indian Express Diggers’ scouring the hills of Manipur to look for remains of soldiers who died in World War II; the request, the poignancy and the closure
Chaitanya Marpakwar Civic Journalism – Print (2019) Mumbai Mirror Coverage of the ‘Save Aarey’ campaign against the hacking of 3,000 trees in Mumbai to construct a car shed for the metro project
Shaikh Atikh Rashid

 

Civic Journalism – Print (2020) The Indian Express Reality of the implementation of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban) scheme in Marathwada and Pune city
Zishaan A Latif Photo Journalism – Print (2019) The Caravan Documenting the people’s struggle for inclusion in Assam’s National Register of Citizens (NRC) list
Tarun Rawat Photo Journalism – Print (2020) The Times of India Photograph of the juvenile who shot at Jamia students protesting peacefully against CAA on January 30, 2020
Arun Mohan Sukumar Books (Non-Fiction) – Print (2019) Penguin Random House Midnight’s Machines
Tripurdaman Singh Books – Print (2020) Penguin Random House India Sixteen Stormy Days
Joanna Slater Foreign Correspondent Covering India – Print (2020) The Washington Post Indelible portrait about what life was like when India’s over 1.3 billion citizens went into strict lockdown; the stories of exodus, hardship and solidarity

 

 

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