The Hon’ble Governor has announced the list of recipients of the Governor’s Awards for Excellence – 2024, a highly prestigious initiative to honor outstanding contributions in Environment Protection, Divyangjan Welfare, Sports & Games, and Culture. It highlights outstanding efforts by individuals and organizations committed to driving meaningful change and voluntary service in these critical sectors.
The awards received an overwhelming response after inviting nominations in November 2024. As many as 594 applications were received, which reflected the widespread enthusiasm for this prestigious honor. The nominations reflected a diverse demographic, with applicants ranging from a 16-year-old youth to an 89-year-old person Among the entries, 331 were from urban areas, including the GHMC region, and 263 from rural parts of Telangana. It also had good gender diversity: there were 356 male applicants and 96 female applicants with just one transgender applicant, all part of the liberal ethos of the awards.
A stellar Awards Selection Committee looked over the nominations with Shri K. Padmanabhaiah, IAS (Retd.), Padma Bhushan awardee and former Union Home Secretary heading the team. The jury consisted of great names such as Sri Anil Kumar, an environmental activist; Dr. P. Hanumantha Rao, Padma Shri awardee and an advocate for Divyangjan welfare; Dr. Pullela Gopi Chand, Padma Bhushan awardee and badminton legend; and Dr. Padmaja Reddy, Padma Shri awardee and Kuchipudi dance expert. They made sure that the process of evaluation was minute and fair.
Each award carries a cash award of ₹2,00,000 along with citation for the winners to be recognized. The laureates will be felicitated by the Hon’ble Governor on 26 January, 2025, in a special ceremony.
The winners shall represent excellence in their categories. In Environment Protection, a person award goes to Dusharla Sathyanarayana from Nalgonda; the organization one is given by Dhruvansh Organization, represented by Ms. Madhulika Choudhary from the Rangareddy district.
For Divyangjan Welfare, Arikapudi Raghu from Sangareddy district received the individual award, and the L.V. Prasad Eye Institute received the organizational award, represented by Dr. Beula Christy from Hyderabad.
Jeevanji Deepthi from Warangal received the individual achiever award in the Sports & Games category. The Aditya Mehta Foundation received the organizational award, represented by Sri Aditya Jitendra Kumar, from Hyderabad.
The Culture category had joint individual awardees: P.B. Krishna Bharathi from Hyderabad and Prof. M. Pandu Ranga Rao from Warangal. Organizational award in this category was given to the Samskruti Foundation, represented by Sri T. Rambabu based in Hyderabad.
The inaugural edition of the Governor’s Awards for Excellence sets an exemplary benchmark. It recognizes the works of environmentalists, para-athletes, advocates for the welfare of Divyangjan, and cultural icons committed to India’s artistic and cultural heritage. It is an ode to the commitment of the state towards recognition and inspiration for extra ordinary work in all areas.
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