• 139 Current Affairs (Important) were found in Month -Jan 2015 to June 2015 for Type - Awards
  • Indian Government's Jan Dhan Yojana has been included in Guinness Book of World Records for Opening of About 11.5 Crore Bank Accounts in short span of About five months. It makes way for government's ambitious plan to transfer annual subsidy directly to bank accounts of more than 15 crore beneficiaries to remove system leakages.
  • 10th Navlekhan Award of Bharatiya Jnanpith were awarded to Hindi writers Babusha Kohli and Upasana for Prem Gilhari Dil Akhrot (poem) and Ek Zindagi Ek Ek Script Bhar (novel ) respectively.
  • 14-year-old Indian-American student Karan Menon won 2015 National Geographic Bee championship.
  • 16th International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards 2015 (In Malaysia) -
    1. Best Film – Queen
    2. Best Director –Rajkumar Hirani (PK)
    3. Best Actor-Shahid Kapoor (Haider)
    4. Best Actress-Kangana Ranaut (Queen)
    5. Best Supporting Actor- Riteish Deshmukh (Ek Villain)
    6. Best Supporting Actress- Tabu (Haider)
    7. Star Debut of the Year (Male)-Tiger Shroff (Heropanti)
    8. Star Debut of the Year (Female)-Kriti sanon (Heropanti)
    9. Best Music Director-Shankar, Ehsaan & Loy (2 States)
    10. Best Male Playback Award-Ankit Tiwari for Galliyan (Ek Villain)
    11. Best Female Playback Award-Kanika Kapoor for Baby Doll (Raginin MMS2)
  • 19th CEAT Cricket Awards (2015) -
    1. International Cricketer - Kumar Sangakkara (Sri Lanka)
    2.  Indian Cricketer - Ajinkya Rahane
    3. International Lifetime Achievement - Kapil Dev edition of the awards.
    4. International Batsman - Hashim Amla
    5. International Bowler - Rangana Herath
    6. T20 Player - Dwayne Bravo
    7. Popular Choice - Kieron Pollard
    8. Special Performance - Rohit Sharma
    9. Domestic Cricketer - R Vinay Kumar
    10. Young Player - Deepak Hooda
  • 21st screen awards -
    • Actor - Shahid Kapoor (Haider)
    • Actress - Priyanka Chopra (Mary Kom)
    • Film - Queen
    • Director - Vikas Bahl (Queen)
    • Lifetime Achievement Award - Hema Malini
  • 24th Yudhvir Foundation Memorial Award will be given to Prajwala founder Sunitha Krishnan for her work in rescue, restoration and rehabilitation of victims in trafficking and her support for HIV patients.
  • 44 Armoured Regiment of Indian Army honoured by Presidents Standards for meritorious and distinguished service for over 30 years.
  • 46th Dada Saheb Phalke Award given to Actor Shashi Kapoor.
  • 57th Annual Grammy Awards -
    1. These are recording industrys most prestigious award presented annually by National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) of the United States.
    2. 83 Grammy Awards were presented this year.
    3. Main Grammy Awards wnners 2015 -

      1. Category

        Album

        Artist

        Best album

        Morning Phase

        Beck Hansen

        Best record

        Stay With Me

        Sam Smith

        Best song

        Stay With Me

        James Napier, William Phillips & Sam Smith

        Best new artist

        -

        Sam Smith

        Childrens Album

        I Am Malala: How One Girl Stood Up For Education And Changed The World (Malala Yousafzai)

        Neela Vaswani (India)

        Best Pop solo performance

        Happy (Live)

        Pharrell Williams

        Best Pop Duo/Group Performance

        Say Something

        A Great Big World With Christina Aguilera

        Best Rock Performance

        Lazaretto

        Jack White

        Best Metal Performance

        The Last In Line

        Tenacious D

        Best Rock Album

        Morning Phase

        Beck

        Best R&B Performance

        Drunk in Love

        Beyonce featuring Jay Z

        Best Rap Performance

        I

        Kendrick Lamar
  • 60th Filmfare Awards announced -
    1. Best Actor (male) :Shahid Kapoor for film Haider directed by Vishal Bhardwaj
    2. Best Actor (female) :Kangana Ranaut for film Queen directed by Vikas Bahl
    3. Best Film:Queen directed by Vikas Bahl
    4. Best Director:Vikas Bahl for film Queen
    5. Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award: Kamini Kaushal
  • 62nd National Film Awards -
    1. Best Feature Film:Court (Marathi, Hindi, Gujarati & English)
    2. Indira Gandhi Award for Best Debut Film of a Director: Asha for Jaoar Majhe
    3. Best Direction: Srijit Mukherji for Chotushkone (Bengali)
    4. Best Actress: Kangana Ranaut for Queen
    5. Best Actor: Vijay for Nanu Avanalla Avalu (Kannada)
    6. Best Supporting Actor: Bobby Simhaa for Jigarthanda (Tamil)
    7. Best Supporting Actress: Baljinder Kaur for Pagdi The Honour (Haryanavi)
    8. Best Child Actor: Kaakkaa Muttai(Tamil)
    9. Best Female Playback Singer: Uttara Unnikrishanan for Azhagu, Saivam (Tamil)
    10. Best Dialogues: Vishal Bhardwaj for Haider
    11. Best Lyrics: NA. Muthukumar for Azhagu, Saivam (Tamil)
    12. Best Music Direction Songs:Haider
    13. Best Choreography: Sudesh Bismil, Haider
    14. Best Films (Language Wise)
      1. Hindi :Queen
      2. Assamese : Othello
      3. Bengali : Nirbashito
      4. Rabha : Orong
      5. Haryanvi : Pagdi The Honour
      6. Punjabi : Punjab 1984
      7. Tamil : Kuttram Kadithal
        8. <
      8. Telugu : Chandamama Kathalu
      9. Malayalam : Ain
      10. Marathi : Killa
      11. Odiya : Aadim Vichar
      12. Kannada : Harivu
      13. Konkani :Nachom - IA Kumpasar
  • 62nd National Film Awards presented. Shashi Kapoor honoured with Dadasaheb Phalke Award this year.
  • 68th British Academy Films Awards (BAFTA) (London)
  • 72nd Golden Globe Award
    • Drama
      • Picture - Boyhood
      • Actor - Eddie Redmayne
      • Actress - Julianne Moore
    • Musical / Comedy
      • Picture - The Grand Budapest Hotel
      • Actor - Michael Keaton
      • Actress - Amy Adams
    • Supporting Actor - J. K. Simmons
    • Supporting Actress - Patricia Arquette
    • Director - Richard Linklater
  • Adiel Yosef, a 22-year-old Indian-origin soldier in Israeli army received Presidential Medal of Excellence by Israel Government.
  • Brigade of The Guardsand the Sikh Regimentwere collectively awarded Best Marching Contingents Trophy for Republic Day Parade 2015.
  • The Lunchbox has been nominated for British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Awards 2015 under non-English best film category. The film is the only Indian film to be nominated for 2015 BAFTA Awards.
  • Oscar Awards 2015(87th Academy Awards, Ceremony held in Los Angles (USA)))
    1. Presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in 24 categories.
    2. Notable awards
      1. Best Picture: Birdman
      2. Best Director: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu for Birdman
      3. Best Actor: Eddie Redmayne for The Theory of Everything
      4. Best Actress: Julianne Moore for Still Alice
      5. Best Supporting Actor: JK Simmons for Whiplash
      6. Best Supporting Actress: Patricia Arquette for Boyhood
      7. Best Animated Movie: Big Hero Six 6
      8. Best Original Song: John Stephens and Lonnie Lynn for Glory
      9. Best Original Score: Alexandre Desplat for The Grand Budapest Hotel
  • AB De Villiers has been conferred with South Africa (SA) Cricketer of the Year Award for 2015.
  • Actor Amitabh Bachchan has been presented with Social Media Person of Year 2015 award by Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI).
  • Actor Anil Kapoor conferred with Deenanath Mangeshkar Award 2015 along with Marathi actor Dilip Prabhavalkar. Rishi Kapoor and Zakir Husain were conferred with this award in 2014.
  • Actor Shah Rukh Khan honoured with Dadasaheb Phalke Film Foundation Award 2015 for movie Happy New Year.
  • Actress Rani Mukerji has been honored by National Award for the Best Representation of the Cause of Safety, Security and Protection of Women and Girl Child by National Institute of Gender Justice (NIGJ).
  • Aditi Arya of Delhi won fbb Femina Miss India 2015 title. First runner-up was Aafreen Rachel Vaz of Karnataka and second runner-up was Vartika Singh of Uttar Pradesh.
  • Amitabh Bachchan has been conferred with the second Yash Chopra Memorial Award.
  • Arun Pudur, owner of software firm Celframe, named as 10th in Wealth-X List of wealthiest entrepreneur under the age of 40 with an estimated net worth of 4 billion USD.
    1. Pudur is a 37 year old and founded the software firm Celframe in 1998 which produces the worlds second most popular word processor after Microsoft.
    2. Nine of self-made billionaires on the Wealth-X top 10 list made their fortunes from the technology sector.
    3. Youngest entrepreneur on the list is 32-year-old Leo Chen, chairman of Jumei International Holding one of Chinas largest online cosmetics retailers.
    4. Wealth-X is a reputed agency on wealth intelligence, providing sales, marketing, strategy and compliance solutions to clients in the financial services, luxury, not-for-profit and education sectors.
  • Asian Banker Achievement Award 2015 -
    1. Core Banking (Mid-Sized Bank) : ING Vysya and FIS
    2. Core Banking (Emerging Bank) : Kanbawza (KBZ) Bank and Oracle Financial Services Software Limited
    3. Corporate Payment : Axis Bank and Arteria Technologies
    4. HR System : Axis Bank, Cognizant Technology Services, Mobitrail and Tejora Technologies
    5. Outsourcing (New Bank): Bharatiya Mahila Bank and FIS
    6. Technology Leadership Achievement : Amit Sethi, Chief Information Officer, Axis Bank
    7. ATM and Kiosks: Cathay United Bank & NCR System, Taiwan
  • Australia announced to join China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) as a founding member with investment of 718.5 million USD as paid-in capital. Australia will be sixth largest shareholder of AIIB.
    1. Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) will be headquartered in Beijing with paid-in capital of 20 billion USD and total authorised capital of 100 billion USD.
    2. India will be second-largest shareholder of AIIB which will be operational by December 2015.
  • BJP leader Yashwant Sinha conferred with Officer of the Legion of Honour for valuable contribution to thought on international issues, it is the highest French civilian honor.
  • Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan honoured by Outstanding Contribution to Cinema award at 5th Asian Awards in London -  
    1. Previous winners in this category included Irrfan Khan (2014), Anupam Kher (2013) and Yash Chopra (2011).
    2. List of Awardees

      Category  

      Winners

      Founders Award

      Dr. Amar Bose, Founder of Bose Corporation

      Entrepreneur of the Year

      Jack Ma, Founder & CEO of Alibaba

      Outstanding Achievement in Cinema

      Shah Rukh Khan, Bollywood actor

      Outstanding Achievement in Sport

      Kumar Sangakkara, Cricketer of Sri Lanka

      Business Leader of the Year

      The Hinduja Brothers 

      Outstanding Achievement in Television

      Sanjeev Bhaskar, Comedian, actor and broadcaster

      Outstanding Achievement in Art & Design 

      John Rocha, Designer

      Outstanding Achievement in Science & Technology 

      Sir Tejinder Singh Virdee, Experimental particle physicist

      Outstanding Achievement in Music

      Zayn Malik, English singer and songwriter
  • British government honored Indian Fauja Singh by prestigious British Empire medal for being world's oldest marathon runner
  • CNN-IBN announced Indian of the Year Awards 2014 -
    1. Indian of the Year 2014 - Narendra Modi
    2. Politics - Arun Jaitley
    3. Sports - Jitu Rai
    4. Business - N Chandrasekaran
    5. Entertainment - Chetan Bhagat
    6. Public Service - Tongam Rina
    7. Global Indian - Satya Nadella
    8. Lifetime Achievement - ISRO (Indian Space Research Organization)
  • Cannes Film Festival 2015 -
    1. French thriller Dheepan honoured with Palme d'Or top prize
    2. Indian Movie Masaan won International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI) award and Promizing Future Prize Ex-aequo.
    3. Other awards -
      1. Feature Films
        1. Palme d'Or: Dheepan, directed by Jacques Audiard
        2. Grand Prix: Saul Fia (Son of Saul), directed by Laszlo Nemes
        3. Best Director: Hou Hsiao-Hsien (Nie Yinniang - The Assassin)
        4. Best Screenplay: Michel Franco (Chronic)
        5. Best Actress : Emmanuelle Bercot (Mon Roi), Mara (Carol)
        6. Best Actor: Vincent Lindon (La Loi Du Marche - The Measure of a Man)
        7. Jury Prize: The Lobster, directed by Yorgos Lanthimos
      2. Un Certain Regard -
        1. Un Certain Regard Prize - Hrútar (RAMS) directed by Grímur Hakonarson
        2. Jury Prize -  Zvizdan (The High Sun) directed by Dalibor Matanic
        3. Directing Prize: Kishibe No Tabi (Journey to the Shore) directed by Kurosawa Kiyoshi
        4. Talent Prize: Comoara (The Treasure) directed by Corneliu Porumboiu
      3. Promizing Future Prize Ex-aequo
        1. Nahid directed by Ida Panahandeh 
        2. Masaan Directed by Neeraj Ghaywan
      4. Short Films
        1. Palme d'Or - Short Film -  Waves '98 directed by Ely Dagher
  • Carnatic vocalist Sanjay Subrahmanyan has been selected ‘Sangita Kalanidhi award 2015 of the Music Academy.
  • Central Banking Awards 2015 announced by the Central Banking Publications-
    1. Governor of the Year Award: Raghuram Rajan, RBI Governor
    2. Central Bank of the Year award: The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ)
    3. Lifetime Achievement Award: Jacques de Larosiere former Governor of the Banque de France (1987–1993)
    4. Economics in Central Banking (inaugural award): Claudio Borio, head of the monetary and economic department at the Bank for International Settlements
  • Central Board Of Excise and Customs Awarded the Prime Ministers Award for Excellence in Public Administration for 2012-13.
  • Chhattisgarh has been awarded for being one of the best-performing states in Renewable Energy Sector in India.
  • Chinese nuclear physicist Yu Min was was given the State Preeminent Science and Technology Award 2014 by Chinese President Xi Jinping for his research in nuclear weapons since 1960s.
  • Classical vocalist Prabha Atre has been honored by Bhimsen Joshi Lifetime Achievement Award-2014.
  • Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) won prestigious Golden Peacock National Quality Award for the year 2015.
  • Dr. Ambedkar National Merit Awards were given to 84 Students belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
  • Eminent Chemistry scientist and recipient of Bharat Ratna, CNR Rao is conferred by Japans highest civilian award the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star by Japanese Ambassador to India, Takeshi Yagi for his contributions to science and Indo-Japanese science cooperation.
  • Eminent Indian-American entrepreneur and philanthropist, Frank Islam, has been honored by prestigious Martin Luther King Jr Award for his efforts in international service and civil engagement.
  • Filmmaker Adoor Gopalakrishnan won Bishwaratna Bhupen Hazarika International Solidarity Award by Assam government.
  • Forbes list of Worlds 100 Most Powerful Women of 2015 -
    1. Top 10 powerful women -

      Rank 

            Name

      1

      Angela Merkel (Germany)

      2

      Hillary Clinton (USA)

      3

      Melinda Gates (USA)

      4

      Janet Yellen (USA)

      5

      Mary Barra (USA)

      6

      Christine Lagarde (France)

      7

      Dilma Rousseff (Brazil)

      8

      Sheryl Sandberg (USA)

      9

      Susan Wojcicki (USA)

      10

      Michelle Obama (USA)
    2. Indian Women in the List - Arundhati Bhattacharya (30th - Chairperson of State Bank of India), Chanda Kochhar (35th - MD and CEO of ICICI Bank), Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw (85th - CMD of Biocon Limited), Shobhana Bhartia( 93rd - Editorial Director of Hindustan Times).
  • Former Prime Minister Of India Atal Bihari Vajpayee will be honored by Bangladesh for his outstanding support for the countrys independence from Pakistan in 1971 when he was a Lok Sabha member.
  • Former Union minister M Veerappa Moily has been selected for prestigious Saraswati Samman for 2014 for his famous Kannada poem ‘Ramayana Mahanveshanam.
  • Four Indians will be conferred with the Spring Imperial Decorations of Japan among the 85 foreign recipients to be conferred by Emperor of Japan Akihito.
    1. Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star - Thottuvelil Krishna Pillai Aiyappankutty Nair, Chintamani Nagesa Ramachandra Rao
    2. Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Rays - Nikunj Parekh
    3. Orders of the Sacred Treasure, Gold and Silver Rays - Topgay Bhutia
  • French magazine Charlie Hebdo has been presented with Freedom of Expression Courage Award 2015 by PEN American Centre at the American Museum of Natural History.
  • Google India won Randstad Award 2015 for Most Attractive Employer in India with Sony India as runner-up. Other Awards were
    1. Manufacturing - Tata Steel
    2. FMCG - P&G
    3. Automobile - Honda India
    4. Microsoft India has been inducted into the Hall of Fame category this year for winning the coveted Randstad Award title for four consecutive years.
    5. Randstad Awards are given each year to encourage best practices for talent attraction and to identify the best ‘Employer Brand in the country.
  • Googles CEO Larry Page has named as the ‘business person of the year for 2014 by Fortune magazine.
  • Health and Family Welfare Minister J P Nadda launched Kayakalp awards to Public Health Facilities(PHFs) for following Swachchta Guidelines in Public Health Facilities.
  • Hindi novelist Mithileshwar won the Shrilal Shukla Sahitya IFFCO Literary Award 2014.
  • Hindi poet Gopaldas Neeraj won Rashtriya Kavi Pradeep Samman for the year 2012-13 given by Department of Culture of Madhya Pradesh government.
  • Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) Chairman R.K. Tyagi has been conferred with JGBS-Top Rankers' Excellence Award for CEO of 2014.
  • Hockey India conferred Major Dhyan Chand Lifetime Achievement Award on legendary Balbir Singh Senior.
  • Hockey India gave first Hockey India Annual Awards -
    1. Dhruv Batra Award for Player of the Year - Birendra Lakra (Male) and Vandana Katariya (Female).
    2. Jaman Lal Sharma Award for Invaluable Contribution - Harendra Singh
    3. Outstanding Achievement - One Thousand Hockey Legs for exceptional contribution towards the sport.
  • India Artist Bharti Kher conferred with the Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters, highest cultural award of France.
  • India's ISRO (Indian Space Research Organization) won the Space Pioneer award 2015 by US National Space Society for low-cost Mangalyaan Mars orbiter mission. The Award was presented during 34th Annual International Space Development Conference held at Toronto (Canada).
  • India's Suresh Kalmadi is conferred with Asian Athletics Association Presidents award for introducing top events like Asian Grand Prix series, Indoor Championships and All Star Meet etc. during his tenure as president of AAA from 2000 - 2013.
  • India's space agency Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has been selected for Gandhi Peace Prize 2014 for social, economic transformation through non-violence means.
  • Indian Chemistry Scientist C.N.R. Rao has been given Highest Civilian Award of Japan, Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star for his 'contribution to promoting understanding in science and technology between Japan and India.
  • Indian Economist Amartya Sen has been given the Charleston-EFG John Maynard Keynes Prize 2015.
  • Indian Film Margarita With starring Kalki Koechlin won the  Audience Award for Best Feature Film honour at Washington, DC International Film festival.
  • Indian Historian-author Ramachandra Guha has been selected for Japans Fukuoka Prize 2015 in Academic category. Apart from him, Thant Myint-U (Grand Prize) and Minh Hanh (Arts and Culture ) were also chosen for this edition of award.
  • Indian Nihal Singh Agar has been honored by Order of Australia for his service to the Hindu community in Australia and fostering cross-cultural co-operation with a focus on medical education.
  • Indian Novelist Vikram Chandra is named among the finalists for National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) Awards of US for his non-fiction work Geek Sublime: The Beauty of Code, the Code of Beauty.
  • Indian Origin Person Gopinath Pillai awarded with outstanding service award in Singapore by National University of Singapore(NUS). He is serving as Ambassador-at-Large of Singapore and special envoy to Andhra Pradesh.
  • Indian Origin writer Sumona Sinha has been awarded French academy award for her contribution to French language and literature.
  • Indian Spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar has been conferred with Columbias highest civilian award - Orden de la Democracia Simon Bolivar en el grado de cruz Caballero by Colombia.
  • Indian author Amitav Ghosh shortlisted for the 2015 Man Booker International Prize among the 10 finalists for the prize. 
  • Indian author Neel Mukherjee won 2014 Encore Award worth 10000 pounds for his novel The Lives of Others.
  • Indian ecologist Madhav Gadgil and US Scientist Dr. Jane Lubchenco were named winners of Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement 2015 for their engagement in development of conservation and sustainability policies
    1. Tyler prize was started in 1973 and is awarded by International Tyler Prize Executive Committee with the administrative support of the University of Southern California in honor of exceptional work for environmental sciences and policy qualities for the cause.
  • Indian environmental activist Rajendra Singh, has been conferred the prestigious Stockholm Water Prize this year for his innovative water restoration efforts and courage to empower communities in Indian villages.
    1. It is known as Nobel Prize for water has been given to Rajendra Singh for his efforts for bringing water water to 1,000 villages.
  • Indian novelist Siddhartha Gigoo won 2015 Commonwealth Short Story Prize for Asia region for his work Umbrella Man, a tale of surreal meditation on mental health and the environment. He will now compete with other four regional winners later in 2015.
  • Indian-American Purnendu Dasgupta has been awarded with J. Calvin Giddings Award 2015 for Excellence in Education by the American Chemical Society (ACS).
  • Indian-American Sivanadane Mandjiny won University of North Carolina (UNC) Board of Governors 2015 Award for Excellence in Teaching.
  • Indian-American author Akhil Sharma won Folio Prize 2015 for his novel Family Life.
    1. The Folio Prize was instituted in 2014 and recognises best English-language fiction from around the world, published in United Kingdom (UK) during the year.
  • Indian-American biologist Murty S Kambhampati won US presidential award for excellence in science, mathematics and engineering mentoring.
  • Indian-American physician Rahul Jindal has been selected for prestigious Fulbright-Nehru Distinguished Chair to India. The Ahmedabad-based HL Trivedi Institute of Transplantation Sciences will host Dr. Rahul Jindal for the duration of the chair. This Institute performs about 400 kidney transplants in a year and has developed innovative transplant tolerance models.
  • Indian-American policeman Harkeert Singh Saini won prestigious Top Civilian Supervisor of the Year award for his services to Houston Police department in Texas state of United States of America.
  • Indian-origin South African educator Ganasen Reddy has been awarded with KwaZulu-Natal 2015 National Teachers Award (Lifetime Achievement Award for teaching in South Africa) at the annual National Teaching Awards in South Africa. 
    1. Other Indian Origin Awardess are Silas Pillay, Anneline Govender and Caryn Reddy.
  • Indian-origin USA's Surgeon General Vivek Murthy has been presented with Pride of Community Award by Hindu American Foundation on its 12th Annual Day.
  • Indian-origin scientist Gurpreet Singh has been given the presented with the prestigious National Science Foundation Career award with cash prize money of 500000 USD for his research on Scalable liquid exfoliation processing of ultrathin two-dimensional metal dichalcogenides nanosheets for energy storage devices.
  • Indian-origin scientist Srikanth Jagabathula has been honored by Career Development Award (CAREER) by National Science Foundation of the United States for developing data-driven modelling and learning techniques to improve the accuracy of operational decision making.
  • Indian-origin teacher Gurnimrat Nimmy Sidhu named for University of Oxford Inspirational Teacher Award.
  • Indias Mars Orbiter programme team has won the 2015 Space Pioneer Award in the science and engineering category from the US based National Space Society (NSS).
  • Indias shipping trade union, National Union of Seafarers of India (NUSI) has been honoured by Best Welfare Organisation of the Year 2015 award by Koji Sekimizu, Secretary General of International Maritime Organisation. The award is promoted by UK based International Seafarers Welfare and Assistance Network (ISWAN).
  • Jammu and Kashmir has been selected for National Award for e-Governance for the best district-level initiative in Citizen-Centric Service Delivery through ICT.
  • Joe Root and Charlotte Edwards have been named England mens and womens cricketers of the year for 2014-15.
  • Journalist Vinod Mehta has been conferred with Uttar Pradesh's highest civilian award Yash Bharti.
    1. Yash Bharti Samman is conferred by the Uttar Pradesh Government for excellence in literature, fine arts, folk and classical music and sports.
  • Kerala Tourism won silver Golden Gate award for its global multimedia campaign for promoting the backwaters of Kerala at Internationale Tourismus-Borse Berlin (ITB-Berlin) 2015, Germany.
  • Krishi Karman Awards 2013-14 Given by PM Narendra Modi
    1. Individual crops
      1. Rice - Chhattisgarh
      2. Wheat - Madhya Pradesh
      3. Pulses - Assam and Tamil Nadu
      4. Coarse Cereals - West Bengal
      5. Oil Seeds - Gujarat
    2. Total Food Grains Production
      1. Category-I (foodgrains production > 10 million tonnes) - Punjab
      2. Category-II (foodgrains production 1 - 10 million tonens) - Odisha
      3. Category-III (foodgrains production < 1 million tonnes) - Meghalaya
    3. Each award winning state received a trophy, a citation and a cash award of 2 crore rupees
  • Laszlo Krasznahorkai from Hungary won sixth prestigious Man Booker International Prize 2015 in London.
  • M.Y.S.Prasad, director of Satish Dhawan Space Centre, has been awarded the Vikram Sarabhai Memorial Award for 2014-2015 by the Indian Science Congress Association (ISCA).
  • Madhya Pradesh won 10th National Award for excellent work in Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (MGNREGA) during MGNREGA summit in New Delhi.
  • Major Mukund Varadarajan and Naik Neeraj Singh Posthumously Awarded Ashok Chakra during the 66th Republic day celebrations.
  • Marathi Litterateur Bhalchandra Nemade conferred with 50th Jnanapith Award. The award includes 11 lakh rupees and a citation. His novel, Kosala, written in 1963 was considered as a path breaking in Marathi literature.
  • Marathi Writer Bhalchandra Nemade has been given then the Jnanpith (Gyanpeeth) Award 2014 for his novel Kosala.
  • Mariyam Asif Siddiqui, a 12-year-old Muslim girl won the first place in a Bhagwad Gita competition organised by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON).
  • Ministry for Development of North East Region (DoNER) headed by its Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh, received Web Ratna Award 2014 by Ministry of Information Technology (IT) for exemplary efforts by DoNER Ministry for promoting e-governance initiatives.
  • Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) appointed Olympic Bronze medallist boxer MC Mary Kom as the brand ambassador of the North-East region.
  • Minoti Apte, Indian pancreatic cancer researcher in Australia has been named New South Wales (NSW) Woman of the year 2015 for her contributions to medical research, tertiary education and the Indian community.
  • Nagesh Kukunoor's Film Dhanak won two awards at 65th Berlin International Film Festival.
  • Namibian President Hifikepunye Pohamba won the worlds most valuable individual award, the Mo Ibrahim prize for African leadership. Award is worth $5m (£3.2m) award and given each year to a leader who governed well, raised living standards and then left office.
  • New Zealand cricket captain Brendon McCullum and Coach Mike Hesson were honoured with Officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit (ONZM).
  • New Zealand cricket team captain Brendon McCullum conferred with Sir Richard Hadlee Medal for 2014-15 as highest cricketing honour of New Zealand.
  • Nine Indian Americans Awarded $50,000 Sloan Research Fellowships among 126 US and Canadian researchers selected by The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation as recipients of the 2015 Sloan Research Fellowships.
    1. Nandini Ananth, Prabal Dutta, Shyam Gollakota, Shantanu Jadhav, Hemamala Karunadasa, Neal Mankad, Suresh Naidu, Padmini Rangamani and Vivek Shende.
  • Noted Hindi Writer Kamal Kishore Goenka has been honored by the Vyas Samman 2014 for his Research Work 'Premchand Ki Kahaniyon ka Kaalkramanusar Adhdhyan'.
  • Novelist Chitra Mudgal has been honored by Nirala Smriti Samman 2015.
  • PM Narendra Modi congratulated Islamic scholar and activist Maulana Wahiduddin Khan for his winning Sayyidina Imam Al Hassan Ibn Ali Peace Award in Dubai.
  • PM Narendra Modi presented National Bravery Awards 2014 to 24 awardees.
  • Padam Awards 2015 - Total 104 Padma Awards have been conferred this year (9 Padma Vibhushan, 20 Padma Bhushan and 75 Padma Shri)
    • Padma Vibhushan
    • S. No. Name of the Awardee Discipline State/Domicile
      1. Shri L. K. Advani Public Affairs Gujarat
      2. Shri Amitabh Bachchan Art Maharashtra
      3. Shri Prakash Singh Badal Public Affairs Punjab
      4. Dr. D. Veerendra Heggade Social Work Karnataka
      5. Shri Mohammad Yusuf Khan alias Dilip Kumar Art Maharashtra
      6. Shri Jagadguru Ramanandacharya Swami Rambhadracharya Others Uttar Pradesh
      7. Prof. Malur Ramaswamy Srinivasan Science and Engineering Tamil Nadu
      8. Shri Kottayan K. Venugopal Public Affairs Delhi
      9. Shri Karim Al Hussaini Aga Khan (Foreigner) Trade and Industry France/UK
    • Padma Bhushan
    • S. No. Name of the Awardee Discipline State/Domicile
      1. Shri Jahnu Barua Art Assam
      2. Dr. Vijay Bhatkar Science and Engineering Maharashtra
      3. Shri Swapan Dasgupta Literature and Education Delhi
      4. Swami Satyamitranand Giri Others Uttar Pradesh
      5. Shri N. Gopalaswami Civil Service Tamil Nadu
      6. Dr. Subhash C. Kashyap Public Affairs Delhi
      7. Dr. (Pandit) Gokulotsavji Maharaj   Art Madhya Pradesh
      8. Dr. Ambrish  Mithal Medicine Delhi
      9. Smt. Sudha Ragunathan Art Tamil Nadu
      10. Shri Harish Salve Public Affairs Delhi
      11. Dr. Ashok Seth Medicine Delhi
      12. Shri Rajat Sharma Literature and Education Delhi
      13. Shri Satpal Sports Delhi
      14. Shri Shivakumara Swami Others Karnataka
      15. Dr. Kharag Singh Valdiya Science and Engineering Karnataka
      16. Prof. Manjul Bhargava(NRI/PIO) Science and Engineering  USA
      17. Shri David Frawley (Vamadeva)(Foreigner) Others  USA
      18. Shri Bill Gates(Foreigner) Social Work  USA
      19. Ms. Melinda Gates(Foreigner) Social Work  USA
      20. Shri Saichiro Misumi(Foreigner) Others  Japan
    • Padma Shri
      S. No. Name of the Awardee Discipline State/Domicile
      1. Dr. Manjula Anagani Medicine Telangana
      2. Shri S. Arunan Science and Engineering Karnataka
      3. Ms. Kanyakumari Avasarala Art Tamil Nadu
      4. Dr. Bettina Sharada Baumer Literature and Education Jammu and Kashmir
      5. Shri Naresh Bedi Art Delhi
      6. Shri Ashok Bhagat Social Work Jharkhand
      7. Shri Sanjay Leela Bhansali Art Maharashtra
      8. Dr. Lakshmi Nandan Bora Literature and Education Assam
      9. Dr. Gyan  Chaturvedi Literature and Education Madhya Pradesh
      10. Prof. (Dr.) Yogesh Kumar Chawla Medicine Chandigarh
      11. Smt. Jayakumari Chikkala Medicine Delhi
      12. Shri Bibek Debroy Literature and Education Delhi
      13. Dr. Sarungbam Bimola  Kumari Devi Medicine Manipur
      14. Dr. Ashok Gulati  Public Affairs Delhi
      15. Dr.  Randeep  Guleria Medicine Delhi
      16. Dr. K. P. Haridas Medicine Kerala
      17. Shri Rahul Jain Art Delhi
      18. Shri Ravindra Jain Art Maharashtra
      19. Dr. Sunil Jogi Literature and Education Delhi
      20. Shri Prasoon Joshi Art Maharashtra
      21. Dr. Prafulla Kar Art Odisha
      22. Ms. Saba Anjum Sports Chhattisgarh
      23. Smt. Ushakiran Khan Literature and Education Bihar
      24. Dr. Rajesh Kotecha Medicine Rajasthan
      25. Prof. Alka Kriplani Medicine Delhi
      26. Dr. Harsh Kumar Medicine Delhi
      27. Shri Narayana Purushothama Mallaya Literature and Education Kerala
      28. Shri Lambert Mascarenhas Literature and Education Goa
      29. Dr. (Mrs.) Janak Palta McGilligan Social Work Madhya Pradesh
      30. Shri Veerendra Raj Mehta Social Work Delhi
      31. Shri Tarak Mehta Art Gujarat
      32. Shri Neil Herbert Nongkynrih Art Meghalaya
      33. Shri Chewang Norphel Others Jammu and Kashmir
      34. Shri T. V. Mohandas Pai Trade and Industry Karnataka
      35. Dr.Tejas Patel Medicine Gujarat
      36. Shri Jadav Molai Peyang Others Assam
      37. Smt. Bimla Poddar Other Uttar Pradesh
      38. Dr. N. Prabhakar Science and Engineering Delhi
      39. Dr. Prahalada Science and Engineering Maharashtra
      40. Dr. Narendra Prasad Medicine Bihar
      41. Shri Ram Bahadur Rai Literature and Education Delhi
      42. Ms. Mithali Raj Sports Telangana
      43. Shri P. V.  Rajaraman Civil Service Tamil Nadu
      44. Prof.  J. S. Rajput Literature and Education Uttar Pradesh
      45. Shri Kota Srinivasa Rao Art Andhra Pradesh
      46. Prof. Bimal Roy Literature and Education West Bengal
      47. Shri Shekhar Sen Art Maharashtra
      48. Shri Gunvant Shah Literature and Education Gujarat
      49. Shri Brahmdev Sharma (Bhaiji) Literature and Education Delhi
      50. Shri Manu Sharma Literature and Education Uttar Pradesh
      51. Prof. Yog Raj Sharma Medicine Delhi
      52. Shri Vasant Shastri Science and Engineering Karnataka
      53. Shri S. K. Shivkumar Science and Engineering Karnataka
      54. Ms. P. V. Sindhu Sports Telangana
      55. Shri Sardara Singh Sports Haryana
      56. Ms. Arunima Sinha Sports Uttar Pradesh
      57. Shri Mahesh Raj Soni Art Rajasthan
      58. Dr.Nikhil Tandon Medicine Delhi
      59. Shri H. Thegtse Rinpoche Social Work Arunachal Pradesh
      60. Dr.Hargovind Laxmishanker Trivedi Medicine Gujarat
      61. Shri Huang Baosheng(Foreigner) Others China
      62. Prof. Jacques Blamont(Foreigner) Science and Engineering France
      63. Late Shri Syedna Mohammad Burhanuddin(Posthumous) Others Maharashtra
      64. Shri Jean-Claude Carriere(Foreigner) Literature and Education France
      65. Dr. Nandrajan Raj” Chetty(NRI/PIO) Trade and Industry USA
      66. Shri George L. Hart(Foreigner) Others USA
      67. Jagat Guru Amrta Suryananda Maha Raja(NRI/PIO) Others Portugal
      68. Late Shri Meetha Lal Mehta (Posthumous) Social Work Rajasthan
      69. Ms. Tripti Mukherjee(NRI/PIO) Art USA
      70. Dr. Dattatreyudu Nori(NRI/PIO) Medicine USA
      71. Dr. Raghu Rama Pillarisetti(NRI/PIO) Medicine USA
      72. Dr. Saumitra Rawat(NRI/PIO) Medicine UK
      73. Prof. Annette Schmiedchen(Foreigner) Literature and Education Germany
      74. Late Shri Pran Kumar Sharma alias Pran(Posthumous) Art Delhi
      75. Late Shri R. Vasudevan(Posthumous) Civil Service Tamil Nadu
  • Pakistan Government conferred its top civilian award Nishan-e-Pakistan on Chinese President Xi Jinping for his outstanding contribution in promotion of relationship between the two countries.
  • Pandit Haridutt Sharma Award for Journalism, Writing and Social Services presented to Anurradha Prasad(, Editor-in-Chief of News-24 Channel).
  • Paris- based Syrian-Lebanese Arab poet Adonis has been chosen for 2015 Kumaran Asan World Prize for poetry, instituted by the Kumaran Asan Memorial Association.
  • Paulina Vega of Colombia has been named as winner of Miss Universe 2015 beauty pageant held in Miami (USA).
  • Periyar Tiger Reserve, spread over 925 sq.km. in Kerala, has won the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) biennial award for encouraging local public participation in managing the reserve.
  • Poet Arundhathi Subramaniam has been given the first Khushwant Singh Memorial Prize for her work When God is a Traveller at Jaipur Literature Festival.
  • Prabhu Nath Dwivedi has been named as winner of Sahitya Akademi Award for Sanskrit, 2014 for his short stories collection - Kanakalochanaha.
  • Prannoy Roy (Executive Co-chairman of NDTV) Redink Lifetime Achievement Award 2015 in Mumbai, awards presented by Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu. Other Awardees are -
    1. Journalist of the Year - Sreenivasan Jain of NDTV
    2. Impact Editor of the Year - Arnab Goswami (Editor-in-Chief of Times Now)
    3. News Start-Up of the Year - News website Scroll.in
  • Pratap Singh, a 15-year-old Indian-origin schoolboy in the United Kingdom awarded with Institute of Physics (IOP) Prize for conducting an experiment that verified an effect of Albert Einsteins theory of special relativity.
  • President Pranab Mukherjee conferred National Geoscience Awards for 2013 upon twenty three geoscientists.
  • President Pranab Mukherjee conferred the highest Indian Civilian Honor - Bharat Ratna to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Madan Mohan Malaviya was also posthumously awarded Bharat Ratna.
  • President Pranab Mukherjee presented Gallantry Awards and Distinguished Service Decorations. 2 Keerti Chakra (Ajay Vardhan, Kosh Bahadur Gurung) and 11 Shaurya Chakras Presented.
  • President Pranab Mukherjee presented Presidential Awards for Classical Tamil for 2011-12 and 2012-13 -
    1. Young Scholar Award -
      1. 2011 - 12 => K Iyyappan, E Ezhilvasanthan and K Jawahar
      2. 2012 - 13 => A Sathish, R Venkatesan, B Jaiganesh, M R Devaki and U Alibava
    2. Kural Peedam Award -
      1. 2011 - 12 => Eva Maria Wilden (Germany)
    3. Tolkappiyar Award -
      1. 2011 - 12 => S V Shanmugam
      2. 2012 - 13 =>R Krishnamurthi
  • President Pranab Mukherjee presented Stree Shakti puraskars and Nari Shakti Puruskars 2014 on the occasion of International Womens Day.
    1. Stree Shakti puraskars are conferred on six women in the area of womens endeavor and exceptional contribution each year. Award carries a cash prize of 3 lakh rupees and a citation.
    2. Awardees of Stree Shakti Prize 2014 -

      1. Award

        Winner

        Cause

        Rani Lakshmibai

        Seema Prakash, Madhya Pradesh

        		 Working for vulnerable and marginalised Communities of Madhya Pradesh Since 2000 (particularly Korku tribe)

        Rani Rudramma Devi Award

        Astha Sansthan (NGO), Rajasthan

        For protecting womens rights, gender mainstreaming, issues relating to violence against women tribal rights, food security, transparency and right to work and others.

        Mata Jijabai Award

        Chandraprabha Bokey, Maharashtra

        		 working in rural areas since 1960 for empowerment and rehabilitation of destitute, divorced, disabled women and rehabilitation of orphan children.

        Kannagi Award

        Dr. P Bhanumati, Kerala

        		 founding Association for Mentally Handicapped Adults (AHMA) working for welfare of the poor destitute mentally challenged adults since 1996.

        Rani Gaidinliu Zeliang Award

        Sister Mariola, Rajasthan

        		 working with the inmates at Ajmer Jail, Rajasthan since 1997 and lobbying for Prisons Without Walls.

        Devi Ahilyabai Holkar Award

        Anyay Rahit Zindagi (NGO), Goa

        		 Works for combating trafficking of persons for commercial sexual exploitation since 1997.
  • President Pranab Mukherjee presented Visitors Awards for Central Universities in the categories of Best University, Innovation and Research for 2015-
    1. Best University :University of Hyderabad.
    2. Innovation Award: Prof. Vijay K. Chaudhary and Dr. Amita Gupta of University of Delhi for their invention of TB Confirm, a rapid diagnostic test for Tuberculosis.
    3. Research Award:Cosmology and Astrophysics Research Group, Centre for Theoretical Physics, Jamia Millia Islamia for path breaking research carried out in the field of Astrophysics and Cosmology.
  • Pulitzer Awards 2015 (Pulitzer is an award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature, and musical composition in the United States) -
    1. International reporting - New York Times for coverage of Ebola outbreak in West Africa.
    2. Feature photography - Daniel Berehulak won Pulitzer Prize for the . 
    3. Public Service - Charleston, South Carolina's Post and Courier for its series on domestic violence.
    4. Investigative reporting -
      1. Wall Street Journal for Medicare Unmasked.
      2. Eric Lipton for reporting on how lobbyists can sway congressional leaders and state attorneys general.
    5. Explanatory reporting - Zachary Mider of Bloomberg for showing how US corporations dodge taxes.
    6. Local reporting - Rob Kuznia, Rebecca Kimitch and Frank Suraci of the Daily Breeze of Torrance, California for their look at corruption in a small, cash-strapped school district.
    7. Feature writing - Diana Marcum of the Los Angeles Times for drought coverage.
    8. Commentary prize - Lisa Falkenberg of the Houston Chronicle.
    9. Editorial cartooning - Adam Zyglis of the Buffalo News.
    10. Fiction award - Anthony Doerr for All the Light We Cannot See
    11. Drama prize - Stephen Adly Guirgis for Between Riverside and Crazy.
    12. History prize - Elizabeth A. Fenn for Encounters at the Heart of the World: A History of the Mandan People
    13. Biography - David I. Kertzer for The Pope and Mussolini: The Secret History of Pius XI and the Rise of Fascism in Europe.
    14. Poetry - Gregory Pardio for Digest
  • Punjab CM Parkash Singh Badal has been conferred with 14th Sant Namdev National Award for promoting peace and communal harmony by Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on behalf of Sarhad Foundation.
  • Racer CS Santosh is named as Motorsport Man of the Year 2014 by Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India.
  • Ratan Tata has been honoured with an honorary Doctorate of Automotive Engineering by the Clemson University at the South Carolina Automotive Summit in USA for his contributions to the global automotive industry.
  • Renowned Indian RTI activist Subhash Chandra Agrawal has been given the Giraffe Hero award 2015 by a US-based NGO The Giraffe Heroes Project for his bravery in utilising Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005 for public good despite challenges.
  • Sahitya Akademi announced to give Bal Sahitya Puraskar 2015 to 24 Novelists and Bhasha Samman 2015 to 4 scholars for their contribution to classical and medieval literature in various languages. Recepients of Bhasha Samman 2015 are -
    1. K Meenakshi Sundaram (Tamil)
    2. Acharya Munishwar Jha (Sanskrit and Maithili)
    3. Charu Chandra Pande - Kumauni
    4. Mathuradutt Mathpal - Kumauni
  • Samsung India Electronics and NMDC (National Mineral Development Corporation) have been awarded the ‘Golden Peacock Award for Corporate Social Responsibility 2014 for its initiatives for childrens education and skill development.
  • Sangeet Natak Akademi fellowship (Akademi Ratna) and Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards (Akademi Puraskar) 2014 -
    1. Sangeet Akademi Fellowships (Akademi Ratna) 2014 - It carries cash prize of 3 lakh rupees and is most prestigious honour. Presently there are only 40 Fellows of the Sangeet Natak Akademi.
      1. R. Janakiraman (Musicologist)
      2. S. Sathyu (film-maker)
      3. Vijay Kichlu (Classical singer)
      4. Tulsidas Borkar (Musician)
    2. Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards (Akademi Puraskar) 2014 - It carries prize of 1 Lakh Rs. along with Tamrapatra and Angavastram.
  • Sangeeta Bhatia, Indian-origin scientist at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in USA won prestigious 2015 Heinz Award in Technology, Economy, and Employment category in 20th Heinz Awards for her work in tissue engineering and disease detection and developing artificial human microlivers for drug testing. Other Winners Are -

    1. Category

      Awardee

      Arts and Humanities category

      Roz Chast (Illustrator and prolific cartoonist)

      Environment category

      Dr. Frederica Perera

      Human Condition

      organization Team Rubicon)

      William McNulty and Jacob Wood (Founders of the nonprofit

       

      Public Policy

      Dr. Aaron Wolf (Professor at Oregon State University)
  • Scientists Tessy Thomas and Geeta Varadan have been selected for Dr.Y. Nayudamma Memorial Award 2014.
  • Sean Abbott of Australia has been named as Bradman Young Cricketer for the Year 2015.
  • Singer Lata Mangeshkar was presented with Laadli Voice of the Century award at the sixth edition of the National Media and Advertising Awards for Gender Sensitivity held in Mumbai.
    1. Laadli Voice of the Century award – Lata Mangeshkar
    2. Best movie award – Queen
    3. Laadli Grand Prix award – advertising agency Ogilvy and Mather for its advertisement on Titan Raga
    4. Laadli extraordinaire award – Charu Khurana for a landmark judgment in Supreme Court regarding Bollywoods bias against women make-up artists.
  • Spanish tennis player Rafael Nadal received Golden Medal for Merit in Work as top civilian honours of Spain for outstanding performance in any profession.
  • Subadhra Devi Rai, Indian-origin Singaporean nurse named for International Achievement Award 2015 by the Florence Nightingale International Foundation (FNIF) of the International Council of Nurses for her work in healthcare sector of women and refugees.
  • Super 30 founder and mathematician Anand Kumar has been honoured by Legislature of British Columbia in Canada at Toronto University for his pioneering work in the field of education. 
  • Susanta Lahiri (India) and Kattesh V. Katti (USA) received Hevesy Medal Award 2015 for their contributions in fields of radio and nuclear chemistry at the Tenth International Conference on Methods and Applications of Radio-analytical Chemistry held in USA.
  • Tata Steel conferred with Prime Ministers Trophy for 8th Time at Rourkela for being the ‘Best Performing Integrated Steel Plant in the country during the performance year 2010 – 2011.
  • Three Indians Ashwini Angadi, Akshay Jadhao and Devika Malik have won an award set up by Queen Elizabeth II to recognise exceptional youths making a difference in their communities from across the Commonwealth nations.
  • Three South Asian women - Niloofar Rahmani (Afghanistan), Nadia Sharmeen (Bangladesh) and Tabassum Adnan (Pakistan) were selected for International Women of Courage Award for year 2015 given by US Secretary of State.
  • Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India Limited (TRIFED) under Ministry of Tribal Affairs, has won "National Award for Excellence in Training - 2015" in a contest by Department of Personnel and Training.
  • Two Indians Ananda Kumar and Pramod Patil won Whitley Awards worth 35000 pounds (also known as Green Oscar) for their contribution to wildlife conservation at a ceremony in Royal Geographical Society, London.
  • Two Indians Nand Ram and Raju Joseph posthumously given United Nations (UN) Dag Hammarskjold Medal. Nand Ram served UN Organization Stabilization Mission in Democratic Republic of the Congo and Raju Joseph served in a civilian capacity with UN Mission in South Sudan.
  • Two Indians Shivani Agarwal and Maharaja Pandit won USA's Harvard Universitys prestigious Radcliffe fellowship with 48 Others for one-year fellowships at the Radcliffe Institute.
  • UK's Author Ali Smith won 2015 Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction for her novel How to be Both.
  • UK's philanthropist Benni Joseph Mavelil has been selected for VK Krishna Menon Award for his achievements and contributions to the community and wider multicultural society.
  • US President Barack Obama will honor Microsofts Indian-origin CEO Satya Nadella with the ‘Champions of Change award for bringing about change within his company to support working families.
  • US mathematicians John F Nash Jr and Louis Nirenberg have been named as joint winners of Abel Prize for 2015 for their contributions to mathematical sciences. The award is given by Norwegian Academy of Sciences and Letters.
  • USA's Kristen Stewart won Best Supporting Actress Award at France's Cesar Awards for her role in Clouds of Sils Maria.
    She became first American actress to win a trophy at France's Cesar Awards.
  • Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani has been named as Young Global Leader from India by the World Economic Forum (WEF).
  • United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) presented 2015 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize to Syrian journalist and rights activist Mazen Darwish on the occasion of the World Press Freedom Day for his work in Syria for more than a decade as a human rights defender and a journalist.
  • Uttar Pradesh Government conferred Sahitya Shiromani Samman and Rashtra Ratn-Sitara-e Hind award on Hindi poet Gopaldas Neeraj and Hindi litterateur Uday Pratap Singh. CM Akhilesh Yadav also unveiled the poetry book of Gopal Das Neeraj named Geetsri.
  • Vishwanath Tripathi will receive 28th Moorti Devi Award 2014 for his book Vyomkesh Darvesh : lifetime story of Acharya Hazari Prasad Dwivedi.
  • Zakir A. Naik, president of Islamic Research Foundation of India, won the 2015 King Faisal International Prize (KFIP) for Service to Islam.