Current Affairs October 2019 - Awards

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1 - The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2019

The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2019 was awarded jointly to William G. Kaelin Jr., Sir Peter J. Ratcliffe and Gregg L. Semenza for their discoveries of how cells sense and adapt to oxygen availability.

The trio discovered how cells can sense and adapt to changing oxygen availability. They identified molecular machinery that regulates the activity of genes in response to varying levels of oxygen. Their discoveries have also paved the way for promising new strategies to fight anemia, cancer and many other diseases.

2 - Nobel Prizes in Literature for 2018 and 2019

The Nobel Prize in Literature for 2018 is awarded to the Polish author Olga Tokarczuk and for 2019 is awarded to the Austrian author Peter Handke. Handke was honoured for an influential work that with linguistic ingenuity has explored the periphery and the specificity of human experience. His notable works include "Short Letter, Long Farewell" and "A Sorrow Beyond Dreams".

Tokarczuk has also won the Booker International Prize for her 2007 novel "Flights". Her 900-page "The Books of Jacob" was hailed as her magnum opus by the Swedish Academy.

3 - Nobel Prize 2019 for Physics awarded for discoveries in cosmology

Nobel Prize 2019 for Physics has been been awarded to three scientists, James Peebles, Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz for their contribution to the understanding of the evolution of the universe and earth's place in the cosmos.

One half of the award was given to James Peebles for theoretical discoveries in physical cosmology and the other half jointly to Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz for the discovery of an exoplanet orbiting a solar-type star.

4 - Ethiopian PM Abiy Ahmed wins Nobel Peace Prize

The Nobel Peace Prize 2019 was awarded to Abiy Ahmed Ali "for his efforts to achieve peace and international cooperation, and in particular for his decisive initiative to resolve the border conflict with neighbouring Eritrea."

Abiy Ahmed spent his first 100 days as Prime Minister lifting the country’s state of emergency, granting amnesty to thousands of political prisoners, discontinuing media censorship, legalising outlawed opposition and significantly increasing the influence of women in Ethiopian political and community life.

5 - Nobel Prize in Economics 2019 awarded to Abhijit Banerjee, Esther Duflo and Michael Kremer

The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2019 was awarded jointly to Abhijit Banerjee, Esther Duflo and Michael Kremer "for their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty." Indian-born American economist Abhijit Banerjee and his wife Esther Duflo, a French-American economist teaches at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge. They won for their work on finding new ways to tackle poverty.

Michael Kremer teaches at Harvard University, Cambridge. He won for his work on experimental approach to alleviating global poverty.

6 - 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to John, M. Stanley and Akira Yoshino

The 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry are awarded to John Goodenough, M. Stanley Whittingham and Akira Yoshino “for the development of lithium-ion batteries”. Through their work, they have created the right conditions for a wireless and fossil fuel-free society, and so brought the greatest benefit to humankind.

Stanley Whittingham worked on developing methods that could lead to fossil fuel-free energy technologies. John Goodenough predicted that the cathode would have even greater potential if it was made using a metal oxide instead of a metal sulphide. Akira Yoshino created the first commercially viable lithium-ion battery.

7 - Kyrgyz lawyer Azizbek Ashurov won 2019 UNHCR Nansen Refugee Award

Azizbek Ashurov of Kyrgyzstan has been selected as the 2019 winner of the UN Refugee Agency’s Nansen Refugee Award for his efforts to help Kyrgyz Republic become the first country in the world to end statelessness. Azizbek Ashurov, through his organization Ferghana Valley Lawyers Without Borders (FVLWB), has helped well over 10,000 people to gain Kyrgyz nationality after they became stateless following the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

The award includes a commemorative medal and a US$150,000 monetary prize. UNHCR’s Nansen Refugee Award honours extraordinary service to the forcibly displaced.

8 - AIIMS won Kayakalp Awards 2019

The All India Institutes of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) won the first prize of ₹3 crore under the government’s Kayakalp scheme for 2018-19 under the Central Government Hospitals A category. JIPMER, Puducherry was judged as the runner-up in this category with ₹1.5 crore prize money. PGIMER, Chandigarh and Safdarjung Hospital, Delhi won the Commendation Award of Rs. 50 Lakh each.

Shri Vinoba Bhave Civil Hospital (VBCH), Silvassa won the first prize of ₹2 crore in the group B category with AIIMS Bhubaneswar as the runner-up winning ₹1 crore. NEIGRIHMS in Shillong, LGBRIMH in Tezpur and AIIMS, Bhopal each won ₹50 lakh as Commendation Award.

9 - Margaret Atwood and Bernardine Evaristo jointly won Booker Prize

2019 Booker Prize for Fiction was honored jointly to Margaret Atwood and Bernardine Evaristo. Margaret Atwood was recognized for The Testaments, the Canadian writer's follow-up to The Handmaid's Tale. The Testaments became the fastest-selling hardback novel in four years. Londoner Evaristo became the first black woman to win Booker Prize for her novel Girl, Woman, Other. Margaret Atwood became the oldest ever Booker winner.

The Booker Prize for Fiction, formerly known as the Booker–McConnell Prize and the Man Booker Prize, is a literary prize awarded each year for the best original novel.

10 - Russia honors astronaut Nick Hague with “Order of Courage”

Russian President Vladimir Putin presented a prestigious state award for courage on US astronaut Nick Hague who survived an emergency onboard a Russian spacecraft. Putin awarded Hague the Order of Courage for “high professionalism shown in the line of duty in high-risk conditions during an emergency”.

Hague, along with Russian cosmonaut Alexei Ovchinin, made a dramatic emergency landing in the steppes of Kazakhstan in October 2018 when a booster rocket on their Soyuz launch vehicle failed — the first such accident in post-Soviet history.

11 - Ramesh Pandey selected for Asia Environmental Enforcement Award by UNEP

The United Nations Environment Programme for his excellent work in combating trans-boundary environmental crime has selected Senior Indian Forest Service officer Ramesh Pandey for the prestigious Asia Environmental Enforcement Award.

The 1996-batch IFS officer, posted as Chief Conservator Forests in Lucknow and Secretary, UP State Bio-diversity Board, is known for his investigation and intelligence gathering on poachers. The purpose of the Asia Environmental Enforcement Awards is to publicly recognise outstanding achievements by public organisations and individuals in Asia to combat transboundary environmental crime.

12 - Chandi Prasad Bhatt to get Indira Gandhi award for national integration

Ramon Magsaysay award recipient and pioneer of the Chipko Movement Chandi Prasad Bhatt will be honored with 31^st Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration for the years 2017 and 2018 for his services in promoting and preserving the national integration.

The Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration is a prestigious award accorded by the Indian National Congress, after former Prime Minister of India Indira Gandhi. In the past, award has been given to leaders such as A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, Satish Dhawan Acharya Tulsi, Bishambhar Nath Pande etc.

13 - India wins four UNESCO heritage awards

The renewal of the historic Tai Kwun – Centre for Heritage and Arts has received the Award of Excellence in 2019 UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation. 16 projects from 5 countries namely Australia, Bhutan, China, India and New Zealand were recognized.

4 heritage landmarks from India were chosen for the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation 2019 namely-

• Award of Distinction - Vikram Sarabhai Library, Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, India.

• Award of Merit - Our Lady of Glory Church, Mumbai, India, Keneseth Eliyahoo Synagogue, Mumbai, India.

• Honourable Mention - Flora Fountain, Mumbai, India.

14 - Vice President presented ‘Most Eminent Senior Citizen Award’ to former Attorney General K. Parasaran

The Vice President of India, Shri M Venkaiah Naidu presented ‘Most Eminent Senior Citizen Award’ to legal luminary, scholar and former Attorney General of India, Shri K. Parasaran on the occasion of the Elder’s Day celebration of Age Care India, an organization working for the welfare of the elderly.

K. Parasaran was Attorney General of India under Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi. Parasaran was awarded the Padma Bhushan in the year 2003 and Padma Vibhushan in the year 2011. In June 2012, he received a presidential nomination to the Rajya Sabha.

15 - Hong Kong’s orchestra bagged “Orchestra of the year award 2019” at Gramophone Awards

The Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra (HK Phil) was named Orchestra of the Year at the 2019 Gramophone Classical Music Awards ceremony – regarded as the “Oscars of classical music” – in London, for its outstanding contribution to recorded music in the past year. The HK Phil is the first Asian orchestra to receive this prestigious international award.

The Award “celebrates ensembles that have made significant recorded contributions in the past year and reflects the excellence of music-making across the globe”. The Award was for the HK Phil’s live recordings of the complete Ring Cycle by Richard Wagner on the Naxos label.

16 - Uighur economist and human rights activist Ilham Tohti won Sakharov Prize 2019

The European Parliament has awarded its Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought to Ilham Tohti. Tohti is an economist fighting for the rights of China's Uighur minority and the implementation of regional autonomy laws in China. In 2014 the human rights defender was sentenced to life imprisonment for separatism-related charges.

In 2014, Tohti was awarded PEN/Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award for his work in the face of adversity. He also won Liberal International Prize for Freedom in 2017 and nominated for Nobel Peace Prize in 2019.

17 - Mohun Bagan conferred life membership to Abhijit Banerjee

Football Club Mohun Bagan conferred their Life Membership to Nobel Prize winner Abhijit Vinayak Banerjee. The club also handed him the First Day Cover of 1911 and the maroon green jersey with his name written on it.

Mohun Bagan Athletic Club is one of the oldest existing association football club in India and Asia. The most notable victory in the history of the club was over East Yorkshire Regiment in the 1911 IFA Shield final match, which made them the first Indian club to win the IFA title.

18 - Jennifer Aniston to receive People's Icon Award 2019

'Friends' star Jennifer Aniston is set to receive the People's Icon Award at the 2019 People's Choice Awards. The actress would be the second-ever recipient of the title and will receive the honor at the 2019 E!People's Choice Awards.

Melissa McCarthy accepted the trophy for the inaugural award in 2018. Aniston is a seven-time People's Choice Award winner. The 'Morning Show' star is best known for her performance in 'Friends' as Rachel Green for ten seasons. She was last seen in her Netflix drama 'Murder Mystery'.

19 - Gully Boy, Delhi Crime win big at Asian Academy Creative Awards

'Gully Boy', India's official entry to the 92^nd Oscar Awards, won the best film from India award in the regional finals at the Asian Academy Creative Awards ceremony. Netflix's 'Delhi Crime,' also bagged several awards in various categories.

Actor Shefali Shah won Best Actor in a leading role award followed by Richie Mehta for Best Direction and Best Original Screenplay, Beverley Mills for Best Editing and Best Original Programme by a streaming service.

20 - The Order of the Green Crescent awarded to Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu

Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu was conferred the highest Civilian Honour of Comoros — The Order of the Green Crescent by the President of the Union of Comoros Azali Assoumani in Moroni, the capital city of Comoros, during his visit to Comros. It was M Venkaiah Naidu’s first-ever high-level visit to Comoros. During his visit to Comros, India and Comoros also signed six agreements on defence, health and culture.

The Order of the Green Crescent, also known as Ordre du Croissant vert is a highest Civilian Honour of Comoros, awarded for distinguished merits, military or civilian.