Salim Kumar, only Malayalam comedian to win National Award for Best Actor, dead at 56
He learned to perform on a mimicry stage in Cochin. He finished on a national podium. The house in North Paravur was named Laughing Villa. It is quiet now.
Eminent Indian environmentalist Madhav Gadgil passed away yesterday at the age of 83 after a brief illness in Pune.
Gadgil made a remarkable contribution as an ecologist, shaping grassroots environmentalism in the country. He was known for his significant role in revolutionary environmental movements in India, such as the Save Silent Valley Movement in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and forest protection in Bastar during the 1980s.
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Gadgil was the leading force of the Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel from 2009 to 2011, and did pioneering research on the Ghats. His landmark report with a democratic approach called for the protection of India’s ecologically fragile Western Ghats mountain range from the rising dangers of industries and the climate crisis.
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His extensive work has won him accolades over the years. He was a recipient of India’s highest civilian honours, including the Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan as well as the Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement and the Volvo Environment Prize.
He was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in 2024.
Tributes pour in for Gadgil
Remembering the Indian environmentalist, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge called him “one of India’s foremost voices in ecological inquiry.”
In a post on X, Kharge wrote, “In the passing of Dr. Madhav Gadgil, India has lost one of its foremost voices in ecological inquiry. His leadership helped turn scientific evidence into protective action, most notably through decisive engagement with landmark conservation efforts and community rights, particularly in the Western Ghats. A recipient of the Padma Bhushan, the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize, and Karnataka’s Rajyotsava Prashasthi, he leaves behind an enduring imprint on research, teaching, and ecological conservation, and his departure is a major setback for the country’s green cause. My deepest condolences to his family, friends and the scientific community.”
In the passing of Dr. Madhav Gadgil, India has lost one of its foremost voices in ecological inquiry. His leadership helped turn scientific evidence into protective action, most notably through decisive engagement with landmark conservation efforts and community rights,… pic.twitter.com/4cFBtW0SGg
— Mallikarjun Kharge (@kharge) January 8, 2026
Congress MP Jairam Ramesh also expressed condolences over the passing of the ecologist Madhav Gadgil. In a post on X, Ramesh wrote, “Madhav Gadgil, the pre-eminent ecologist, has just passed away. He was a top-notch academic scientist, a tireless field researcher, a pioneering institution-builder, a great communicator, a firm believer in people’s networks and movements, and friend, philosopher, guide, and mentor to many for over five decades. Trained at the very best universities in modern science, he was at the same time a champion of traditional knowledge systems – especially in biodiversity conservation.”
Madhav Gadgil, the pre-eminent ecologist, has just passed away. He was a top-notch academic scientist, a tireless field researcher, a pioneering institution-builder, a great communicator, a firm believer in people’s networks and movements, and friend, philosopher, guide, and… pic.twitter.com/gJMOTdzuXw
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) January 8, 2026
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