President Droupadi Murmu will present the coveted National Geoscience Awards (NGA) 2024 at a ceremonial function to be held at the Rashtrapati Bhavan Cultural Centre, New Delhi, on Friday.
The event will be graced by the presence of G Kishan Reddy, Union Minister for Coal and Mines and Satish Chandra Dubey, Minister of State for Coal and Mines.
Instituted in 1966 by the Ministry of Mines, Government of India, the National Geoscience Awards (formerly known as the National Mineral Awards until 2009) are among the country’s oldest and most prestigious honors in the field of geosciences.
“The objective of these Awards is to honour individuals and teams for extraordinary achievements and outstanding contributions in various fields of geosciences i.e. mineral discovery and exploration, Mining Technology and Mineral Beneficiation, fundamental/ applied geosciences,” the Ministry of Mines said on Thursday.
The Ministry of Mines presents the National Geoscience Awards annually under the three categories: National Geoscience Award for Lifetime Achievement,
National Geoscience Award and National Young Geoscientist Award
For the year 2024, the Ministry received 208 nominations across the three award categories.
Following a rigorous three-stage screening process, 12 awards have been finalised under these three award categories, which include 9 individual and three team awards.
These 12 National Geoscience Awards will be presented to 20 Geoscientists by the President of India.
The National Geoscience Award for Lifetime Achievement will be conferred upon Prof. Shyam Sundar Rai, Senior Scientist, Indian National Science Academy (INSA) and Visiting Professor at IISER Pune, in recognition of his exemplary career and contributions to geosciences.
The National Young Geoscientist Award will be presented to Susobhan Neogi, Senior Geologist, Geological Survey of India, for his outstanding work in the field of geosciences.
The awards ceremony will be attended by eminent geoscientists, scholars, policymakers, and other key dignitaries from across the country.