On July 24, 2023, the President of India Droupadi Murmu conferred the National Geoscience Awards- 2022 (NGA) of the Ministry of Mines on 22 Geoscientists during an event organized at Rashtrapati Bhavan Cultural Centre in New Delhi, Delhi.
Categories and Number of Awards:
There were 10 awards grouped under three categories viz. National Geoscience Award for Life Time Achievement, National Young Geoscientist Award, and National Geoscience Awards in various fields of geosciences
- A total of 173 nominations were received out of which 168 were valid nominations. Finally 22 Geoscientists were selected by the Award Making Authority (AMA) chaired by Vivek Bhardwaj, Secretary, Ministry of Mines for 10 awards which include 4 individual awards, 3 team awards & 3 joint awards.
| Category of Award | Number of Awards |
|---|---|
| National Geoscience Award for Lifetime Achievement | 1 |
| National Geoscience Awards | 8 (3 Team Award + 3 Joint Award + 2 individual Awards= 20 awardees) |
| National Young Geoscientist Award | 1 |
| Total | 10 Awards (22 Awardees) |
Awardees for the National Geoscience Awards-2022
1.National Geoscience Award for Lifetime Achievement:
It was conferred upon Professor (Dr.) Om Narain Bhargava, Department of Geology, Panjab University (PU), Chandigarh, for his pioneering work in the Himalayas spanning over the last four decades.
- About Award: It is given to an individual with an exceptionally high lifetime achievement for sustained and significant contributions in any of the disciplines mentioned in Clause-2 of NGA Regulation 2022.
- The award carries a cash prize of Rs. 5 lakh and a certificate.
2.National Young Geoscientist Award:
It was presented to Dr. Amiya Kumar Samal, Assistant Professor of Banaras Hindu University (BHU) in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh (UP). He has made a notable contribution in understanding the variation of Sub-Continental Lithospheric Mantle (SCLM) beneath various Archean cratons of the Indian shield.
- About Award: It is for outstanding research work in any field of geosciences to an individual below 35 years of age as on the 31st December of the preceding year.
- Each award carries a cash prize of Rs. 3 lakh and a certificate. In the case of a team award, the award money will be equally divided.
3.National Geoscience Awards:
National Geoscience Award (10 Awards) shall be given to individuals or team(s) in recognition of meritorious contribution in any of the disciplines mentioned in Clause-2 of NGA Regulation 2022.
The award is presented for various fields under 4 different sections,
SECTION- I – Mineral Discovery & Exploration
SECTION- II – Mining, Mineral Beneficiation and Sustainable Mineral Development
SECTION- III – Basic Geosciences
SECTION- IV – Applied Geosciences
- The award carries a cash prize of Rs. 1 Lakh plus a research grant of Rs. 5 Lakh spread over 5 years subject to satisfactory yearly progress and a certificate.
| Awardees | Category |
|---|---|
| National Geoscience Awards– 2022 | |
| Section– I – Mineral Discovery & Exploration | |
| Field (i): Mineral Discovery & Exploration (excluding fossil fuels) This field is of economic and/or strategic importance and application of innovative techniques. | |
| 1.GSI team comprising of i.Soubhagyalaxmi Sahoo, Geologist ii.Swapnita Brahma, Geologist iii.Yogeesha S. N., Geologist iv.P. Rajesh Durai, Director | Team Award |
| 2.GSI team comprising of i.Jitendra Kumar, Geologist ii.Ngazipmi Chahong, Geologist iii.Bikash Kumar Acharya, Sr. Geologist iv.Anindya Bhattacharya, Director | Team Award |
| Field (ii): Coal, Lignite and Coal Bed Methane Discovery & Exploration Under this, there is application of innovative techniques and Oil, Natural Gas, Shale Gas and Gas Hydrates Discovery & Exploration. | |
| GSI team comprising of i.Dr. Satya Narayan Sethy, Geologist ii.Nitin Narendra Raut, Geologist iii.Rakesh Deepankar, Sr. Geologist iv.Sumit Jaiswal, Geologist | Team Award |
| SECTION- II – Mining, Mineral Beneficiation and Sustainable Mineral Development | |
| Field (iv): Mineral Beneficiation and Sustainable Mineral Development -Mineral Beneficiation includes mineral processing, project development for utilization of low-grade ores & production of value-added mineral products and mineral economics. -Sustainable Mineral Development includes mine closure, project development, institutional development and capacity building. | |
| Pankaj Kumar Satija, Managing Director at Tata Steel Mining Limited in Nayapalli, Bhubaneswar, Odisha | Individual Award |
| SECTION- III – Basic Geosciences | |
| Field (v): Basic Geosciences It includes Stratigraphy, Structural Geology, Paleontology, Geodynamics, Geochemistry, Geochronology and Isotope Geology, Ocean Development (Oceanography and Marine Geology), Glaciology and Arctic & Antarctic Research including Geo-Scientific Expeditions; and science surveys/baseline geoscience data collection including Geological and Geochemical mapping & survey, and Systematic Thematic mapping. | |
| 1.Prof. Saibal Gupta, Department of Geology and Geophysics, IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) Kharagpur, West Bengal (WB) | Individual Award |
| 2.Dr. Waliur Rahaman, Scientist E, National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), Ministry of Earth Sciences, Goa Prof. Dipak Chandra Pal, Department of Geological Sciences, Jadavpur University, Kolkata, WB | Joint Award |
| SECTION- IV – Applied Geosciences | |
| Field (vi): Applied Geology It include Engineering Geology, Geothermal Energy, Seismotectonics, Geostatistics, Remote Sensing and Geo-Information System; Groundwater Exploration; Geo-Environmental Studies relating to mining, urban, industrial, coastal and desert management, paleoclimate, paleoenvironment, medical geology, climate change and studies related to their impact on ecosystem | |
| Dr. Harish Bahuguna, Director, GSI, Jammu Dr. Keesari Tirumalesh, Scientific Officer, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai, Maharashtra | Joint Award |
| Field (viii): Natural Hazard Investigations It includes scientific studies related to natural hazards such as earthquakes, landslides, floods and tsunamis. | |
| Dr. Saibal Ghosh Deputy Director General, GSI, Kolkata Dr. Vikram Gupta Scientist – F, Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology (WIHG), Dehradun, Uttarakhand | Joint Award |
About National Geoscience Awards (NGA):
Established in 1966 by the Ministry of Mines, NGA acknowledges the exceptional individuals and organizations that have demonstrated excellence, dedication and innovation in Geosciences.
- The awards are presented in the field of Mineral Discovery and Exploration, Basic Geosciences, Applied Geosciences and Mining, Mineral Beneficiation and Sustainable Mineral Development.
- Click Here for Full Information about NGA
Participants:
Union Minister Pralhad Joshi, Ministry of Mines; Minister of State (MoS) Raosaheb Patil Danve, Ministry of Mines, senior functionaries of the Ministry of Mines, Geological Survey of India (GSI), among others.
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About Geological Survey of India (GSI):
Director General– Janardan Prasad
Headquartered– Kolkata, West Bengal (WB)
Establishment– 1851
