1. Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar (SSB) Awards

Current Context: Recently, the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has publicised the list of awardees for the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar (SSB) awards for 2022.

• This year’s awardees constitute 12 scientists below the age of 45.

Award given to:

About the award

• The award is named after the founder Director of the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) India, the late Dr (Sir) Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar and is known as the ‘Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar (SSB) Prize for Science and Technology’. 
• The Prize is given each year for outstanding contributions to science and technology.

Nature of the Prize

• It brings prize value of Rs 5,00,000 (Rupees five lakh only), 
• It is given to notable and outstanding research, applied or fundamental, in the following disciplines: (i) Biological Sciences, (ii) Chemical Sciences, (iii) Earth, Atmosphere, Ocean and Planetary Sciences, (iv) Engineering Sciences, (v) Mathematical Sciences, (vi) Medical Sciences and (vii) Physical Sciences.

Eligibility

• Any citizen of India engaged in research in any field of science and technology up to the age of 45 years as reckoned on 31st December of the year preceding the year of the Prize.
• Overseas citizen of India (OCI) and Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) working in India are also eligible.

2. Ramon Magsaysay Award

Current Context: Recently, Oncologist Ravi Kannan has been named one of the four winners of the 2023 Ramon Magsaysay Award for the “Hero For Holistic Healthcare” on the 65th anniversary of the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation.

• He is credited with revolutionizing cancer treatment in Assam through people-centric and pro-poor healthcare.

About Ramon Magsaysay Award

• In 1957, the Ramon Magsaysay award was set up by trustees of the Rockefeller Brothers Fund and the Philippine government to carry forward Magsaysay’s legacy of service to the people, good governance, and pragmatic idealism.
• It was Launched in 1958, widely considered to be Asia’s equivalent to the Nobel Prize, recognizes outstanding leadership and communitarian contributions in Asia.
• The award is given out every year on August 31, on Magsaysay’s birth anniversary.

Indian winners on the list

• Prominent Indians who have won the award include Vinoba Bhave in 1958, Mother Teresa in 1962, Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay in 1966, Satyajit Ray in 1967, Mahasweta Devi in 1997.  
• In recent years, Arvind Kejriwal (2006), Anshu Gupta of Goonj (2015), human rights activist Bezwada Wilson (2016), and journalist Ravish Kumar (2019) have won the award.

The 2023 Ramon Magsaysay Awardees