Press Release
Four Lok Sabha MPs and three Parliamentary Standing
Committees nominated for the ‘Sansad
Maha Ratna Awards’ based on their consistency of performance in the 17th
Lok Sabha
Chennai, December 12, 2023: The
prestigious Sansad Maha Ratna Awards (presented once in five years) have been
announced for the 17th Lok Sabha, to honour four distinguished Parliamentarians
and three Standing Committees of Parliament in recognition of their consistent
and exemplary performances.
‘Sansad Maha Ratna Award,’ presented once in five years by the
Chennai-based NGO Prime Point Foundation and the eMagazine PreSense,
acknowledges outstanding performances in the Parliament. Prime Point Srinivasan,
the Founder and Chairman of Prime Point Foundation, said these awards are based
on comprehensive performance, with nominees selected by a distinguished Jury
Committee chaired by Arjun Ram Meghwal, Minister of State for Law and
Parliamentary Affairs, and T. S. Krishnamurthy, Former Chief Election
Commissioner of India. The performance data was sourced from the Lok Sabha and
Rajya Sabha websites, as well as from the PRS Legislative Research.
The Sansad Ratna Awards Committee,
led by Priyadharshni Rahul, Trustee Secretary of Prime Point Foundation and the
Chairman of Sansad Ratna Awards Committee, announced the recipients for the
Sansad Maha Ratna Awards for the entire 17th Lok Sabha. These include NK
Premachandran (RSP, Kerala), Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury (Indian National Congress,
West Bengal), Bidyut Baran Mahato (BJP, Jharkhand), and Dr. Heena Vijayakumar
Gavit (BJP, Maharashtra). According to the awards committee, these four
parliamentarians have demonstrated unwavering consistency in debates, private
members' bills, and questions since the inception of the 17th Lok Sabha.
Sansad Maha Ratna Awards were not previously conferred upon
Parliamentary committees. But starting
from the current 17th Lok Sabha, three Standing Committees have been included
in the Sansad Maha Ratna Awards. The Agriculture
Committee chaired by P C Gaddi Gowdar (BJP, Karnataka), the Finance Committee chaired
by Jayant Sinha (BJP, Jharkhand), and the Transport and Tourism Committee presently chaired by Vijayasai
Reddy (YSR Congress, Andhra Pradesh) and formerly chaired by T G Venkatesh
(BJP, Andhra Pradesh) have been
nominated for their consistent contributions based on sittings and the reports
presented by them, relying on the data commensurate with the term of 17th
Lok Sabha.
“Recognising the continued consistent top performance of Supriya Sule
(NCP, Maharashtra), Shrirang Appa Barne (Shiv Sena, Maharashtra), and
Bhartruhari Mahtab (BJD, Odisha), the Sansad Maha Ratna Awardees of the
previous 16th Lok Sabha, the Jury
Committee has decided to honour them for their 'Exemplary Performance'
in the 17th Lok Sabha as well”, said Priyadharshni Rahul.
The prestigious awards are scheduled to be presented at a grand ceremony
on February 17, 2024, in Delhi, marking the 14th edition of the event. Prime
Point Foundation instituted these honours at the instance of Dr. Abdul Kalam,
former President of India, who inaugurated the first award event in 2010 in
Chennai.
Sansad Ratna Awards are presented annually to the top performing
Parliamentarians based on their performance, while Sansad Maha Ratna awards are
presented once in five years for the consistency of performance during the term
of the Lok Sabha. Till March 2023, 106 Sansad Ratna Awards have been presented
through 13 award ceremonies making it the only award presented by any civil
society at a global level to the best-performing Parliamentarians.
Ends
