Three TNM journalists win Ramnath Goenka awards
Udupi’s Prajwal Bhat among winners
The prestigious Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Awards for the year 2022 saw The News Minute's reporters Azeefa Fathima, Balakrishnan Ganesan, and Prajwal Bhat clinching top honors in two distinguished categories. Their exceptional journalistic endeavors were recognized at the awards ceremony held in New Delhi on Tuesday, March 19.
Azeefa, Balakrishnan, and Prajwal were lauded in the Civic Journalism category for their comprehensive five-part series shedding light on the pervasive issue of manual scavenging prevalent in India. Their in-depth investigation delved into the deplorable conditions faced by manual scavengers across five southern states, namely Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, and Karnataka.
The series critically examined the role of district administrations in tackling this grave social problem, scrutinizing measures implemented to eradicate the practice. Supported by data obtained through the Right to Information Act, the reports assessed the effectiveness of governmental interventions, including expenditure on machinery and equipment to minimize human intervention in sanitation work, identification and rehabilitation of former manual scavengers, and provision of compensation to the families of victims.
In addition to their commendable work in civic journalism, Prajwal Bhat, who hails from Udupi, received individual recognition in the Political Reporting category for his remarkable series on the 2022 hijab agitations in Karnataka. Prajwal's reporting provided comprehensive coverage of the controversy that erupted in a government college in Udupi district. He documented the sequence of events, including detailed interviews with students at the heart of the protests and investigations into the involvement of various groups. Prajwal's series not only reported on the immediate protests but also analyzed the broader implications of the controversy on education and communal harmony in the region.
Prajwal's dedication to investigative journalism was underscored by his four-month stint in Udupi for sustained reportage on the hijab controversy, where he uncovered the orchestrated nature of the protests and their impact on Muslim women's education. His series delved into the challenges faced by Muslim families and the threat posed to the educational progress of Muslim women in the region, highlighting the repercussions of the hijab controversy on enrollment patterns in pre-university colleges.
The award ceremony, attended by eminent personalities from the media fraternity, featured Nitin Gadkari, Minister for Road Transport & Highways, as the chief guest.
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Man arrested with Rs 2.54-crore heroin in Mumbai
Mumbai (PTI): Police have arrested a man and seized over 500 grams of heroin worth Rs 2.54 crore in the illicit market from him in Mumbai, officials said on Friday.
The police's Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) made the drug seizure in Santacruz in the western suburbs. The operation was conducted by the Kandivali unit of the ANC on Thursday as part of a special crackdown against drug trafficking in the area, they said.
Acting on specific inputs, an ANC team conducted a raid in Santacruz (East) and intercepted a man. During a search, the team recovered 508 grams of high-grade heroin from his possession, an official said.
The seized contraband, a highly addictive, opioid drug derived from morphine, is estimated to be worth Rs 2.54 crore in the international market, he informed.
Following the seizure, a case was registered against the man under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, and he was formally placed under arrest in the early hours of Friday.
The police are currently investigating the source of the drug and trying to identify the intended recipients of the consignment, he said.
