Caravan Magazine Wins Louis M. Lyons Award for its 'Indispensable Reporting' on India
New Delhi: India magazine The Caravan, known for its investigative reportage and in-depth political analysis, has won the 2021 Louis M. Lyons Award for Conscience and Integrity in Journalism. The winner was chosen by the Nieman Foundation for Journalism’s class of 2021 at Harvard University.
According to a statement put out by the Nieman Foundation, the magazine was chosen “in recognition of its unique and uncompromising coverage of the erosion of human rights, social justice, and democracy in India”.
The journalism students were also impressed with how reporters and editors at The Caravan have carried on with their work despite pressures and threats from the Central government, including multiple FIRs.
“The Caravan’s recent coverage of nationwide farmers’ protests has drawn the ire of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, which has attempted to shut down the magazine’s social media accounts and brought sedition charges against multiple Caravan employees. Under such intimidation, The Caravan embodies an urgent commitment to conscience and integrity.”
The Caravan‘s work, according to the statement, “is another chapter in a legacy of indispensable reporting in the world’s most populous democracy”.
The Louis M. Lyons Award was established in 1964, and is named after a Nieman Foundation curator. This is the first time an Indian publication has received the honour.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
