Balraj Puri to receive Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration

NEW DELHI: Noted journalist, writer and human rights activist Balraj Puri has been nominated for the prestigious Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration.

"The 24th Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration for the year 2008 has been awarded to Balraj Puri, an eminent journalist of Jammu and Kashmir for his yeoman work in promoting and preserving the spirit of national integration in the country," a statement by the Congress said.

The award was instituted by the Congress party in its centenary year to give recognition to outstanding contribution to the cause of national integration and understanding by individuals or institutions.

Congress President Sonia Gandhi will give the award, comprising a citation and cash of Rs five lakh, to Puri on the death anniversary of Indira Gandhi on October 31.

81-year-old Puri was honored with the Padma Bhushan in 2005.

Former recipients of the award include Aruna Asaf Ali, Bharat Scouts and Guides, P N Haksar, M S Subbulakshmi, Rajiv Gandhi (posthumous), Sardar Beant Singh (posthumous), A P J Abdul Kalam, Shankar Dayal Sharma, Satish Dhawan, Shyam Benegal, Mahasweta Devi, Javed Akhtar and Kasturba Gandhi National Memorial Trust, Indore.

-PTI