The first TNG Award, instituted in memory of the late journalist T.N. Gopakumar, will be presented to Pallium India chairman M.R. Rajagopal on Monday.
Former chairman of the Press Council of India, Markandey Katju, will present the award to Dr. Rajagopal in recognition of his valuable contributions in the field of medical care at a ceremony that will be held at the Tagore Theatre.
The award, instituted by the Asianet News Network, carries a purse of ₹2 lakh, a memento and a citation. He was chosen by a panel that included noted oncologist M.V. Pillai, public health activist B. Ekbal, former State Police Chief Jacob Punnoose and ayurvedic physician P.M. Warrier.
N. Ram, Chairman of Kasturi and Sons Ltd. and former Editor-in-Chief of The Hindu , will deliver the keynote address on the occasion.
Chief Secretary S.M. Vijayanand, noted oncologist M.V. Pillai, writer Paul Zacharia, Asianet News vice-chairman K. Madhavan and editor M.G. Radhakrishnan will also participate in the ceremony.
Gopakumar, who had been fondly known as TNG, had a journalistic career that spanned three decades during which he had anchored the news-based show ‘Kannadi’, which explored social and political issues. Previously, he had worked with Mathrubhumi , Newstime , Statesman , Independent and India Today .
He had won the Kerala Sahitya Akademi award for ‘Suchindrum Rekhakal’.
