Chameli Devi Jain Award for Outstanding Women Mediapersons

The Chameli Devi Jain Award for Outstanding Woman Mediaperson is an Indian journalism award named after Chameli Devi Jain, an Indian independence activist who became the first Jain woman to go to prison during India's independence struggle.[1] The award was instituted in 1980 by The Media Foundation and is given to women in the field of journalism. According to Business Standard, the award is "perhaps India's longest running media award for women".[2]

Chameli Devi Jain Award for Outstanding Woman Mediaperson
Awarded forJournalism award in India for women
Sponsored byThe Media Foundation
First awarded1981
Last awarded2021
Highlights
Total awarded54
First winnerNeerja Chowdhury
Last winnerAarefa Johari

The Media Foundation was founded in 1979 by B. G. Verghese, Lakshmi Chand Jain, Prabhash Joshi, Ajit Bhattacharjea and N. S. Jagannathan. The award was instituted in 1980 by Verghese and the family of Chameli Devi.[3] The criteria for selection include social concern, dedication, courage and compassion in the individual's work. Journalists in print, digital and broadcast are eligible including photographers, cartoonists and newspaper designers; the entries are judged by an independent jury. Preferences are given to rural or small-town journalists and journalists in regional Indian languages.[4]

Neerja Chowdhury won the inaugural award in 1981. In 2015, Supriya Sharma of Scroll.in became the first online journalist to receive the award.[5]

Recipients

Homai Vyarawalla (right), winner of the 1998 Chameli Devi Jain Award, receiving the Padma Vibhushan from the President of India in 2011.
Pushpa Girimaji, winner of the 1991 Chameli Devi Jain Award.
Sucheta Dalal (right), winner of the 1992 Chameli Devi Jain Award, receiving the Padma Shri from the President of India in 2006.
YearRecipient(s)Associated media house(s)/notesRef.
1981Neerja ChowdhuryThe Statesman
The Indian Express
[6]
1982Prabha Dutt
Sevanti Ninan

[7]
1983Shahnaz Anklesaria Aiyar
Sakuntala Narasimhan
[8]
1984Sheela Barse[7]
1985Madhu Purnima Kishwar[9]
1986Kalpana SharmaHimmat
The Indian Express
The Times of India
[10]
1987No winner[11]
1988Tavleen SinghIndia Today
The Indian Express
[12]
1989Chitra SubramaniamIndia Today[7]
1990Usha Rai[13]
1991Pushpa Girimaji
Mediastorm Collective[a]

[14]
1992Sucheta Dalal
Teesta Setalvad
The Times of India
The Indian Express
[15]
1993Sheela Bhatt
Alka Raghuvanshi
Manimala
India Today[16]
1994Shubha SinghThe Telegraph
The Pioneer
The Khaleej Times
[17]
1995Patricia MukhimThe Shillong Times[18]
1996Annam Suresh
Rehana Hakim

[19]
1997Anita PratapCNN
Time
[20]
1998Homai Vyarawalla[21]
1999Barkha Dutt
Pamela Philipose
Vasavi Kiro
NDTV
The Times of India
Prabhat Khabar
[22]
[23]
[24]
2000Kunjal Paanje KutchjiKutch Mahila Vikas Sangathan[25]
2001Bano HaraluEastern Mirror[26]
2002Shikha Trivedi[23]
2003Sonu Jain
Chitrakoot Rural Women's Collective
The Indian Express
Khabar Lahariya
[27]
[28]
2004Sunita NarainDown to Earth magazine[29]
2005Ratna Bharali Talukdar[30]
2006Nilanjana Bose
Sreerekha B
CNN-IBN
Vanitha
[6]
2007Rupashree NandaCNN-IBN[31]
2008Nirupama Subramanian
Vinita Deshmukh
The Hindu[20]
2009Monalisa Changkija
Shoma Chaudhury
Nagaland Page
Tehelka
[32]
2010Shahina K. K.Open[33]
2011Tusha MittalTehelka[34]
2012Alka DhupkarIBN Lokmat[35]
2013Anubha BhonsleCNN-News18[36]
2014Supriya SharmaScroll.in[37]
2015Priyanka Kakodkar
Raksha Kumar
The Times of India
[38]
2016Neha Dixit[39]
2017Uma SudhirNDTV[40]
2018Priyanka DubeyBBC[41]
2019Arfa Khanum Sherwani
Rohini Mohan
The Wire
[42]
2020Neetu SinghGoan Connection[43]
2021Aarefa JohariScroll.in[44]
2022Dhanya RajendranThe News Minute[45]
2024Ritika Chopra
Greeshma Kuthar
The Indian Express
[46]

Note that before 2024 the award made in one year was named for the previous year, thus the award made in March 2023 was the 2022 award,[47] but in 2024 the system changed and the award made in March 2024 was called the 2024 award.[48]

See also

References

Notes
Citations
Bibliography
  • Singh, Shubha; Padgaonkar, Latika (2012). Making News, Breaking News, Her Own Way. Stories by winners of the Chameli Devi Jain Award for Outstanding Women Mediapersons. Tranquebar. ISBN 9789381626498.