National Communal Harmony Awards 2013

 The Centre for Study of Society and Secularism, Mumbai has been selected for the National Communal Harmony Award 2013 in the Organization category. Dr. Mohinder Singh of Delhi and Dr. N Radhakrishnan of Kerala have been selected for this Award in the individual category.

Established in 1996, the Centre for Study of Society and Secularism (CSSS) is a Mumbai based organization working to promote peace, secularism and communal harmony in the country. It has also been working on human rights issues and issues of the marginalized and deprived sections of the society. The Centre has published a number of books and literary material highlighting different facets of violence and communalism, peace, secularism and communal harmony which have a wider readership. The Centre has also been regularly publishing a quarterly journal ‘Indian Journal of Secularism’ which is popular amongst academics and the masses.

Dr. Mohinder Singh, aged 72 is a scholar and presently member of the National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions. Earlier, he was also Member of the National Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities from 2005 to 2007.In 1984, he along with other social activists, organized relief camps at Delhi and restored friendship between the Hindu and Sikh communities in the wake of anti-Sikh riots. In 1985, he set-up a Communal Harmony Forum along with Dr.Nirmala Deshpande, which worked for nearly four years and organized inter-faith meetings and visit to holy places by its members

Dr. N Radhakrishnan, aged 69 is a well known academic, a Gandhian scholar and a peace worker. He initiated the Shanti Sena programme at the Gandhigram University and extended this work to other parts of the country. He has been actively working to restore peace in communally tense areas of Tamilnadu and Kerala. Having served as Director of Gandhi Smriti & Darshan Samiti, New Delhi for more than a decade, he was instrumental in initiating and implementing many innovative activities in educational institutions by using Gandhian values and principles. His campaign ‘Himsamukth Bharat Andolan’ motivates people to become foot soldiers in campaigning for peace and sustainable development.

The National Communal Harmony Awards were instituted in 1996 by the National Foundation for Communal Harmony (NFCH), an autonomous Organization set up by the Government of India, Ministry of Home Affairs, for promoting communal harmony and national integration. The Award has been instituted with a view to demonstrating due appreciation and recognition of the efforts of individuals and Organizations for promotion of communal harmony and national integration in a sustained manner over a sufficiently long period of time. In addition to a citation in each category, the Award carries a cash award of Rupees Five Lakh for ‘Individuals’ and Rupees Ten Lakh for ‘Organizations’.