Former Union Minister Jairam Ramesh & US Academician Amit Ahuja jointly wins Kamaladevi NIF Book Prize for 2020
- The 2020 Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay New India Foundation (NIF) Book Prize for the best non-fiction book on contemporary/ modern India has jointly been won by former Union minister Jairam Ramesh and U.S.-based academician Amit Ahuja.
- The award carries a citation and a cash prize of Rs 15 lakh. This is the 3rd edition of the award.
- Ahuja has been awarded for his book ‘Mobilizing the Marginalized: Ethnic Parties without Ethnic Movements’ (Oxford University Press). This is the first book of Ahuja, who is an associate professor of political science at the University of California.
- Jairam Ramesh won the prize for ‘A Chequered Brilliance: The Many Lives of VK Krishna Menon’ (Penguin Random House), a biography of politician and diplomat VK Krishna Menon.
- Both the authors will share the cash prize.
About the Award
- The winners were selected by a six-member jury panel from a shortlist of six books.
- Jury members included jury chair, political scientist Niraja Gopal Jayal, historian Ramachandra Guha; entrepreneur Nandan Nilekani; historians Srinath Raghavan and Nayanjot Lahiri and entrepreneur Manish Sabharwal.
- The Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay Book Prize recognises and celebrates excellence in non-fiction writings on modern and contemporary India by writers from all nationalities.