Gadkari graced the 37th Priyadarshni Academy Award as chief guest
Nagpur: The Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Monday said that Indian history, culture, values and family system have received tremendous recognition worldover. The great spiritualist, Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Founder, The Art Of Living, Bengaluru, Ravishankar has made unparalleled contributions in spreading Indian culture, spiritualism, knowledge about religion at global level in a real sense.
Gadkari was speaking as the chief guest at the 37th Priyadarshni Academy Award, considered by many as the Nobel Awards of Asia. Piyush Goyal, Union Minister of Textiles, Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Leader of the House-Rajya Sabha and Suresh Prabhu, former Union Minister with 10 portfolios and six-time MP, were invited as the Guest of Honour. Others present prominently include Chairman Emeritus, Priyadarshni Academy, Nanik Rupani, Niranjan Hiranandani, and Dr Mashelkar. They conferred the awards on global leaders with an enviable bag of achievements.
Gadkari further said, “The Priyadarshni Academy Awards are a recognition of global talent by Indian society.” He praised the Academy for the independent and impartial selection process followed to recognise and respect personalities from across the world for their contribution to society at large.
The Union Minister also praised Nanik Rupani for his tremendous contribution in taking the cultural values of India across the globe and building a human relationship. “We cannot catch our own image. So we learn from everyone and everywhere. The Priyadarshni Academy Awards are a source of motivation and inspiration for people like me,” he said.
Welcoming the dignitaries, Nanik Rupani, Chairman Emeritus, Priyadarshni Academy, said, “Priyadarshni Academy’s prestigious Global Awards function has always been a glittering affair, because of the eminent personalities who are honoured for their outstanding contributions to society. This year the award is being conferred on global leaders who have brought positive changes to the lives of people through their selfless work.” He said the recipients of the Priyadarshni Academy awards were the role models for millions of people and it was a great honour for him to felicitate them.
Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar was felicitated for being the Harbinger of Peace. He was given the Priyadarshni Academy Global Award for Outstanding Contribution to Human Welfare and Spirituality. Bollywood Actor Kiara Advani was felicitated with the Smita Patil Global Award for Best Actor.
