Carnatic music exponent T.M. Krishna and social activist Bezwada Wilson are two Indians who have been conferred the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award for this year.
While Krishna got the award for "ensuring social inclusiveness in culture", Wilson was selected for "asserting the inalienable right to a life of human dignity", according to their citations.
Four other Magsaysay Award winners this year are Conchita Carpio-Morales from the Philippines, Dompet Dhuafa from Indonesia, Vientiane Rescue from Laos, and Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers.
Instituted in 1957, the award named after the late President Ramon Magsaysay of the Philippines is bestowed on persons as well as organisations for "greatness of spirit and transformative leadership" in Asia.
The trustees of the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation annually select the awardees, who are presented a certificate and a medallion with an embossed image of Magsaysay in profile. It carries $50,000 in award money.
The award is presented at formal ceremonies in Manila, on August 31, the birth anniversary of Magsaysay, the third President of the Philippines.
