President to Confer National Geoscience Awards 2024 at Rashtrapati Bhavan on 26th September

New Delhi, September 25, 2025 - The President of India, Smt. Droupadi Murmu, will confer the National Geoscience Awards (NGA) 2024 on September 26, 2025, in a ceremonial function at the Rashtrapati Bhavan Cultural Centre, New Delhi. The event will commence at 11:00 AM and will also be attended by Shri G. Kishan Reddy, Union Minister for Coal & Mines, and Shri Satish Chandra Dubey, Minister of State for Coal & Mines.

Instituted in 1966 by the Ministry of Mines, the NGA stands among India's most prestigious recognitions in the field of geosciences. The awards honour significant contributions across mineral exploration, mining technology, geoscientific research, and sustainable development.

For the year 2024, the Ministry received 208 nominations, and following a rigorous three-stage evaluation process, 12 awards have been finalized - comprising 9 individual and 3 team awards, to be presented to 20 distinguished geoscientists.

The National Geoscience Award for Lifetime Achievement will be conferred upon Prof. Shyam Sundar Rai, Senior Scientist at INSA and Visiting Professor at IISER Pune, for his exemplary career and lifelong contributions to the geosciences.

The National Young Geoscientist Award will be awarded to Shri Susobhan Neogi, Senior Geologist at the Geological Survey of India (GSI), for his remarkable work in geoscientific research.

Award Categories and Recipients

Lifetime Achievement

• Prof. Shyam Sundar Rai, INSA & IISER Pune

National Geoscience Awards (10 awards)

• Mineral Discovery & Exploration (2 Awards)

  • GSI teams led by Shri Haraman Mahanta and Shri Navjeet Singh Nayyar

• Coal & Energy Exploration (1 Award)

  • GSI team led by Smt. Sradhanjali Subhadarshini

• Mining Technology (1 Award)

  • Dr. Jai Krishna Pandey, CSIR-CIMFR

• Mineral Beneficiation & Sustainability (1 Award)

  • Dr. Ranjeet Kumar Singh, CSIR-NML

• Basic Geosciences (2 Awards)

  • Dr. V.V.S. Sarma, CSIR-NIO

  • Dr. Mekala Ram Mohan, CSIR-NGRI

• Applied Geosciences (3 Awards)

  • Prof. Ghulam Jeelani, University of Kashmir

  • Prof. Sanjit Kumar Pal, IIT (ISM) Dhanbad

  • Prof. Mukat Lal Sharma, IIT Roorkee

Young Geoscientist Award

• Shri Susobhan Neogi, GSI

The awards ceremony is expected to be attended by a distinguished gathering of geoscientists, researchers, policymakers, and experts from across the country.