Governed by an independent expert panel ensuring balanced, credible, and transparent evaluation.
A panel bringing together institutional expertise, research depth, and newsroom leadership to evaluate excellence in contemporary Indian journalism.
(SM, VSM, PVSM) (Retd.) & Former Vice-Chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU)
Former Deputy Chief of the Army Staff (Personnel & Systems) and former Vice-Chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University. Evaluates journalism through the lens of strategic ground reality, structural discipline, and institutional accountability.
Veteran Indian Journalist, television anchor, & language activist
Veteran journalist and public language advocate, former Editor-in-Chief of Jansatta. Evaluates journalism through the lens of language preservation, media ethics, and the public responsibilities of media systems.
First Woman President Press Club of India
National Affairs Editor at The Wire and President of the Press Club of India. Evaluates journalism through the lens of frontline newsroom management, checking for ethical field reporting and regional diversity.
Veteran Indian Journalist
Former News Director at TV Today Network (Aaj Tak) and current Director at Satya Hindi. Evaluates journalism through the lens of print, broadcast, and digital leadership, checking for narrative integrity and public accessibility.
Renowned political scientist and author
Sol Goldman Professor of International Studies and the Social Sciences at Brown University. Evaluates journalism through the lens of political science, checking for democratic resilience, academic depth, and societal impact.
A four-stage structured evaluation with complete independence and no public voting at any stage.
Open submissions from the public along with curated recommendations from domain experts and editorial partners.
All entries are rigorously reviewed by an internal team for eligibility, category alignment, and minimum quality standards.
Shortlisted entries are assessed by the jury panel on four criteria:
The jury independently determines all winners through a structured consensus process. There is no public voting.