Ramon Magsaysay Award Winners
The Ramon Magsaysay Award is an annual award established in1957to honor the legacy ofRamon Magsaysay, the seventh president of the Philippines.
It's often called 'Asia's premier prize and highest honor' or the 'Nobel Prize of Asia.'
The award celebrates individuals and organizations in Asia who have demonstrated greatness of spirit and selfless service for the betterment of society.
Awardees are selected annually by the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation (RMAF) board of trustees.
Each recipient receives a medallion with an embossed image of Ramon Magsaysay, a certificate, and a cash prize.
History
The award was created by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, with the concurrence of the Philippine government, after President Magsaysay's tragic death in a plane crash in 1957.
The award was given to commemorate his example of integrity in governance and courageous service to the people.
It recognizes and honors those who have made significant contributions that have transformed their societies for the better.
The award is presented in a formal ceremony in Manila, Philippines,every November.
From1958 to 2008,the awards were given insix fixed categories
- •Government Service,
- •Public Service,
- •Community Leadership,
- •Journalism, Literature, and Creative Communication Arts,
- Peace and International Understanding, and
- Emergent Leadership (for individuals under 40).
Since2009, except for the Emergent Leadership category, the awards are no longer given in fixed categories, allowing for a more flexible recognition of diverse contributions.
Notable Indian Recipients of the Ramon Magsaysay Award
Over the years, many notable individuals and organizations from India have been recognized with the Ramon Magsaysay Award.
Some of the prominent Indian recipients include
- •Vinoba Bhave (1958):The first Indian recipient, honored for Community Leadership.
- •Mother Teresa (1962):The first Indian female recipient, for her work in Peace and International Understanding.
- •Verghese Kurien (1963):Known as the 'Father of the White Revolution' for his work in establishing the Amul dairy cooperative movement.
- •Jayaprakash Narayan (1965):Recognized for his leadership of the 'Total Revolution' social and political movement.
- •M.S. Subbulakshmi (1974):The first Indian musician to receive the award, for her Public Service.
- •Ela Ramesh Bhatt (1977):Founded the Self-Employed Women's Association (SEWA) to empower women.
- •Pramod Karan Sethi (1981):Acknowledged for his innovation of the 'Jaipur Foot,' a low-cost prosthetic limb.
- •T.N. Seshan (1996):Honored for his efforts in reforming India's electoral system as the Chief Election Commissioner.
- •Aruna Roy (2000):A social activist who co-founded the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS) and spearheaded the campaign for theRight to Information (RTI) Act.
- •Rajendra Singh (2001):Known as the 'Waterman of India' for his campaign on the 'Right to Water.'
- •Anshu Gupta (2015):Founder of the NGO Goonj.
Complete List of Indian Recipients of the Ramon Magsaysay Award
Year | Recipient(s) | Contribution ---------------------------------------- Year: 1958 Recipient(s): Vinoba Bhave Contribution: Community Leadership --- Year: 1959 Recipient(s): Chintaman Deshmukh Contribution: Government Service --- Year: 1961 Recipient(s): Amitabha Chowdhury Contribution: Journalism & Arts --- Year: 1962 Recipient(s): Mother Teresa Contribution: Peace --- Year: 1963 Recipient(s): Verghese Kurien, Dara Nusserwanji Khurody& Tribhuvandas Kishibhai Patel Contribution: Community Leadership --- Year: 1965 Recipient(s): Jayaprakash Narayan Contribution: Public Service --- Year: 1966 Recipient(s): Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay Contribution: Community Leadership --- Year: 1967 Recipient(s): Satyajit Ray Contribution: Journalism & Arts --- Year: 1971 Recipient(s): Moncompu Sambasivan Swaminathan Contribution: Community Leadership --- Year: 1974 Recipient(s): M.S. Subbulakshmi Contribution: Public Service --- Year: 1975 Recipient(s): Boobli George Verghese Contribution: Journalism & Arts --- Year: 1977 Recipient(s): Ela Ramesh Bhatt Contribution: Community Leadership --- Year: 1979 Recipient(s): Rajanikant Arole & Mabelle Arole Contribution: Community Leadership --- Year: 1981 Recipient(s): Gour Kishore Ghosh & Pramod Karan Sethi Contribution: Journalism & Arts; Community Leadership --- Year: 1982 Recipient(s): Chandi Prasad Bhatt, Manibhai Desai,& Arun Shourie Contribution: Community Leadership; Public Service; Journalism & Arts --- Year: 1984 Recipient(s): Rasipuram Lakshman Contribution: Journalism & Arts --- Year: 1985 Recipient(s): Muralidhar Devidas Amte Contribution: Public Service --- Year: 1989 Recipient(s): Lakshmi Chand Jain Contribution: Public Service --- Year: 1991 Recipient(s): K.V. Subbanna Contribution: Journalism & Arts --- Year: 1992 Recipient(s): Ravi Shankar Contribution: Journalism & Arts --- Year: 1993 Recipient(s): Banoo Jehangir Coyaji Contribution: Public Service --- Year: 1994 Recipient(s): Kiran Bedi Contribution: Government Service --- Year: 1996 Recipient(s): Pandurang Shastri Athavale &T.N. Seshan Contribution: Community Leadership; Government Service --- Year: 1997 Recipient(s): Mahasweta Devi Contribution: Journalism & Arts --- Year: 2000 Recipient(s): Jockin Arputham & Aruna Roy Contribution: Peace & Community Leadership --- Year: 2001 Recipient(s): Rajendra Singh Contribution: Community Leadership --- Year: 2002 Recipient(s): Sandeep Pandey Contribution: Emergent Leadership --- Year: 2003 Recipient(s): James Michael Lyngdoh & Shantha Sinha Contribution: Government Service --- Year: 2004 Recipient(s): Lakshminarayan Ramdas Contribution: Peace --- Year: 2005 Recipient(s): V. Shantha Contribution: Public Service --- Year: 2006 Recipient(s): Arvind Kejriwal Contribution: Emergent Leadership --- Year: 2007 Recipient(s): Palagummi Sainath Contribution: Journalism & Arts --- Year: 2008 Recipient(s): Prakash Amte & Mandakini Amte Contribution: Community Leadership --- Year: 2009 Recipient(s): Deep Joshi Contribution: Community Leadership --- Year: 2011 Recipient(s): Neelima Mishra & Harish Hande Contribution: Emergent Leadership; Community Leadership --- Year: 2012 Recipient(s): Kulandei Francis Contribution: Emergent Leadership --- Year: 2015 Recipient(s): Anshu Gupta & Sanjiv Chaturvedi Contribution: Emergent Leadership --- Year: 2016 Recipient(s): Bezwada Wilson & T.M. Krishna Contribution: Human Rights & Arts --- Year: 2018 Recipient(s): Bharat Vatwani & Sonam Wangchuk Contribution: Health & Education --- Year: 2019 Recipient(s): Ravish Kumar Contribution: Journalism (Prime Time) --- Year: 2023 Recipient(s): Dr. Ravi Kannan R. Contribution: Healthcare --- Year: 2025 Recipient(s): Educate Girls Contribution: Gender Justice in Education ---
Malayali Recipients of the Ramon Magsaysay Award
Four individuals of Malayali origin have been honored with the Ramon Magsaysay Award:
- Varghese Kurien (1963): An entrepreneur and social activist from Kerala, he is known as the 'Father of the White Revolution' for building the cooperative dairy movement.
- M.S. Swaminathan (1971):A renowned agricultural scientist from Kerala, he was one of the primary architects of India's 'Green Revolution.'
- T.N. Seshan (1996):Hailing from Kerala, he was the Chief Election Commissioner of India who received the award for his resolute efforts to reform the electoral system.
- V. Shantha (2005):An eminent oncologist from Kerala, she was recognized for her dedicated service in providing affordable and quality cancer care.
Why in the News?
The67th Ramon Magsaysay Award 2025is given to the Indian non-profit organization, 'Foundation to Educate Girls Globally' aka 'Educate Girls.'
'Educate Girls' is also thefirst Indian organization to receive the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award.
This NGO was founded in 2007 by Safeena Husain and was started in Rajasthan by addressing the problem of female illiteracy by bringing unschooled girls into classrooms.
It is dedicated to mobilizing community and government resources for girls’ education in rural and educationally disadvantaged areas of India.
Other recipients of the Ramon Magsaysay Award 2025
- Shaahina Ali (Maldives):for protecting the marine ecosystem of the Maldives,
- Flaviano Antonio L. Villanueva (Philippines):a priest, for his lifelong mission to uphold the dignity of the poor and the oppressed.
The 67th Ramon Magsaysay Award ceremony is scheduled for 7th November 2025 at the Metropolitan Theatre in Manila.