Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday presented the Lokmanya Tilak National Award to National Security Advisor Ajit Doval at a ceremony in Pune. The Lokmanya Tilak Smarak Trust selected Doval for the honour in recognition of his contribution to India's national security.
Doval, 81, is India's longest-serving National Security Advisor. During his career, he has handled key assignments in Mizoram, Sikkim, Punjab, and Jammu and Kashmir, and served in Indian diplomatic missions in Islamabad and London.
He has also served as India's Special Representative for the India-China boundary talks and played a key role in diplomatic efforts that helped resolve the Doklam standoff.
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Instituted in 1983, the Lokmanya Tilak National Award is presented every year on August 1, the death anniversary of freedom fighter Bal Gangadhar Tilak, to individuals who have made a significant contribution to the nation's progress and development.
The first recipient of the award was socialist leader S M Joshi. Previous awardees include Prime Minister Narendra Modi, former prime ministers Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Manmohan Singh and Indira Gandhi, former president Pranab Mukherjee, and veteran politician Sharad Pawar.
Earlier in the day, Shah also paid tributes to legendary Marathi poet and social reformer Lokshahir Annabhau Sathe on his birth anniversary in Pune.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde and Sunetra Pawar, along with other leaders and dignitaries, joined Shah in offering floral tributes at Sathe's statue in the Sarasbaug area.
Born on August 1, 1920, Annabhau Sathe is remembered as a social reformer, folk poet and a pioneer of Dalit literature in Maharashtra.
