LS Speaker congratulates Sainath for winning Magsaysay

New Delhi, Aug 1 (UNI) Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee today congratulated eminent journalist P Sainath on winning the prestigious Ramon Magasaysay Award.

Mr Chatterjee said ''Sainath's incisive writings are known for pricking the conscience of the people in power, particularly those who are far removed from the reality on the ground and yet dare to make tall claims.'' Claiming that Mr Sainath had enhanced the prestige of the award, the Speaker said the journalist very much deserved the award for singularly fighting to bring the plight of the rural poor back on the national agenda through his passionate reporting based on most authentic and field-based research.

The perspective he adds to the contemporary discourse on socio-economic issues always establish an immediate link with the concerns of the common people of the country, Mr Chatterjee added.

Sainath currently works for The Hindu as its Rural Affairs Editor. He spends between 270 and 300 days a year in rural areas.

He has won over 30 national and international journalism awards and fellowships in his 27 years as a journalist.

UNI