1. Former Cape Verde President Pedro Verona Pires has been awarded this year’s Ibrahim prize for good governance in Africa.

2. The Hindu’s Chhattisgarh correspondent, Aman Sethi, has won the International Committee of the Red Cross award for the best Indian print media article on humanitarian issues.

3. Julian Barnes has finally been awarded the Man Booker Prize for his novel ‘The Sense of an Ending‘ after having been shortlisted on three previous occasions.

4. Former IPS officer and activist Kiran Bedi has been selected for the Avicenna Leadership Award constituted by a Dutch institute for her “innate ability” to inspire others towards leadership.

5. Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh was chosen ‘Sikh Sportsperson of the Year’ at the World Sikh Awards 2011 for his “contribution to the Indian cricket team’s World Cup triumph”.

6.  Playback singer Asha Bhosle, has been selected for the prestigious Akshaya Mohanty Samman for 2011 in recognition of her outstanding contribution in the field of music.

7. Veteran actor Anupam Kher will receive the Kalidas Samman, an arts award presented annually by the Madhya Pradesh government.

8. Renowned nephrologist Dr. M.K. Mani was given the 40^th Dhanvantari award for “excellence in medical services” at a function by Union Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde.

9. Weekly magazine ‘Tehelka’ has been awarded the IPI India Award for Excellence in Journalism, 2010 for outstanding journalistic work.

10. U.S. President Barack Obama has honoured Indian-American activist Vijaya Lakshmi Emani posthumously with the Presidential Citizens Medal for her courage in overcoming and speaking out against domestic abuse in the Indian-American community.

11. Rahul Bhattacharya bagged the ‘The Hindu Literary Prize for Best Fiction 2011′ for his ‘The Sly Company of People Who Care‘.