ICRISAT Wins Prestigious UNDP Mahatma Award 2023 for Work in Bundelkhand, India

ICRISAT clinched the ‘UNDP Mahatma Award for Biodiversity’ for its remarkable contributions to humanity, its unwavering commitment to positive change, and its transformative impact on society.

The award-winning submission highlighted community-led innovations in landscape management in Central India’s Bundelkhand region. Through a combination of rainwater harvesting structures and agroforestry measures, biodiversity in the seven Bundelkhand sites, covering approximately 40,000 hectares, experienced a significant revival.

Ms Mugdha Arora, the Award Director, commended the institute for making it through the rigorous evaluation process and demanding jury rounds of the Mahatma Award selection. She congratulated ICRISAT in a letter that hailed the institute’s extraordinary accomplishments.

The Mahatma Award 2023 was formally conferred upon ICRISAT at a ceremony scheduled for September 30, 2023. The event will be held at the India International Centre, Lodhi Road, New Delhi. As part of this honor, ICRISAT will receive a certificate and a specially crafted bust of Mahatma Gandhi, designed and produced by the Aditya Birla Eternal Gandhi Initiative.