Which union ministry organizes the National Film Awards every year?

The correct answer is B, a statutory body set up by an Act of Parliament. The Press Council of India first began working in 1966 and functions today under the Press Council Act, 1978; it is a self-regulatory watchdog whose chairman is chosen by a committee of the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha and a member of the Council itself, and by convention the chairman has been a retired judge of the Supreme Court. Option A is wrong because the Council is created by law, not by owners. Option C is wrong because it is not a departmental wing of the Home Ministry. Option D is wrong because Article 324 creates the Election Commission, and the Press Council finds no mention in the Constitution.

The correct answer is B, UNESCO. The Kalinga Prize for the Popularisation of Science was created in 1951 with a donation from Biju Patnaik, the founder of the Kalinga Foundation Trust of Odisha, and UNESCO awards it to writers, editors and broadcasters who explain science to ordinary readers; the first prize went to the French physicist Louis de Broglie. Option A is wrong because the World Health Organization gives health honours and not a science writing prize. Option C is wrong because the United Nations Environment Programme gives the Champions of the Earth award. Option D is wrong because the International Atomic Energy Agency is a nuclear watchdog with no such prize. The Indian link through Biju Patnaik makes this a favourite question. Note finally that the Kalinga Prize rewards the popularisation of science rather than original research, which separates it from the Nobel Prizes and from India’s own Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for laboratory work.

The correct answer is B, Guillermo Cano Isaza. UNESCO instituted the Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize in 1997 in memory of the Colombian editor of El Espectador, who was murdered outside his office in 1986 for writing against drug cartels; the prize is presented each year on World Press Freedom Day, 3 May. Option A is wrong because Joseph Pulitzer's name belongs to the prizes administered by Columbia University. Option C is wrong because Ramon Magsaysay was a President of the Philippines and the award in his name is given in Manila. Option D is wrong because Ramnath Goenka founded the Indian Express and his name is on an Indian journalism award. A useful memory hook is that the murdered editor's prize is the one UNESCO gives.

The correct answer is A, 3 May. The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 3 May as World Press Freedom Day in 1993, acting on a recommendation of the UNESCO General Conference that followed the Windhoek Declaration of African journalists in 1991; UNESCO presents the Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize on this day. Option B is wrong because 8 March is International Women's Day. Option C is wrong because 16 November is India's own National Press Day, tied to the Press Council of India. Option D is wrong because 10 December is Human Rights Day, the day the Nobel Prizes are also presented. Papers frequently place 3 May and 16 November in the same set of options, so keep the international date and the Indian date apart.

The correct answer is B, 16 November. National Press Day marks the day in 1966 on which the Press Council of India began its work as a moral watchdog of the press, and the Council itself organises the observance and presents its National Awards for Excellence in Journalism around it. Option A is wrong because 3 May is World Press Freedom Day, proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in 1993 after the Windhoek Declaration of 1991. Option C is wrong because 2 October is Gandhi Jayanti and the International Day of Non-Violence. Option D is wrong because 21 June is International Yoga Day. The pair to remember is National Press Day on 16 November and World Press Freedom Day on 3 May. A second detail worth carrying into the hall is that the Press Council of India functions today under the Press Council Act, 1978, and that the highest of its journalism awards is named after Raja Ram Mohan Roy, the pioneer of the Indian press.