The seventh V.C. Padmanabhan Memorial Awards for Excellence for 2016 were conferred on the distinguished awardees at a function held on June 10th, 2016 at the Lulu International Convention Centre, Thrissur. Prominent winners for the year included the eminent Malayalam novelist and screenplay writer Padma Bhushan M.T. Vasudevan Nair, environmentalist Padma Shri Dr. Sunita Narain and former Union Minister and Member of Parliament Prof. K.V. Thomas. The Award carried a cash prize of Rs.2 lakhs and a bronze plaque.
The V.C. Padmanabhan Memorial Awards were instituted in the year 2010 to commemorate the illustrious founder of the Manappuram Group. They are presented every year to eminent personalities who have made significant contributions in the five categories of Arts and Literature, Civil Servant achieving Excellence in Public Administration, Public Representative achieving Excellence in Good Governance, Business Excellence leading to development of Society at large and Ecology and Environment Conservation.
The following is the list of Awardees for the year 2016:
| CATEGORY | AWARDEES |
|---|---|
| Arts and Literature | Padma Bhushan M.T. Vasudevan Nair Eminent Malayalam writer and novelist |
| Business Excellence Leading to Development of Society at Large | Shri P.N. Vasudevan Managing Director, Equitas Holdings Ltd. |
| A Public Representative with Excellence in Good Governance | Prof. K.V. Thomas M.P. and former Union Minister |
| A Civil Servant Achieving Excellence in Public Administration | Shri T.K. Jose, IAS Chairman, Coconut Development Board, Kochi |
| Ecology and Environment Conservation | Padma Shri Dr. Sunita Narain |
The five-member jury that selected the winners for the year 2015 was headed by Shri T. Balakrishnan IAS (Retd.). The other members were Shri. V.P. Nandakumar (MD & CEO, Manappuram Finance Ltd.), Shri P.K. Vijayakumar, IRS Retd. (Insurance Ombudsman for Kerala), and Dr. P.V. Krishnan Nair (Secretary, Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Academy).
