Lucknow; The Uttar Pradesh Urdu Academy announced its awards for the year 2015 on Saturday, with its highest award for contribution to Urdu – the lifetime achievement award – being given to late poet Nida Fazli.
This award named Maulana Abul Kalam Azad carries a cash prize of Rs.5 lakh.
Prominent among other recipients, announced by academy chairman and noted poet Nawaz Deobandi, are Ajmal Sultanpuri (poetry), Masroor Jahan (fiction), Fazle Imam (research), Mahanama Noor Mazagine (Rampur) for literature for children and Nusrat Zaheer and Mansoor Usmani for comic writings. All of them will get a cash prize of Rs.1 lakh each, an academy spokesman told IANS.
The Amir Khusro award of Rs.1.50 lakh will be bestowed upon former Uttar Pradesh governorAzeez Qureshi.