18 June 2023: A jury headed by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi recognises the institution's 100-year history of advancing Gandhian principles of societal harmony and peace.
In 1995, on the occasion of the 125th anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi's birth, the Government of India established the Gandhi Peace Prize as a yearly honor in his memory. Everyone is eligible for the award, regardless of their gender, nationality, ethnicity, language, caste, or faith.
One crore rupees (Rs.1,000,000), a citation, a plaque, and a priceless traditional handicraft or item are included with the award.
The past awardees include organizations such as ISRO, Ramakrishna Mission, Grameen Bank of Bangladesh, Vivekananda Kendra, Kanyakumari, Akshaya Patra, Bengaluru, Ekal Abhiyan Trust, India, and Sulabh International, New Delhi. It has also been awarded to luminaries like the Late Dr. Nelson Mandela, former President of South Africa, Dr. Julius Nyerere, Former President of Tanzania, Dr. A.T. Ariyaratne, Founder President of Sarvodaya Shramadana Movement, Sri Lanka, Dr. Gerhard Fischer, Federal Republic of Germany, Baba Amte, Dr. John Hume, Ireland, Mr. Vaclav Havel, former President of Czechoslovakia, Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa, Shri Chandi Prasad Bhatt and Shri Yohei Sasakawa, Japan.
Recent awardees include Sultan Qaboos Bin Said Al Said, Oman (2019) and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (2020), Bangladesh.
The Jury headed by, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, after due deliberations on 18th June 2023 unanimously decided to select Gita Press, Gorakhpur as the recipient of the Gandhi Peace Prize for the year 2021, in recognition of its outstanding contribution towards political, social and economic political transformation through non-violent and other Gandhian methods.
Established in 1923, Gita Press is one of the world’s largest publishers, having published 41.7 crore books in 14 languages, including 16.21 crore Shrimad Bhagavad Gita. The institution has never relied on advertisement in its publications, for revenue generation. Gita Press along with its affiliated organizations, strives for the betterment of life and the well-being of all.
Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi recalled the contribution of Gita Press, in promoting the Gandhian ideals of peace and social harmony. He observed that the conferment of the Gandhi Peace Prize on Gita Press, on completion of hundred years of its establishment, is a recognition of the work done by the institution in community service.
Gandhi Peace Prize 2021, recognizes the important and unparalleled contribution of Gita Press, in contributing to the collective upliftment of humanity, which personifies Gandhian living in the true sense.