Guwahati/Mangaluru, November 9, 2024: ‘Chanakya’ awards were introduced by the Public Relations Council of India (PRCI) 15 years ago to accord recognition to achievers in different fields of public relations. This year’s Chanakya award for ‘Integral Public Relations’ was given to Nurul Islam Laskar, the veteran PR practitioner and motivational speaker of North East India. Laskar received his award from the hands of Shripad Yesso Naik, Union Minister of State for Power & Renewable Energy, on Friday at the 18th Global Communication Conclave being held in Mangaluru in Karnataka state of India. In addition to senior functionaries of PRCI, Ms Sweezal Maria Furtado, Miss Global India 2024 was on the dais at the award ceremony.
Laskar’s initial public relations engagement was with the State Bank of India where he rose to the position of Chief Manager (Public Relations & Community Services). During his tenure with SBI, Laskar visited USA on Rotary International Group Study Exchange Scholarship and was honoured with honorary citizenship of Oklahoma State. SBI also won a special award from Loyola Institute, Chennai for “rising beyond the call of duty” during Laskar’s incumbency as PR chief. After taking premature exit from SBI, Laskar worked in editorial capacity in two leading English dailies of Assam besides establishing ‘Cabsford,’ the first PR agency of North East India. In addition, he has been teaching public relations as a visiting faculty in leading universities and media institutes of NE India. In 2020, he was honoured with ‘Biju Phukan Memorial Award’ for lifetime contribution to the field of PR. His book ‘Beyond Soft Skills’ serves as a handbook for all aspiring PR practitioners across the country.
At the Mangaluru Conclave, Laskar was also assigned with the responsibility of moderating a panel discussion on “Realigning Communication Styles through Effective Interaction” in which leading corporate spokespersons of the country participated.
Earlier, Subhankar Banerjee, founder director of Seven Sense Communication and Dr Alpana Choudhury, Head of Mass Communication Department at Assam Don Bosco University had won the Chanakya Award in 2021 and 2022 respectively. Former Director of IIMC, Mizoram Campus, LR Sailo, was included in the ‘PRCI Hall of Fame’ way back in 2007.
