Indian Personalities in News 2021: The year 2021 was marked by brilliant achievements by Indian personalities all over the world, starting with Neeraj Chopra winning India's first-ever individual Olympic gold in athletics, Mukesh Ambani joining the exclusive $100 Billion Club, Falguni Nayar becoming India’s wealthiest self-made woman billionaire, Sirisha Bandla becoming the second Indian-born woman to fly to space after Kalpana Chawla to India's Harnaaz Sandhu bringing home the Miss Universe 2021 crown, Indian-origin Abhimanyu Mishra becoming the youngest-ever Chess Grandmaster and Samir Banerjee becoming the third Indian-origin player to win Wimbledon boys singles.
Several other Indian personalities also made the headlines in 2021 including Virat Kohli, who stepped down as India's T20 captain, Rahul Dravid who was appointed as Team India's new head coach and Sunil Chhetri who overtook Messi to become 2nd highest active international goalscorer
The Indian Defence Forces also saw new appointments with Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari taking over as new Chief of Indian Air Force and Vice Admiral R. Hari Kumar taking over as the new Chief of Naval Staff. Army Chief Gen Naravane was appointed as the new Chairman of the Chief of Staff Committee after the tragic demise of CDS General Bipin Rawat in a helicopter crash in Tamil Nadu.
Check Top 25 Indian Person in News in 2021
1. Neeraj Chopra becomes first-ever Indian athlete to win gold at Olympic Games
Neeraj Chopra became the first-ever Indian athlete and second-ever Indian to win individual gold at the Olympic Games on August 7, 2021. Only Indian shooter Abhinav Bindra has won an individual gold before in Men's 10m air rifle event at the 2008 Olympic Games. Neeraj Chopra's gold was India's first gold medal at Tokyo Olympics. He claimed the medal with a throw of 87.58m, finishing at the top of the table in the Javelin throw finals.
2. Harnaaz Sandhu crowned Miss Universe 2021
India's Harnaaz Sandhu created history by being crowned Miss Universe 2021 on December 13, 2021. She brought home the Miss Universe crown 21 years after Lara Dutta had won the Miss Universe title in 2000. The 21-year-old Indian belongs to Punjab and she was presented the crown by Andrea Meza, Miss Universe 2000 from Mexico.
3. Virat Kohli named Wisden Almanack’s ODI Cricketer of Decade, what is Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack?
Virat Kohli was named Wisden Almanack’s ODI Cricketer of the 2010s decade on April 15, 2021 by the annual sports publication the Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack. The ICC had also recognized Virat Kohli as the ICC Men’s ODI Cricketer of the Decade and ICC Male Cricketer of the Decade in 2020. Kohli had also surpassed MS Dhoni in 2019 as India’s most successful Test skipper.
4. Rahul Dravid appointed as head coach of Team India
Rahul Dravid, a veteran Indian cricketer, also known as 'The Wall' was appointed as the head coach of the men's senior cricket team on November 3, 2021. He was unanimously chosen for the post by the Cricket Advisory Committee. He has previously served as the head coach of India Under 19 and India A side. He was also appointed as the head of the National Cricket Academy in 2019, a position which he left before taking over as India’s head coach.
5. Army Chief Gen Naravane assumes charge as Chairman of Chiefs of Staff Committee
Indian Army Chief Gen MM Naravane was appointed as Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee comprising the three service chiefs on December 16, 2021. The post of the Chairman of Chiefs of Staff Committee had fallen vacant after the passing of India's first Chief of Defence Staff Bipin Rawat in the tragic crash of an IAF helicopter in Tamil Nadu on December 8, 2021.
6. Sushil Chandra becomes 24th Chief Election Commissioner of India
Sushil Chandra was appointed as the new Chief Election Commissioner by President Ram Nath Kovind on April 12, 2021. He became the 24th Chief Election Commissioner of the country, succeeding Sunil Arora who retired from the post. Chandra took charge of the post as he was the senior-most Election Commissioner at the time. He was appointed as the Election Commissioner ahead of the Lok Sabha elections on February 14, 2019.
7. Former Judge Arun Kumar Mishra appointed as NHRC Chairman
Former Supreme Court judge Arun Kumar Mishra took charge as the Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on June 2, 2021. He had retired from the apex court in September 2020. He was appointed to the post by President Ram Nath Kovind based on the recommendation of a selection panel comprising of PM Modi, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Home Minister Amit Shah, Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge and Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha Harivansh.
8. Jamsetji Tata tops global list of biggest philanthropists of last century
Tata Group founder Jamsetji Tata emerged as the world's biggest philanthropist in the last century by donating $102 billion, as per a list of top 50 givers prepared by the Hurun Report and EdelGive Foundation. Tata is the only Indian in the top 10 of the list. The only other Indian among the top 50 is former WIPRO Chairman Azim Premji, who is ranked at the 12th position.
9. Mukesh Ambani joins $100 Billion Club
Asia’s richest person, RIL Chairman Mukesh Ambani joined the world’s most exclusive $100 Billion Club after the stock of his conglomerate reached a record high on October 8, 2021. The $100 billion club includes 11 billionaires with a fortune of at least $100 billion including Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, Warren Buffet and Larry Page. Mukesh Ambani is now worth $100.6 billion after his wealth increased by $23.8 billion in 2021, as per the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
10. Falguni Nayar becomes India’s wealthiest self-made woman billionaire
Falguni Nayar, Nykaa's founder and CEO, became India’s wealthiest self-made billionaire and 7th woman billionaire on November 10, 2021. Her net worth reached $6.5 billion when Nykaa’s parent entity FSN E-Commerce Ventures got listed on the National Stock Exchange for Rs 2,018 and on the Bombay Stock Exchange for Rs 2,001 during Initial Public Offering (IPO). The market cap of Nykaa hit $13.5 billion within just five minutes of its IPO listing. Nykaa has also become the first woman-led unicorn startup that got listed on the stock exchange in India.
11. Nobel Laureate Kailash Satyarthi appointed as Sustainable Development Goals Advocate by UN
Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi was appointed as the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Advocate by UN Secretary-General Chief Antonio Guterres on September 17, 2021. Kailash Satyarthi was appointed as an SDG advocate along with STEM activist Valentina Munoz Rabanal and K-pop superstars BLACKPINK.The Indian social reformer has been a tireless advocate of children's rights, working to end child labour and ensuring that no children are left behind by advocating for the universal right to education.
12. Sourav Ganguly appointed Chairman of ICC Men's Cricket Committee
BCCI President Sourav Ganguly was appointed as the Chairman of ICC Men's Cricket Committee for a three year term. He succeeds Anil Kumble, who stepped down from the post after having served his term. ICC Chairman Greg Barclay welcomed Ganguly's appointment saying, "I am delighted to welcome Sourav to the position of Chair of the ICC Men's Cricket Committee. His experience as one of the world's best players and latterly as an administrator will help us shape our cricketing decisions moving forward."
13. Kaushik Basu receives Humboldt Research Award
Renowned Indian Economist Kaushik Basu won the prestigious Humboldt Research Award for Economics. The award honours economists and scientists from across the world every year for their outstanding work and carries prize money of 60,000 euros to aid their research projects. Kaushik Basu has decided to use the award for the research on Game Theory and Moral Philosophy. The award is sponsored by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.
14. Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen receives Spain’s top award in social sciences
Indian economist and Nobel Laureate, Amartya Kumar Sen, was awarded Spain’s top Princess of Asturias Award in the Social Sciences category on May 26, 2021. The 87-year-old was chosen among a pool of 41 candidates from 20 nations in the Social Sciences Award. The Princess of Asturias Award is conferred for creative or research work in the field of economics, political science, sociology, law, history, linguistics, teaching, ethics, geography, philosophy, anthropology, demography, or psychology.
15. Bharat Ratna Professor Rao honoured with International ENI Award 2020
Bharat Ratna Professor C.N.R. Rao has been honoured with the International ENI Award 2020 for his research in renewable energy sources and energy storage. Professor Rao is an Indian chemist who has worked mainly in structural and solid-state chemistry. He has been working on hydrogen energy as the only source of energy for the benefit of all mankind.
16. Indian architect Balkrishna Doshi wins Royal Gold Medal 2022
Indian architect Balkrishna Doshi was awarded the world’s highest honour for Architecture, Royal Gold Medal 2022. The prestigious award is conferred by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). The 94-year-old has built over 100 projects in his 70-year-career and influenced the direction of architecture in India and its adjacent regions through both his teaching and practice.
17. Gita Gopinath to be IMF’s First Deputy Managing Director
Indian-American economist, Gita Gopinath has been appointed to the role of First Deputy Managing Director of International Monetary Fund (IMF). Gopinath, who is currently serving as the Chief Economist of IMF, will soon be the second-rank official at the world body. She will replace First Deputy Managing Director Geoffrey Okamoto who plans to step down in early 2022.
18. Vanita Gupta becomes first Indian-American Associate Attorney General of US
Vanita Gupta became the first Indian-American to serve as the Associate Attorney General of the United States. She was confirmed for the position in a narrow 51-49 vote after Republican senator
Lisa Murkowski joined the Democrats to support Vanita Gupta's nomination. Gupta had earlier served in the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department under former US President Barack Obama's Administration.
19. Sirisha Bandla second Indian-born woman to fly to space
Sirisha Bandla created history by becoming the second Indian-born woman to fly to space after Kalpana Chawla, who had unfortunately died in the Columbia Space Shuttle disaster in 2003. Bandla was one of the six crew members aboard billionaire Sir Richard Branson's historic Virgin Galactic flight 'VSS Unity' that flew to the edge of space on July 11, 2021 before returning to the Earth.
Bandla also became the fourth Indian to fly into space after Rakesh Sharma, Kalpana Chawla and Sunita Williams.
20. Anil Menon, Indian-origin doctor, among new NASA astronaut recruits
Anil Menon, an Indian-origin doctor, was recruited as a part of NASA's 2021 class of astronauts on December 6, 2021 for NASA's future space missions. The 45-year-old is a lieutenant colonel at the US Air Force, who served NASA previously as the crew flight surgeon for various expeditions on the International Space Station (ISS). The new group of NASA astronauts will be a part of NASA's Artemis program, which aims to send the first woman and person of color to the Moon's surface as early as 2025.
21. Samir Banerjee becomes third Indian-origin player to win Wimbledon boys singles
Samir Banerjee became the third Indian-origin tennis player to win Wimbledon boy's singles on July 11, 2021. The 17-year-old was playing his second junior Grand Slam and he beat USA's Victor Lilov in straight sets of 7-5, 6-3 in the Wimbledon boys' singles final that lasted for about one hour and 22 minutes. The other Indians to have won the title before him include Ramanathan Krishnan in 1954, Ramesh Krishnan in 1979 and Leander Paes in 1990.
22. Abhimanyu Mishra becomes youngest-ever Chess Grandmaster in history
Indian-origin Abhimanyu Mishra became the youngest-ever Chess Grandmaster on June 30, 2021. The 12-year-old achieved the feat at the Vezerkepzo Grandmaster mix tournament in Budapest, Hungary. The earlier record was held by GM Sergey Karjakin, who had become the youngest Grandmaster in Chess in 2002 at the age of 12 years and 7 months. Abhimanyu was aged 12 years, 4 months and 25 days when he won the championship.
23. PV Sindhu becomes first Indian woman to win two individual Olympic medals
PV Sindhu became the first Indian woman and second Indian overall to win two individual Olympic medals after she won the bronze medal after defeating China's He Bingjiao 21-13, 21-15 in the women's singles bronze medal match on August 1, 2021. She had won silver after losing in the women's singles final against Spain's Carolina Marin at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games. Only other Indian to win two individual Olympic medals is wrestler Sushil Kumar.
24. India's track legend Anju Bobby George named ‘Woman of the Year’
Indian track legend Anju Bobby George was awarded ‘Woman of the Year' by the World Athletics on December 1, 2021 for her efforts in advancing the sport in India and inspiring many women to follow in her footsteps and fulfil their dreams of being successful athletes representing India at international events. Anju Bobby George had created history when she had won the bronze medal in long jump at the World Athletics Championship 2003 in Paris.
25. Sunil Chhetri overtakes Messi to become 2nd highest active international goalscorer
Indian Football Captain Sunil Chhetri became the second-highest active international goal scorer on June 7, 2021 after he overtook Argentina’s star footballer Lionel Messi. Chhetri with 74 goals stands behind Portugal football star Christiano Ronaldo who has 103 goals in the list of footballers with the most international goals. UAE footballer Ali Mabkhout stands third with 73 goals so far.
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