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Finance Minister P Chidambaram voted Mantri No. 1 in IBN 7
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MUMBAI: Manmohan Singh led UPA government having completed half of its five-year tenure was indeed a noteworthy landmark. With the UPA government crossing the 30-month halfway mark of its tenure, IBN 7, CNN-IBN and ibnlive.com invited their viewers to vote for their favourite minister on ‘Mantri No.1’. The results for the online poll are out and India’s Finance Minister P Chidambaram is voted ‘Mantri No. 1’ of the Cabinet. Viewers were invited to vote on www.ibnlive.com for their favorite ministers on the basis of their performance during this tenure. The online poll received an overwhelming response of over twenty thousand votes from across the country. The performance-based results rated the Union Finance Minister highest on the performance scale and picked him as the favourite among the 33 ministers in the Manmohan Singh Cabinet. Railway Minister Lalu Prasad ended up as the second best choice, but Chidambaram led the race by a very comfortable margin. The voters picked Communications Minister Dayanidhi Maran as their third choice while External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee made it to the fourth slot. Commerce and Industries Minister Kamal Nath finished fifth. Kamal Nath narrowly beat his Cabinet colleague and Union Minister for Science and Technology Kapil Sibal, who ended up on the sixth slot.  “The online poll conducted tries to ascertain the opinion of our viewers on the performance of their leaders. We strongly believe that the citizens of the country have the right to judge the performance of the decision makers. I am glad that viewers have appreciated our initiative and have voted generously.” said Rajdeep Sardesai, Editor-in-Chief, CNN-IBN and IBN 7. Our aim is to try and ascertain the opinions of our viewers on issues that are of national interest. Mantri No I is a valuable barometer to gauge the public mood. We are glad that our efforts have been duly appreciated and acknowledged by the viewers” added, Ashutosh, Managing Editor,IBN 7. Some other ministers who featured in the survey were Kapil Sibal, Prem Chand Gupta, Ambika Soni, Kamal Nath, S Jaipal Reddy, Sharad Pawar, Ram Vilas Paswan etc. |
News Broadcasting
Kamlesh Singh receives Haldi Ghati Award from MMCF
India Today Group editor honoured for three decades of journalism at Udaipur ceremony.
MUMBAI- Kamlesh Singh just turned a lifetime of sharp words into a shiny shield because when journalism wakes up a society, even the Maharana of Mewar wants to pin a medal on it.
The Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation (MMCF) conferred its prestigious Haldi Ghati Award on Kamlesh Singh, a senior editor at the India Today Group, during a ceremony in Udaipur on 15 March 2026. The national award, instituted in 1981-82, recognises “work of permanent value that initiates an awakening in society through the medium of journalism.”
Singh, who leads several editorial initiatives including Aaj Tak Radio, the Teen Taal community and The Lallantop, was presented the honour by Lakshyaraj Singh Mewar, Managing Trustee of MMCF. The citation highlighted his three decades of contributions to Indian media, innovations in digital journalism, mentoring young reporters, and his popular podcast persona “Tau” on Teen Taal, which fosters thoughtful public discourse.
The Haldi Ghati Award, named after the historic Battle of Haldighati symbolising valour and resilience, is one of four national awards given annually by MMCF. Past recipients include Tavleen Singh, Piyush Pandey and Raj Chengappa.
Other honourees this year included Padma Vibhushan Pt Hari Prasad Chaurasia, Vedamurti Devvrat Rekhe, Treeman of India Marimuthu Yoganathan, Vir Chakra Capt Rizwan Malik, and US-based researcher Molly Emma Aitken, who received the Colonel James Tod Award for contributions to understanding Mewar’s spirit and values.
In an era where headlines often shout louder than substance, the MMCF quietly reminded everyone that real journalism isn’t about noise, it’s about the quiet, persistent work that stirs society awake, one thoughtful story at a time.
