British naturalist David Attenborough to be awarded 2019 Indira Gandhi Peace Prize

David Attenborough’s name was selected for the prize by an international jury chaired by former President Pranab Mukherjee, the Indira Gandhi Memorial Trust announced on Tuesday 

New Delhi: The Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development for 2019 will be conferred on renowned naturalist and broadcaster David Attenborough. 

His name was selected for the prize by an international jury chaired by former President Pranab Mukherjee, the Indira Gandhi Memorial Trust announced on Tuesday.

"Few individuals have come to be as identified with the wellbeing of our planet, of all living creatures, and their relationship with human beings, as Sir David," the Trust said in a statement.

The 2019 prize, it added, is awarded to Attenborough for a lifetime of doing more to reveal the wonders of the natural world to us than perhaps any other individual.

Suman Dubey, secretary of the trust, said Attenborough had tirelessly worked to "awaken humankind to the need, to preserve and protect the biodiversity on our planet, to live in a sustainable and harmonious way with all life, and to stop being what he has called: a plague on earth”.

David Attenborough, the 93-year old English broadcaster and natural historian, narrated and directed the first film on wildlife in 4k ultra high definition resolution known as ‘A majestic celebration: Wild Karnataka’.

David Attenborough is best known for writing and presenting, in conjunction with the BBC Natural History Unit. It is a nine natural history documentary series forming the life collection that together constitute a comprehensive survey of animal and plant life on Earth.

Attenborough is widely considered a national treasure in the UK, although he himself does not like the term. In 2002, he was named among the 100 Greatest Britons following a UK-wide poll for the BBC. 

The 2019 prize is being awarded to Attenborough for a lifetime of doing more to reveal the wonders of the natural world to us than perhaps any other individual.