Guidelines
GUIDELINES FOR STORY SUBMISSION
Vigyan Prasar welcomes contributions from Indian citizens actively pursuing a PhD or Post-Doctoral fellowship in any field of Science and Technology (S&T) to apply for the AWSAR competition.
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
- The entries are open for the scholars pursuing PhD & PDF in any S&T stream from a recognized Indian University/ R&D Institute.
- The applicant must be an Indian citizen.
- Applicants can submit only one research story.
- Applicants from previous years are encouraged to re-apply on fulfilling all other eligibility criteria.
- AWSAR Winners are not eligible to submit a story in the same category.
- AWSAR Winner in PhD category may apply a second time under the PDF category on fulfilling all other eligibility criteria.
- Entries are also open for scholars who defended their PhDs after December 31, 2022.
KEY GUIDELINES
- The scholar is enrolled in a PhD/PDF in a government-approved Indian institution.
- The scholar must have completed at least two years of residency under PhD category.
The scholars who defended their PhDs after December 31, 2022, are also eligible. - Both full-time and part-time PhD/PDF scholars are eligible for competition.
- The research story should indicate complete research in simple language (Hindi/English) to be understood by the general public. Scholars should avoid the inclusion of complex figures, graphs, equations or formulae in the story. Self-explanatory infographics/cartoons for effective communication to the general public are welcome.
- Any plagiarism will disqualify the candidature and also barred from future participation.
- Original stories submitted solely for AWSAR will be considered. Published or accepted stories for publication elsewhere are not acceptable.
- The submitted file must be completely anonymous to assure an effective double-blind review procedure. The article should not have references to the author's names, affiliation or personal information. Entries with such disclosures will not be evaluated.
- All stories should be submitted through an online portal.
- There is no participation fee for the AWSAR competition.
- Format of Article: MS Word, Paper: A4 size
Word limit:1000-1500 words
Page Layout: 2.5 cm margins on all sides, single column and justified.
Font Size:12-point font size, Line spacing: 1.5
Font:Times New Roman (English) and Unicode (Hindi).
SELECTION CRITERIA
- A story will be judged based on originality, accuracy, clarity, insightfulness, fairness, and resourcefulness.
- The stories should be written in a popular format that interests the non-scientific and general audience without technical jargon.
- The research story must be on the research undertaken by the scholar.
- Stories received after the deadline will not be accepted.
EVALUATION CRITERIA
- At least two experts will evaluate each story.
- A panel of eminent scientists and science communicators constituted by DST will evaluate the stories.
The experts evaluate the stories considering the following points:
Category | Criteria |
---|---|
Language |
|
Content |
|
Format & Presentation |
|
Overall |
|
CATEGORIES & FELICITATION
- Every year the AWSAR ceremony is organized on February 28, the National Science Day.
- Winners are eligible to participate in the Science-Film making Workshop organized by Vigyan Prasar.
Prize Categories in Popular Science Story Writing:
PhD Category | Post-Doctoral Fellows Category |
---|---|
1st Prize: ₹ 1,00,000 2nd Prize: ₹ 50,000 3rd Prize: ₹ 25,000 Best 100 Selected Stories: ₹ 10,000 (each) |
1st Prize: ₹ 1,00,000 Best 20 Selected Stories: ₹ 10,000 (each) |