Believe it or not, the cash award of Rs 100 crore announced by Telugu Desam Party president and Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu is 10 times more than the value of the Nobel Prize given by the Sweden government!
As per the latest value, the Nobel Prize carries a cash award of 1.4 million US dollars, which amounts to Rs 9.5 crore. Even if one were to assume the rising cost of US dollar, the total value of the Nobel prize does not exceed Rs 10 crore.
But Naidu announced that he would give Rs 100 crore, which is 10 times the value of the actual value of Nobel Prize, for an Andhra scientist, if he bags the prize.
“This is ridiculous. By announcing the cash prize, Naidu has actually belittled the scientific community, which gathered at the Science Congress in Tirupati. Without creating any infrastructure for the scientific research, Naidu announcing a purse which is more than the actual sum of Nobel Prize is ridiculous.
No one would work for money as the sanctity of the Prize has some value and commitment attached to it and need not be viewed on commercial terms,” YSR Congress party president Y S Jaganmohan Reddy said.
