President Patil honours Madhur Bhandarkar, Shyam Benegal

New Delhi: President Pratibha Patil Wednesday honoured filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar with Ganga Sharan Singh Award along with Shyam Benegal and Girish Karnad for their contribution to Hindi cinema. The filmmakers were presented with the award at Rashtrapati Bhavan here. The award comprises of a certificate and a cheque of Rs.1 lakh. "Over the years not just the audience or the industry but also the government of our country has supported and acknowledged my work. I am honoured and thankful to the HRD ministry for finding me befitting for this award," Bhandarkar, who is known for making hard-hitting and gripping films like "Chandni Bar" and "Page 3", said in a statement. As many as 28 people from various walks of life were also honoured by the Kendriya Hindi Sansthan of the Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD), as part of the Hindi Service Awards Scheme. The Ganga Sharan Singh Award is a literary honour that the Kendriya Hindi Sansthan (Central Hindi Organisation) annually confers on writers of outstanding works in Hindi literature. It is also given to those who play an important role in promoting the Hindi language through their area of expertise. IANS