| Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Trophy | |
|---|---|
| Rolling Trophy awarded to the best overall university in sports | |
| Sponsored by | Government of India |
| Reward | ₹15 lakh (US$18,000) |
| First award | 1956–1957 |
| Final award | 2024 |
| Most recent winner | Chandigarh University |
| Highlights | |
| Total awarded | 68 |
| First winner | Bombay University |
TheMaulana Abul Kalam Azad Trophy, is a sports honour of theRepublic of India. The award is named afterAbul Kalam Azad commonly referred to as Maulana Azad, one of the senior leaders ofIndian national congress and firstMinister of Education in independent India.[1][2] It is awarded annually by theMinistry of Youth Affairs and Sports. It is a rolling trophy awarded to the "overall top performing University in sports and promoting competitive sports in University" over the preceding year. As of 2020[update], the award for the university securing first position comprises "a rolling MAKA trophy and a cash prize of₹15 lakh (US$18,000)". The second- and third-place universities receive cash prizes of₹7.5 lakh (US$8,900) and₹4.5 lakh (US$5,300) respectively.[3]
The trophy, initiated in 1956–1957, has been awarded a total of 68 times as of 2024. The objective of the trophy is to promote competitive sports, excellence in sports, and integrating sports and physical fitness amongst the Indian colleges and universities. The trophy is awarded annually with the other fiveNational Sports Awards andnational adventure award at thePresidential Palace presented by thePresident of India, usually on 29 August of a year.[4] Six universities have won the trophy various times.Guru Nanak Dev University inAmritsar has won the trophy 25 times, most recently in the year 2023.Panjab University in Chandigarh has won the trophy 15 times, most recently in the year 2020, whileDelhi University based in Delhi has won the trophy 14 times, most recently in the year 2000–2001. Other winners includeBombay University inMumbai which won the inaugural trophy,Punjabi University inPatiala,Kurukshetra University inKurukshetra, andChandigarh University inMohali.[4]
| University | Number of times awarded |
|---|---|
| Bombay University, Mumbai | 3 |
| Delhi University, Delhi | 14 |
| Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar | 24 |
| Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra | 1 |
| Panjab University, Chandigarh | 15 |
| Punjabi University, Patiala | 9 |
| Chandigarh University, Mohali | 1 |
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