Nearly 1 in 4 Diana Award winners are Indian; Global Student Prize winner joins list

The 2026 Diana Award Roll of Honour features 198 changemakers from 44 countries, including 49 from India. Their work ranges from AI-based water testing and low-cost air purifiers to construction safety, eldercare and education. Bihar's Adarsh Kumar, founder of Skillzo and India's first Global Sudent Prize winner, is among the honourees recognised for social action this year.The 2026 Diana Award Roll of Honour features 198 changemakers from 44 countries, including 49 from India. (Photo: diana-award.org.uk)New Delhi,Nov 5, 2026 20:45 ISTThe 2026 Diana Award Roll of Honour is out, and India has a particularly strong presence this year. Of the 198 young changemakers recognised from 44 countries, 49 are from India, accounting for nearly one-fourth of the total recipients.The announcement was made on November 4 at the Diana Award's virtual ceremony. India has the largest contingent among the countries represented, ahead of Nigeria, with 25 recipients, and the United States, with 23.Established in memory of the late Diana, Princess of Wales, the award recognises young people aged 16 to 25 for their social action and humanitarian work. The 2026 recipients were selected for their leadership, tangible impact, peer empowerment, resilience, integrity and sustainability of their work.Along with a certificate of recognition, each recipient also received letters of appreciation from Prince William, Prince of Wales, and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, the sons of the late Diana, Princess of Wales. Among the Indian names are young innovators working on everything from artificial intelligence and clean energy to healthcare, education and workers' safety.One of the notable Indian names on this year's list is Adarsh Kumar, who grew up in poverty in Bihar and went on to establish Skillzo, a social enterprise that provides students with mentorship, skills development and access to educational opportunities, and has reportedly empowered more than 20,000 students across India. He is also the first Indian recipient of the $100,000 Chegg.org Global Student Prize, awarded by Chegg.org and the Varkey Foundation.AI, CLEAN AIR AND WATER INNOVATIONSSeveral Indian recipients are being recognised for developing practical solutions to everyday problems.Aditya Yadav founded EcoForce and developed an AI-based system to detect water contaminants such as arsenic and nitrate using limited real-world data. The technology has been tested on wells serving his village in Taroni.Krish Aggarwal, through Project Vayu, helped develop a low-cost retrofit filter that converts existing fans into air purifiers. The initiative has distributed filters across underprivileged schools in Delhi, benefiting more than 10,000 students.Prerna Singhal founded Viksit Youth, a student-led movement with more than 10,000 volunteers across 50 countries. She also developed ASHA, an AI-powered eldercare platform supporting over 5,000 elderly people across 30 care homes. Her work includes a patented road-safety device designed to protect people and animals.FROM CONSTRUCTION SAFETY TO FARMINGAnother interesting name is Shiv Mandlik, who developed a Modular Arm Pole, a bendable aluminium-FRP beam designed to reduce the need for construction workers to operate at dangerous heights. He also developed Samrakshak, a real-time fall-detection app. His initiative has reached more than 21,000 workers across six cities.Saksham Kumar founded Tech on the Field to improve technology access among farmers. His initiative has conducted 250 workshops across 300 villages, reaching more than 25,000 farmers with tools such as agricultural drones and modern irrigation systems.Other Indian recipients include Aarya Borele, who converts used cooking oil into biodiesel through Dhanaj Biofuels, and Vanya Gupta, who developed a MIDI drum-based cognitive assessment tool to measure children's memory, attention and problem-solving abilities through rhythm.The range of projects offers a glimpse into how young Indians are taking on problems that affect their communities, turning ideas into initiatives with measurable impact.- Ends