New Delhi : The Award Jury Meeting of the 7th CMS Vatavaran- Environment and Wildlife Film Festival & Forum was held from Dec 18 – 20, 2013 (Wed – Fri) at the ITC Maurya, New Delhi. CMS Vatavaran is Asia’s largest Film Festival and Forum and it is also rated as one of the 
world’s top ten festivals on environment and wildlife.
Eminent film maker, actor and producer – Amol Palekar headed the list of eminent jurists for the coveted 7th CMS VATAVARAN Awards in national and international categories.
The Jury Committee comprises of 13 eminent personalities from widely divergent sectors and streams representing environment, film and media/communication experts (Details of all Jury members is given below).
Speaking on the occasion, Mr.Palekar said, “I am glad to be a part of the green movement, to protect and celebrate our nature by being a part of the CMS Vatavaran Award Jury. Films are a powerful medium of change and I hope award winning films are used extensively for the same.”
In the Award Jury meet, all 12 Jury members saw more than 24 hours of films (all 86) in each category (national and International). Based on discussions, they have now selected the awards – 15 in National category and 12 in International category. The awards in national category range from Rs50,000 to 1,50,000 each along with citation and trophy. Similarly, the awardees in the international category also receive trophy and citation. There is no cash award for the international category
In this 7th edition of CMS VATAVARAN, a total of 541 entries were received in both National and International categories. From these, 86 have been nominated in 11 categories by the Nomination Jury of 31 experts headed by Mr Srinivasan Iyer, Assistant Country Director and Head, Energy and Environment Unit, UNDP India.
Known for its rigorous and credible selection process, the coveted CMS VATAVARAN awards will be announced and presented on Feb 02, 2014 during the 7th CMS VATAVARAN-Environment & Wildlife Film Festival and Forum which is scheduled from January 30 – February 03, 2014 at IGNCA Lawns, New Delhi.
The Award Jury for the national category consisted of:
1. Dr Nagesh Rao – President & Director – Mudra Institute of Communications, Ahmedabad (MICA). Dr Nagesh Rao has scholarly interests in intercultural communication competence and health communication.
2. Dr Nanditha Krishna – Director, C P R Environmental Education Centre (CPREEC), Chennai. Dr. Krishna is a historian, environmentalist and writer.
3. Dr Anupam Joshi – Senior Environmental Specialist- The World Bank, New Delhi
A trained ecologist, Dr Anupam Joshi has wide experience in the fields of ecosystem analysis, biodiversity conservation, protected area management, habitat restoration, impact assessments and evaluations.
4. Mr R M S Liberhan – Director – India Habitat Centre (IHC), New Delhi
Raj Liberhan has served in the Government of India’s financial services for 30 years, before moving to the non-governmental sector to head the IHC.
5. Ms Sumitra Bhave- Award winning Film Maker – Vichitra Nirmiti, Pune
Sumitra Bhave (along with Sunil Sukthankar) has made 14 feature films, 40 short films, five telefilms and two television serials to her credit.
6. Mr Ziya Us Salam – Features Editor – The Hindu, New Delhi
Ziya Us Salam has served on the jury of the International Film Festival of India.
The Award Jury for the International category consisted of:
1. Mr Ramesh Sharma – Award winning Film Maker, New Delhi
2. Ms Shubhra Gupta- Film Critic & Senior Columnist – The Indian Express, New Delhi
3. Mr Ranjit Lal – Children’s writer, columnist, birder, New Delhi
Ranjit Lal is an author and has 30 books published so far, fiction and non-fiction.
4. Dr Ganesan Balachander – Director – Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), Bangalore
5. Mr M D Madhusudan – Senior Scientist and Trustee – Nature Conservation Foundation (NCF), Mysore. He co-founded the Nature Conservation Foundation, an organisation that undertakes and promotes science-based and socially responsible nature conservation in diverse ecosystems across India.
6. Dr Neelima Jerath – Executive Director – Punjab State Council for Science & Technology (PSCST), Chandigarh. Dr Jerath is also Member Secretary, Punjab Biodiversity Board and Member Secretary, Punjab State Innovation Council. She is also Chairperson, State Expert Appraisal Committee for Environment Clearance of projects in Punjab.