New Delhi, April 2 (IANS): The Christian Medical College, Vellore, Biocon Foundation and non-governmental organisation SEWA have been named as recipients of the World Health Organisation's public health awards, a release said here on Thursday.

The awards were announced on Wednesday at a national consultation to mark World Health Day, held jointly by the WHO and the union health ministry.

The award winners were the SEWA Rural, the Community Health Department, the Christian Medical College, Vellore, the Biocon Foundation and AIIMS paediatrician Vinod K. Paul for sustained contribution to public health.

In a separate category of innovations, the awardees were Narayana Health and Ekjut, the release said.

"Public health is a challenging field and these awards are our way of saying thank you to the talented individuals and organisations that have dedicated themselves to this field. These awards are an attempt to recognise and honour the best in this field and also to encourage others to emulate them," Nata Menabde, WHO representative to India said.

The rationale for recognising public health champions is to honour efforts of both, individuals and institutions who have made an outstanding contribution to public health through advocacy for and involvement in impactful health policies and programmes with proven public health achievements and substantial improvement in equitable health outcomes in the country, she added.