Mysore/Mysuru: Prof. Lingaraja Gandhi, former Vice-Chancellor of Bengaluru City University, has been selected for the Thailand-India International Iconic Awards-2026 in recognition of his outstanding contributions to the field of education.

The prestigious awards ceremony jointly organised by Asianet Suvarna News and Kannada Prabha newspaper will be held today (Jan. 21) at The Berkeley Hotel, Pratunam, Bangkok.

Prof. Gandhi, widely respected for his academic leadership and contributions to higher education in Karnataka, will be honoured among achievers from the State for the year 2026. The organisers highlighted his significant role in strengthening Bengaluru City University and expanding educational                                     opportunities.

With over 41 years of experience in University-level teaching, research and academic administration, Prof. Lingaraja Gandhi is a Professor in the Department of English, University of Mysore.

He was invited by the University of Wolverhampton, UK, to share his expertise as a Visiting Research Scholar in the project ‘Sustainable Smart Cities Coping with Crisis: Lessons from a Global Pandemic’. He visited the University of Wolverhampton twice — from July 17 to 21, 2023, and March 25 to 29, 2024 — and contributed to the research project.

As part of this initiative, Prof. Gandhi co-authored a research article titled ‘The Role of Smart Cities in Managing the COVID-19 Outbreak in India’.