BEST PRINT REPORT OF THE YEAR:..:..-----------_ - _-:_=-~ dian-Austra\ians

The 2013 Federal Election: An Indian community poll

Pawan Lu thra's p iece on the analysis of an lr,d;,m Link el ection surv ey, conducted in the lead up to the Jast federal elections , ,vas a clear and conc ise report on the issues which matter to th e Indian community, and their percepti ons of w hich political par ry would bes t fulfil their need s No doubt it helped the u n dec ided v ote r s in the communi ty tO make their final electo ral decision.

"Our pre-electi o n surveys are conduc t ed o bjecti vel y and provi de valuab le insig ht i nto th e m anner in which the communi ty is thin k ing,"

Pawan said "This i s parLicuJarl y importa nt as l arge secti o n s of our community's voters live in marginal seat areas. It turned o m, we were right on targ et. In fact, this was the third time a row that our pre-election po ll wa s rig ht on target".

YOUNG JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR: RlTAM MITRA

T;:u~:=~of the Year Ritam Mitra, is a perfect exan1ple of the mentoring that fodia11 I.ink. does for young writers.

"I definitel)' was n 't expecting to win, and it was an honour simply co be shortlisted for the award," says Ricam of h is award. "Th e other nominees were of very higb calibre".

Ricam was 17 when he first began to contribute to Tndia11 I.ink. Today, at 2 1, finishing a law degree at uni and working for a leading Sydn ey Jaw lirm. he is one of the most pro lific write-rs on our team.

"Indian Link has given me a wide range o f opportunities, which I'm extre m ely gtateful for," says i\ Lltra._Ritam's e arliest writings were on youth is sues and h is great passion sport, but his body of work n ow in cludes pieces on po litics, scie n ce, technology, media, new media, governmeoc policy, assimilation, even on Indian traditions as h e sees tbe.m through his Australia-taised eye s.

"The Yo ung J o urnali st award was the last award ptesenced on the night, and i t was a new category - so there 10 MARCI-I 2014 was a fair b it of anticipation around it," recalls Mitra of the award night. " I'd s pent most of the night enjoying the speeches, cu ltural performances, and celebrating the Indian Link team's win in rwo other categories, so l didn't dunk coo much abour the award, as I knew there were some very impressive nominees who d eser ved tbe honour. From the moment ill)' name was called up, everything became a bit of a bl ur. It was a big surprise and a very lnunb ling n10menr.

" Bue i t was a moment l'll never forget and an award l'U bold very dearly ro me".