C. P. R. Environmental Education Centre (CPREEC) received the Indira Gandhi Paryavaran Puraskar for the year 1996 in September 2000. The award included a silver lotus trophy, a citation and a cash prize of Rupees One Lakh. Using the cash award as corpus, the Board of Governors of the C.P.R. Environmental Education Centre decided to institute an annual C. P. R. Environmental Education Centre Award for Environmental Education. The annual award is given to a teacher, who has contributed to the field of environmental education, preferably from a rural area. The award consists of a silver plaque, a citation, as well as a cash prize.
The ninth award function was held on August 19, 2009. Dr. M.S. Swaminathan, Chairman, CPREEC, gave away the C. P. R. Environmental Education Centre Award for Environmental Education – 2009 to Shri. Rajendra Pandurang Kerkar, a teacher from Goa, in recognition of his contribution to environmental conservation through education.