People from all over the world read his articles, he said, and found his articles revealed a Kerala they hadn't known.
The amount of information online has also made it easier for reporters to double-check their facts and go deeper into the dirt, said Jeemon Jacob, Bureau Chief South for Tehelka.
Jacob won the third prize for his story on the way pregnant women in Kasargod district, fearful of the effect endosulfan chemicals may have on their babies, were opting for abortion.
Vinoy Mathew was awarded the second prize for rural reporting, for his articles about how loans, meant for farmers in Kerala, were being diverted.
R Samban, chief reporter at Deshabhimani in Kerala was awarded the Cushrow Irani Prize for Environmental Reporting, for his work highlighting how lakes and paddy fields are being taken over by real estate and land mafias.
