In Indian literature, who was selected for the prestigious Jnanpith Award for the year 2016?

Introduction / Context:
The Jnanpith Award is one of the highest and most respected literary honours in India, given for outstanding contributions to Indian literature in any of the recognised languages. For the year 2016, the award was conferred on the eminent Bengali poet and critic Shankha Ghosh. This question checks exam readiness on current affairs based static general knowledge related to major Indian literary awards and their recipients.

Given Data / Assumptions:
- The award mentioned is the Jnanpith Award for the year 2016.- The options list four well known Indian writers along with one additional literary figure.- The task is to identify which writer actually received the Jnanpith Award in 2016.

Concept / Approach:
To solve such questions, candidates must recall standard lists of important awards and their recent winners. The Jnanpith Award is frequently asked in competitive examinations, so linking it with the language of the writer and the year of conferment helps. Here, remembering that the 2016 Jnanpith went to a Bengali poet, Shankha Ghosh, allows us to select the correct answer confidently and eliminate other options which belong to different years or different honours.

Step-by-Step Solution:
- Step 1: Note that the question narrows the field to the single year 2016.- Step 2: Recall that the Jnanpith jury selected Bengali poet and critic Shankha Ghosh for his lifelong contribution to Indian literature.- Step 3: Compare each option with this memory. Only Shankha Ghosh matches the year 2016.- Step 4: Recognise that Ravuri Bharadwaja, Kedarnath Singh and Chandrashekhara Kambara are Jnanpith awardees from other years.- Step 5: Therefore mark Shankha Ghosh as the correct answer.

Verification / Alternative check:
A good verification strategy is to cross connect year and language. Candidates often remember that the Jnanpith has honoured Bengali writers such as Ashapoorna Devi, Mahasweta Devi and later Shankha Ghosh. Matching the year 2016 with Shankha Ghosh and recalling news coverage at that time reinforces the correctness of this option. No other name in the list is linked with the 2016 Jnanpith announcement, which confirms the answer choice.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Ravuri Bharadwaja did receive the Jnanpith Award, but for an earlier year and for Telugu literature, not for the 2016 award year mentioned in the question.Kedarnath Singh was also a Jnanpith laureate from a different year, so he does not fit the specific year 2016.Chandrashekhara Kambara is a noted Kannada poet and dramatist who received the Jnanpith Award in another year, not in 2016.Girish Karnad is a major literary and theatre figure, but he is not the person who was selected for the 2016 Jnanpith Award.

Common Pitfalls:
Candidates sometimes memorise names of Jnanpith awardees without tying them to specific years, which leads to confusion when several correct names appear in options. Another common error is to mix up Jnanpith with other prestigious awards such as Sahitya Akademi or Bharat Ratna. Aspirants should maintain short revision lists of recent awardees by year and by language to avoid last minute guessing. Misreading the year in the question is another simple but harmful mistake.

Final Answer:
The writer who was selected for the Jnanpith Award for the year 2016 is Shankha Ghosh.