Chennai (PTI): DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi and his son M K Stalin are to be awarded the party's highest awards - Periyar and Kalaignar - respectively this year.

These annual awards would be presented to them at a function at Tiruchirapalli on September 21 when the party would be celebrating the birth centenary of the party founder C N Annadurai, birth anniversary of social reformer Periyar E V Ramasamy and the DMK's Foundation Day, party General Secretary K Anbazhagan said in a statement.

DMK Treasurer and Electricity Minister N Veerasamy and Principal Secretary and PWD Minister Duraimurugan would be given the Anna Award and Pavendar Bharathidasan award at the function, he said.

DMK had instituted the Periyar, Anna and Kalaignar awards in 1985 and had been honouring partymen during the party's foundation day celebrations. It instituted Pavendar Bhartidasan award, named after Poet Bharthidasan in 2000.

Anbazhagan, Anbil Dharmalingam, Ko Si Mani were among those who had received these awards previously.