Former Vice-President M. Venkaiah Naidu, actors Chiranjeevi and Vyjayanthimala Bali, and Bharatanatyam dancer Padma Subrahmanyam will be conferred with Padma Vibhushan, the country’s second highest civilian award, the Central government announced on the eve of Republic Day. Bindeshwar Pathak, founder of Sulabh International, will be conferred with the award posthumously.
Late actor Vijayakant, M. Fathima Beevi, the first female judge to be appointed to the Supreme Court of India, Satyabrata Mookherjee, former president of Bharatiya Janata Party in West Bengal, and Togdan Rinpoche, spiritual leader of the Drikung Kagyu Tradition in Ladakh, were conferred with Padma Bhushan posthumously.
Young Liu, chairman of Taiwan’s Foxconn Group, has also been conferred with a Padma Bhushan.
Actor Mithun Chakraborty; singer Usha Uthup; O. Rajagopal, BJP leader from Kerala; Tejas Madhusudan Patel, cardiologist from Gujarat; Ram Naik, veteran BJP leader and former Uttar Pradesh Governor; Hormusji N. Cama, senior publisher leading the Gujarati newspaper Bombay Samachar;industrialist Sita Ram Jindal; veteran Marathi film director Dattatray Ambadas Mayaloo; Hindi music director Pyarelal Sharma (of Laxmikant-Pyarelal duo); and senior journalist Kundan Vyas have been also conferred with Padma Bhushan this year.
Padma Shri awards were announced for 34 individuals whose work has been “unsung and unique”. Dukhu Majhi, a tribal environmentalist from Purulia, West Bengal; K. Chellamal, organic farmer from South Andaman; Sanghthankima from Mizoram, who runs the largest orphanage in Aizawl, are among Padma Shri awardees this year.
In sports, tennis star Rohan Bopanna, veteran squash player Joshna Chinappa, hockey player Harbinder Singh, Mallakhamb practitioner Uday Deshpande, archer Purima Mahtao, para badminton coach Gaurav Khanna and para swimmer Satendra Singh Lohia were chosen for the Padma Shri honour.
For the year 2024, the President approved conferment of 132 Padma awards, up from 106 such awards last year. The list comprises five Padma Vibhushan, 17 Padma Bhushan and 110 Padma Shri awards. While 30 awardees are women, the list also includes nine persons from the category of “Foreigners/NRI/PIO/OCI” and nine posthumous awardees.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah congratulated the “change-makers” who were selected for the Padma awards for their distinguished contribution to different fields.
Mr. Shah posted on X, “PM Shri @narendramodi Ji has rationalized the Padma Awards ceremony to make it a platform to appreciate individuals setting pioneering examples for social change. The individuals conferred with the Padma Awards have not only created brilliant examples for others to follow but also have elevated the pride of the nation with their service.”
Click here for the full list of 2024 Padma awardees
Click here to know more about the 2024 Padma awardees.
