Padma Awards
- Related Topics:
- India
Padma Awards, three awards—Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan, and Padma Shri—that are among the highest civilian honors in India. The awards can be given for achievements in any field, including art, social work, public affairs, science and engineering, trade and industry, medicine, literature and education, civil services, and sports. To be nominated for a Padma Award, one’s activity should involve an element of public service. Nominations are open to the public, and self-nominations are allowed. Invitations for nominations are sent to all state and union territory governments of India, all federal government ministries and departments, Bharat Ratna and Padma Vibhushan awardees, and various institutes of excellence in the country. Nominations are submitted between May and September every year.
History
The government of India instituted the Padma Vibhushan, along with the Bharat Ratna, in 1954. The Padma Vibhushan had three classes, which were renamed in 1955 to Padma Shri (for “distinguished service”), the lowest of the three; Padma Bhushan (for “distinguished service of a high order”); and Padma Vibhushan (for “exceptional and distinguished service”), the highest Padma Award.
The Padma Awards, along with the Bharat Ratna, were suspended twice. The first time was in 1978, when Indian Prime Minister Morarji Desai’s government contended that the awards did not conform with Article 18 (Abolition of Titles) of the Indian Constitution, which states: “No title, not being a military or academic distinction, shall be conferred by the State.” The awards were reinstated in January 1980, when former prime minister Indira Gandhi returned to office. The awards were suspended again between 1992 and 1997, following litigation that questioned their constitutional validity, again citing Article 18, and were reinstated after the Supreme Court ruled that the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Awards are not titles as defined by Article 18 of the Constitution of India and that they are national in character.
The Padma Awards Committee
Each year, awardees are selected by a committee that is headed by the cabinet secretary of India and includes the home secretary, the secretary to the president, and four to six prominent persons. The committee submits its recommendations to the prime minister and the president of India for approval.
Award declaration and presentation
The Padma Awards are announced every year (except a few years when they were interrupted) on the eve of India’s Republic Day, January 26, and are presented by the president of India in March or April at an annual ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan, the official residence of the president. Honorees receive a certificate (sanad) signed by the president and a medallion. The names of the awardees are published in The Gazette of India (an official record of the government of India, published by the Department of Publications, part of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs) on the day of the ceremony. The total number of Padma Awards that may be given in a year cannot exceed 120, excluding individuals awarded posthumously, non-resident Indians, foreigners, and overseas citizens of India. The awards are not titles and cannot be used as a suffix or prefix to an awardee’s name.
2024 and 2025 Padma Awards
Five Padma Vibhushan Awards, 17 Padma Bhushan Awards, and 110 Padma Shri Awards were conferred in 2024. Padma Subrahmanyam, a renowned bharata natyam dancer; Vyjayantimala Bali and Konidela Chiranjeevi, eminent film personalities; M. Venkaiah Naidu, former vice president of India; and Bindeshwar Pathak (posthumous), founder of social service organization Sulabh International, were conferred the Padma Vibhushan Award.
On January 25, 2025, the government declared 7 Padma Vibhushan Awards, 19 Padma Bhushan Awards, and 113 Padma Shri Awards for the year. The Padma Vibhushan winners for the year are:
- M.T. Vasudevan Nair (posthumous): The renowned Malayalam writer and screenwriter was the author of novels such as Asuravithu (“The Demon Seed”), Kaalam (“Time”), and Randamoozham (Second Turn).
- Osamu Suzuki (posthumous): The former chair of Suzuki Motor Corp., Suzuki was instrumental in revolutionizing the Indian automobile market by launching the Maruti 800, an affordable car that was a bestseller in India between 1985 and 2004.
- Sharda Sinha (posthumous): A folk singer from Bihar, she was known for her contribution to Maithili and Bhojpuri folk music and her songs for Chhath Puja (a festival where devotees pay tribute to the Sun).
- D. Nageshwar Reddy: Also a recipient of the Padma Shri (2002) and the Padma Bhushan (2016), Reddy is the founder of the Asian Institute of Gastroenterology in Hyderabad and has received numerous awards for his work in the field of gastroenterology.
- Jagdish Singh Khehar: The former chief justice of India headed, among others, a bench that declared privacy a fundamental right under the Constitution of India in 2017.
- Kumudini Rajnikant Lakhia: The accomplished kathak dancer founded the Kadamb Centre for Dance in Ahmedabad. Lakhia is a key figure in contemporary kathak.
- L. Subramaniam: The violin maestro is credited with popularizing south Indian music outside the country and for his collaborations with George Harrison and Ravi Shankar during their tour of the United States and Canada and with other eminent musicians.
Among the 19 individuals chosen for the Padma Bhushan Award in 2025 are Indian film director Shekhar Kapur; renowned ghazal singer Pankaj Udhas (posthumous); Bibek Debroy (posthumous), economist and former chair of the economic advisory council to the prime minister; and Manohar Joshi (posthumous), former chief minister of Maharashtra state.
The 2025 Padma Shri winners include popular Bollywood playback singer Arijit Singh, music composer and three-time Grammy winner Ricky Kej, 2024 Paris Paralympics archery gold medalist Harvinder Singh Dhanju, retired international cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin, entrepreneur and venture capitalist Prashanth Prakash, and cancer activist and oncologist Vijayalakshmi Deshamane.