Sumitra Mahajan, SPB, Tarun Gogoi among 118 given Padma awards

Renowned singer late S P Balasubrahmanyam, former Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan and late chief minister of Assam Tarun Gogoi were among the 118 prominent personalities who were given the Padma awards by President Ram Nath Kovind at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi on Tuesday.

IMAGE: President Ram Nath Kovind presents the Padma Bhushan award to Sumitra Mahajan for Public Affairs. Photograph: Courtesy @rashtrapatibhvn/Twitter

Archaeologist B B Lal, who led an excavation at the Ram Janmabhoomi site in the mid-1970s, Balasubrahmanyam (posthumous) and Islamic scholar Maulana Wahiduddin Khan (posthumous) were conferred the Padma Vibhushan, the country's second-highest civilian award.

IMAGE: The President presents Padma Bhushan to Ram Vilas Paswan (posthumous) for Public Affairs. His son Chirag receives the award. Photograph: Courtesy @rashtrapatibhvn/Twitter

Veteran sculptor from Odisha Sudarshan Sahoo, renowned doctor and educationist from Karnataka Belle Monappa Hegde and United States-based engineering scientist Narinder Singh Kapany (posthumous) were also given the Padma Vibhushan award at two Civil Investiture ceremonies held in the morning and the evening.

IMAGE: The President presents Padma Shri award to Purnamasi Jani. Photograph: Press Information Bureau of India

Japan's longest-serving prime minister Shinzo Abe, who was awarded with the Padma Vibhushan, was not present at the event to receive the award.

IMAGE: Singer K S Chithra receives the Padma Bhushan award. Photograph: Courtesy @rashtrapatibhvn/Twitter

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman were among those who were present on the occasion.

IMAGE: Organic farmer Rangammal alias Pappammal receives Padma Shri. Photograph: Courtesy @rashtrapatibhvn/Twitter

Sumitra Mahajan, India's first eight-time woman MP, former principal secretary to PM Modi, Nripendra Misra, industrialist Rajnikant D Shroff and former MP Tarlochan Singh were presented the Padma Bhushan for their contribution to public affairs and civil service.

IMAGE: President Kovind presents Padma Shri award to teacher Nanda Prusty. Photograph: Courtesy @rashtrapatibhvn/Twitter

Gogoi, Assam's longest-serving chief minister, former Gujarat chief minister Keshubhai Patel, ex-Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan and Islamic scholar Syed Kalbe Sadiq were honoured with the Padma Bhushan posthumously. The award was received by their family members.

IMAGE: President Kovind presents Padma Shri Award to Dr Rajat Kumar Kar. Photograph: Courtesy Press Information Bureau of India

Poet and playwright from Karnataka Chandrashekar Kambara and singer K N Shantakumari Chithra were also conferred Padma Bhushan, the country's third-highest civilian award.

IMAGE: Dr Anshu Jamsenpa receives Padma Shri for Sports. She holds two world records, viz, the fastest woman mountaineer to summit Mount Everest twice in five days and the first woman mountaineer for double ascents of Mount Everest. Photograph: Courtesy @rashtrapatibhvn/Twitter

Bharat Ratna, the country's highest civilian award has not been given to anyone since 2019.

IMAGE: K Y Venkatesh, who led India at the 5th Dwarf Olympic Games 2009 where India won 17 medals, receives Padma Shri. Photograph: Courtesy @rashtrapatibhvn/Twitter

A total of seven individuals were given the Padma Vibhushan, 10 were given Padma Bhushan and 101 were given Padma Shri.

IMAGE: President Kovind presents Padma Shri to Chhultim Chhonjor for Social Work. A social activist from Ladakh, he singlehandedly constructed a 40-km stretch of NPD road from Ramjak to Kargyak village in Ladakh. Photograph: Courtesy @rashtrapatibhvn/Twitter

Noted British theatre and film director Peter Brook, who was given the Padma Shri, was not present at the ceremony to receive the award.

IMAGE: President Kovind presents Padma Shri to Dulari Devi for Art. She is an artist and illustrator from Bihar, working in Madhubani art tradition. Photograph: Courtesy @rashtrapatibhvn/Twitter

Social worker from Assam Lakhimi Baruah, Professor Jai Bhagwan Goyal, Hindi litterateur from Haryana's Kurukshetra, Manganiyar folk singer from Rajasthan Lakha Khan, acclaimed Carnatic vocalist Bombay Jayashri Ramnath, senior orthopaedic surgeon from Dehradun Bhupendra Kumar Singh Sanjay and noted Hindi professor and journalist from Srinagar Chaman Lal Sapru were given Padma Shri.

IMAGE: Businessman Rajnikant Devidas Shroff receives the Padma Bhushan award. Photograph: Press Information Bureau of India

Former union minister Bijoya Chakravarty, Rajasthan-based Pali writer Arjun Singh Shekhawat, the foremost authority on Sanskrit Vyakaran Ram Yatna Shukla, Delhi-based social worker Jitender Singh Shunty, steeplechase athlete Sudha Singh, veteran Hindi writer from Bihar Mridula Sinha (posthumous), industrialist P Subramanian (posthumous), who was known as gear man of Coimbatore, social worker from West Bengal Guru Maa Kamali Soren and tribal folk culture scholar from Bhopal Kapil Tiwari were also given the Padma Shri.

IMAGE: President Kovind presents the Padma Shri Award to Dr Birubala Rabha. Photograph: Press Information Bureau of India

India's leading dwarf para-athlete K Y Venkatesh and Bangladesh liberation war veteran Lt Col Quazi Sajjad Ali Zahir were also honoured with the Padma Shri.

IMAGE: President Kovind presents Padma Shri award to artist Bhuri Bai. Photograph: Courtesy @rashtrapatibhvn/Twitter

Through the Padma awards, the government seeks to recognise 'work of distinction' in various fields such as art, literature and education, sports, medicine, social work, science and engineering, public affairs, civil service, trade and industry.

IMAGE: President Kovind presents the Padma Shri award to Naresh Kanodia (posthumous). Photograph: Courtesy @rashtrapatibhvn/Twitter

The Padma awards are given in three categories -- Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri -- and announced annually on the eve of Republic Day.

IMAGE: President Kovind presents Padma Shri award to Haji Ghulam Rasool Khan. Photograph: Press Information Bureau of India

The Padma Vibhushan is awarded for exceptional and distinguished service, Padma Bhushan for distinguished service of high order and Padma Shri for distinguished service in any field.

IMAGE: President Kovind presents Padma Shri award to R L Kashyap. Photograph: Press Information Bureau of India

The Narendra Modi government has been honouring many 'unsung heroes', who are contributing to society in different ways, with Padma awards since 2014.

IMAGE: President Kovind presents Padma Shri to Dr I Wayan Dibia for Art. He is a highly respected artist and scholar of performing arts from Bali, Indonesia. He has created more than 150 new works on dance and dance dramas, mostly exploring Ramayana and Mahabharata. Photograph: Courtesy @rashtrapatibhvn/Twitter

Two separate ceremonies were also held on Monday to present the Padma awards to those who were chosen for 2020 as the function could not be held last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.