Why in the News?
Padma Awards 2025 recognised 139 individuals for their exceptional contributions across various fields. Notable awardees include actor S. Ajith Kumar, singer Pankaj Udhas, and cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin.
About Padma Awards:
- The Padma Awards are among India’s most prestigious civilian honors, announced annually on Republic Day’s eve.
- These awards recognize outstanding achievements in various fields, particularly public service.
- The GoI introduced the Bharat Ratna and Padma Vibhushan in 1954, with the three classes (Pahela Varg, Dusra Varg, and Tisra Varg) renamed in 1955 as Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan, and Padma Shri.
- The awards are not titles and cannot be used as prefixes or suffixes to names.
- The number of awards given annually is capped at 120 (excluding posthumous awards and awards to NRIs/foreigners/OCIs).
Award Categories:
- Padma Vibhushan: For ‘exceptional and distinguished service.’
- Padma Bhushan: For ‘distinguished service of a high order.’
- Padma Shri: For ‘distinguished service.’
Eligibility and Nomination:
- Nominations are reviewed by the Padma Awards Committee, formed annually by the Prime Minister, with final approval from the President.
- Eligibility Criteria:
- Open to all individuals, regardless of race, occupation, position, or gender.
- Government employees, except doctors and scientists, are generally ineligible.
- Awards are generally not given posthumously, with exceptions in extraordinary cases.
- A recipient can be considered for a higher category only after five years since their last Padma award.
| [UPSC 2021] Consider the following statements in respect of Bharat Ratna and Padma Awards:
1. Bharat Ratna and Padma Awards are titles under Article 18(1) of the Constitution of India. 2. Padma Awards, which were instituted in the year 1954, were suspended only once. 3. The number of Bharat Ratna Awards is restricted to a maximum of five in a particular year. Which of the above statements are not correct? Options: (a) 1 and 2 only (b) 2 and 3 only (c) 1 and 3 only (d) 1, 2, and 3* |
Get an IAS/IPS ranker as your 1: 1 personal mentor for UPSC 2024
