New Delhi: The country’s highest civilian honors, the Padma Awards, were announced today. For their contributions to the arts and entertainment industry, Ustad Zakir Hussain is contracted to Padma Vibhushan, while music composer MM Keeravani and actor Raveena Tandon are contracted to Padma Shri.
Ustad Zakir Hussain is the famous Tabla maestro while music composer MM Keeravani is famous for composing the Oscar nominated song ‘Naatu Naatu’ from ‘RRR’. Actor Raveena Tandon who starred in a number of popular 1990s Bollywood movies.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated the recipients of the award on his Twitter account.
Congratulations to those who received the Padma Awards. India cherishes their rich and varied contributions to the nation and their efforts to enhance our growth trajectory. #PeoplesPadma https://t.co/M6p4FWGhFU
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 25, 2023
These awards are presented by the president on ceremonial occasions usually held at the Rashtrapati Bhawan around March or April every year. For 2023, the president has approved the award of 106 Padma awards, including three duo cases (in a duo case, the award is counted as one).
Nineteen of the winners are women and the list also includes two people from the Foreigner/NRI/PIO/OCI category and seven posthumous winners. Padma awards, one of the highest civilian awards in the country, are awarded in three categories namely Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri.
The awards are given in various disciplines or fields of activity – arts, social work, public affairs, science and engineering, commerce and industry, medicine, literature and education, sports, civil service, etc. ‘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. The awards are announced each year on the occasion of Republic Day.
(With input from the agency)
