The Union government unveiled the list of recipients of the Padma Awards 2024, the country's second-highest civilian honour. These prestigious awards, bestowed by the Government of India, acknowledge outstanding contributions across diverse fields.
The awards are presented in three categories: Padma Vibhushan for exceptional and distinguished service, Padma Bhushan for distinguished service of a higher order, and Padma Shri for distinguished service. They aim to acknowledge achievements across all fields or disciplines involving an element of public service. Recipients are selected based on recommendations from the Padma Awards Committee, formed annually by the Prime Minister.
This year, the government chose to confer the Padma Vibhushan on five distinguished individuals, Padma Bhushan on 17 recipients, and Padma Shri on 110 individuals, totaling 132 awards. These accolades recognize their outstanding contributions across diverse fields.
Padma Vibhushan was conferred to Shri Konidela Chiranjeevi in art from Andhra Pradesh, Ms Padma Subrahmanyam in art from Tamil Nadu, Shri M Venkaiah Naidu in Public Affairs from Andhra Pradesh and many others. Shri Mithun Chakraborty, Ms Usha Uthup and many other dignitaries were honoured with Padma Bhushan. Among the 110 Padma Shri awardees named by the government this year, there are 34 “unsung heroes” of whom more than one-third are tribals or those who have worked for tribal welfare.