New Delhi, May 25 (IANS) President Droupadi Murmu on Monday conferred Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri on 66 distinguished personalities at the first Civil Investiture Ceremony for 2026 held at Rashtrapati Bhavan, honouring achievers from public affairs, arts, literature, medicine, business, social service and grassroots cultural traditions.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and other Ministers were present during the Civil investiture ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhawan

The ceremony brought together a wide cross-section of India’s achievers — from nationally recognised public figures and industry leaders to folk artistes, doctors and academics who have spent decades contributing to their fields, often away from the national spotlight.

Among the top honours, Padma Vibhushan was conferred on veteran actor Dharmendra posthumously and noted violinist Dr N. Rajam for their outstanding contributions in cinema and classical music, respectively.

The Padma Bhushan awardees included former Uttarakhand Chief Minister and former Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari, veteran banker Uday Kotak, senior gastroenterologist Dr Kallipatti Ramasamy Palaniswamy, advertising icon Piyush Pandey (posthumously) and senior BJP leader Prof Vijay Kumar Malhotra (posthumously).

The Padma Shri honours reflected strong regional and social diversity, recognising folk artistes, medical professionals, writers and entrepreneurs from across the country. Among them were Rajasthan folk musician Taga Ram Bheel, Tamil music exponent N. Swaminathan, noted cardiologist Prof (Dr) Saroj Mandal, writer Prof Shafi Shauq and industrialist Satyanarayan Nuwal.

A notable feature of the ceremony was the spotlight on regional cultural practitioners and individuals who have preserved India’s traditional knowledge systems for decades. From Rajasthan’s Algoza folk music to Tamil devotional music and grassroots education, the awards reflected the government’s continued emphasis on honouring excellence beyond metropolitan and mainstream spaces.

The Padma Awards — among the country’s highest civilian honours — are conferred in three categories: Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri, recognising exceptional and distinguished service across disciplines.

Here’s the full list of Padma Awards 2026 recipients:

Padma Vibhushan: Dharmendra Singh Deol (Posthumous) and Dr N. Rajam

Padma Bhushan: Shatavadhani Dr R. Ganesh, Bhagat Singh Koshyari, Uday Kotak, Prof. Vijay Kumar Malhotra (Posthumous), Dr Kallipatti Ramasamy Palaniswamy, and Piyush Pandey (Posthumous).

Padma Shri: Bishwa Bandhu (Posthumous), Bharat Singh Bharti, Taga Ram Bheel, Harmanpreet Kaur Bhullar, Ratilal Mohanlal Borisagar, Kumar Bose, Janardan Bapurao Bothe, Swami Brahamdev, Prosenjit Chatterjee, Devaki Amma G, Dr Ramchandra Godbole, Suneeta Godbole, Techi Gubin, Dr H. V. Hande, Gafruddin Mewati Jogi, Mir Haji Kasam, Raghuvir Khedkar, R. Krishnan Kitna (Posthumous), Prof. Dr. Lars-Christian Koch, Prof. Mamidala Jagadesh Kumar, Praveen Kumar, K. Vijay Kumar, Shrirang Devba Lad, Ankegowda M, Prof. (Dr.) Saroj Mandal, Prof. Buddha Rashmi Mani, Nilesh Vinodchandra Mandlewala, Dr Mahendra Kumar Mishra, Tripti Mukherjee, Harimadhab Mukhopadhyay (Posthumous), Dr A. E. Muthunayagam, Satyanarayan Nandlal Nuwal, K. Pajanivel, Dharmiklal Chunilal Pandya, Kailash Chandra Pant, Garimella Balakrishna Prasad (Posthumous), Prof. (Dr.) Rajendra Prasad, Dr Guduru Venkat Rao, Deepika Reddy, Dr Palkonda Vijay Anand Reddy, Haricharan Saikia, Prof. Vempaty Kutumba Sastry, Prof. Shafi Shauq, Baldev Singh, Yumnam Jatra Singh (Posthumous), Dr Ashok Kumar Singh, Sivasankari, Dr R. Sreedher, Prof. Shyam Sundar, Dr S. G. Susheelamma, N. Swaminathan, Dr Kewal Krishan Thakral, Dr Gopal Ji Trivedi (Posthumous), Arvind Vaidya, Prof. Juzer Vasi, Dr Narayan Vyas, Hally War, and Prof. Gambir Singh Yonzone.

Monday’s ceremony marked the first phase of the 2026 investiture, with remaining awardees expected to be honoured in subsequent ceremonies.

–IANS

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