Padma awards for Gen Rawat, Azad, Buddhadeb, Poonawalla

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, January 25

First Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat, who was killed in a helicopter crash last year; vaccine makers Krishna Ella, Suchitra Ella and Cyrus Poonawalla; politicians Ghulam Nabi Azad and Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee; Indian-origin Silicon Valley titans Satya Nadella and Sundar Pichai; and Tokyo Olympics gold medallist Neeraj Chopra were named for Padma awards today.

Also read: Former Bengal CM Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee rejects Padma Bhushan award

Padma Vibhushan awardees

• General Bipin Rawat, first CDS
• Kalyan Singh, former UP CM
• Prabha Atre of Maharashtra (for art)
• Radheyshyam Khemka of UP for literature and education

Silicon Valley titans get Padma Bhushan

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella (L), Google’s Sundar Pichai have been named for Padma Bhushan award

‘Wasn’t informed’: CPM leader rejects award

I know nothing about this award. If they have decided to offer Padma Bhushan to me, I refuse to accept it. — Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, CPM leader

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Olympic gold medallist Neeraj Chopra feted with Padma Shri and PVSM

The President has approved conferment of 128 Padma awards, including one jointly to two persons. The list comprises four Padma Vibhushan, 17 Padma Bhushan and 107 Padma Shri awards.

Some awardees from the region

Padma Bhushan: Folk singer Gurmeet Bawa (Punjab)

Padma Shri: Sumit Antil, sports (Haryana); Jagjit Dardi of Chardikala Time TV (Chandigarh); poet Akhone Basharat (Ladakh); Vidyanand Sarek, literature (HP); Vishwamurty Shastri, education (J&K); Raghuvendra Tanwar, education (Haryana) and Vandana Kataria, sports (Uttarakhand)

General Rawat has been honoured posthumously with second-highest civilian award (Padma Vibhushan) for his contribution in the field of civil service, along with UP ex-CM Kalyan Singh (posthumously for public affairs), Prabha Atre of Maharashtra (art) and Radheyshyam Khemka (posthumously for literature and education) from Uttar Pradesh.

Former J&K Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and West Bengal ex-CM Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee have been named for the third highest honour, Padma Bhushan, among 15 others. Bhattacharjee rejected the award, saying he wasn’t informed. Sources in the MHA, however, said the CPM leader’s wife had been informed and no one from the family objected to it. The sources said Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla had called up Bhattacharjee, but as he was probably unwell, his wife took the call and was duly informed about the award.

Krishna Ella and Suchitra Ella of Bharat Biotech (joint awardees) and Cyrus Poonawalla of the Serum Institute of India will get Padma Bhushan for their role in India’s response to Covid-19 with Covaxin and Covishield vaccines. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Google’s Sundar Pichai were also named for Padma Bhushan.

Singer Sonu Nigam and Olympic gold medallist Neeraj Chopra have been awarded Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian honour, along with Jamia Millia Islamia University Vice-Chancellor Najma Akhtar.

As for northern India, Ms Gurmeet Bawa of Punjab has been named for Padma Bhushan (posthumously) for her contribution to art. Others, who found their names on the list for Padma Shri include Sumit Antil, besides Chopra from Haryana for their contribution in the field of sports. Harmohinder Singh Bedi from Punjab and Vishwamurti Shastri of Jammu & Kashmir have been named for Padma Shri for their contribution in the field of literature and education.

Prem Singh and Baba Iqbal Singh of Punjab have been named for Padma Shri for social work. Among other Padma Shri recipients are Akhone Asgar Ali Basharat, poet of Balti language (Ladakh); Faisal Ali Dar, martial arts coach from Kashmir's Bandipora (J&K); Tsering Namgyal for art (Ladakh); and Vandana Kataria for sports (Uttarakhand). — TNS

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