President Ram Nath Kovind conferred Padma awards for the year 2022 on 74 distinguished personalities at the civil investiture ceremony-II in Rashtrapati Bhavan on Monday. Padma Vibhushan recipients Prabha Atre and Kalyan Singh (posthumous), Padma Bhushan recipients Victor Banerjee, Sanjaya Rajaram (posthumous), Pratibha Ray and Acharya Vashishtha Tripathi were among the prominent awardees at the ceremony.
This year, 128 Padma awards were presented and the first civil investiture ceremony was held on March 21 during which 54 personalities were given the honour.
In his 87th episode of 'Mann Ki Baat', broadcast on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had hailed 126-year-old Padma awardee Baba Sivanand for agility and termed his passion for Yoga and dedication for a healthy lifestyle inspirational. "The life of Baba Sivananda is an inspiration for all of us. He has a passion for Yoga and leads a very healthy lifestyle."
Referring to Baba Sivanand's heartwarming gesture at the Padma Awards ceremony, the PM said that everyone must have observed Baba Sivanand in the recently held Padma Awards ceremony.
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{{/usCountry}}The awards are conferred in three categories such as Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri.
These awards were given in various disciplines and fields of activities such as art, social work, public affairs, science and engineering, trade and industry, medicine, literature and education, sports, civil service, etc.
Tokyo Olympic gold medallist Neeraj Chopra also received Padma Shri from the president.
Singer Sonu Nigam was also present to receive the Padma Shri award.
A grassroots agricultural innovator from Karnataka's Dharwad, Abdul Khader Nadakattin, received Padma Shri award at the event. He has been credited with over 40 innovations that assist small and marginal farmers across India.
Wood carving artist from Ladakh Tsering Namgyal was among the recipient of the Padma Shri award.
One of the main attractions was Bharat Biotech MD Krishna Ella and joint MD Suchitra Ella who received the Padma Bhushan award for successfully launching the Covid-19 vaccine Covaxin.
Ireland's Professor Rutger Kortenhorst also received Padma Shri for his contribution to popularising Sanskrit in Irish schools.
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 on the occasion of Republic Day every year.
The list of awardees comprises four Padma Vibhushan, 17 Padma Bhushan and 107 Padma Shri Awards. Thirty-four of the awardees are women and the list also includes 10 persons from the category of Foreigners/NRI/PIO/OCI and 13 posthumous awardees.