India’s Ministry of External Affairs has congratulated all the Padma Awardees from abroad who are being awarded for their outstanding contribution in various fields.
Osamu Suzuki (Posthumous) of Japan was awarded the Padma Vibhushan in Trade and Industry category Vinod Dham from the US received the Padma Bhushan in the Science and Engineering category.
A total of eight Padma Shri awardees include Ajay V. Bhatt and Sethuraman Panchanathan from the US and Chetan E. Chitnis from France, who have been awarded in the Science and Engineering category.
Stephen Knapp, Nitin Nohria from the US and Arvind Sharma from Canada were also awarded in the Literature and Education category.
Jonas Masetti from Brazil has been awarded the Padma Shri in 'Spiritualism', while Sheikha Shaikha Ali Al-Jaber Al-Sabah from Kuwait bagged the Padma Shri in the field of Medicine.
The Padma awards, among the country's highest civilian honours, are conferred in three categories - Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan, and Padma Vibhushan.
'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. These awards are conferred by the President of India at ceremonial functions which are held at Rashtrapati Bhawan usually around March/ April every year.
The Centre announced the list of recipients for the prestigious Padma Awards on Saturday, with Indian President Droupadi Murmu's approval for 139 honourees.
The list includes 7 Padma Vibhushan, 19 Padma Bhushan, and 113 Padma Shri awards. Among the awardees are 23 women, and the list features 10 distinguished individuals from the Foreigners, NRI, PIO, and OCI categories, as well as 13 posthumous awardees.
The recognition spans a wide array of fields, honouring exceptional contributions to the nation's progress and global standing. The awards are given in various disciplines/ fields of activities, art, social work, public affairs, science and engineering, trade and industry, medicine, literature and education, sports, civil service etc.
(ANI)