The Padma Awards 2024 were announced on Republic Day eve, Thursday. For this year, the President has approved the conferment of 132 Padma Awards, including 2 duo cases (in a duo case, the Award is counted as one).
The list also comprises 5 Padma Vibhushan, 17 Padma Bhushan and 110 Padma Shri Awards. 30 of the awardees are women and the list also includes 8 honorees from the category of Foreigners / NRI / PIO / OCI and 9 Posthumous awardees.
The list includes several unsung heroes who have made a remarkable impact on society.
Parbati Baruah, a native of Assam and India’s first female elephant mahout, who overcame stereotypes to create a space for herself in a traditionally male-dominated field was awarded Padma Shri in the field of Social Work (Animal Welfare).
The 67-year-old stood out for her commitment towards mitigating human-elephant conflict with the help of the application of scientific practices – assisted 3 state governments to tackle and capture wild elephants.
She inherited the skill from her father, she started at the age of 14 – he relentless efforts over 4 decades have played a vital role in saving & shaping the lives of many rogue tuskers.
Despite coming from a well-off background, she chose to live a simple life, dedicating it to serving the complex yet playful creature.
Jageshwar Yadav, a Tribal Welfare Worker from Jashpur, Chhattisgarh who dedicated his life to the upliftment of marginalized Birhor Pahadi Korwa people, has been awarded Padma Shri in the field of Social Work (Tribal PVTG).
Yadav, 67, is a welfare worker who dedicated his life to the betterment of PVTG tribes of birhor and korwa. He established Ashram in Jashpur which worked for eradicating illiteracy and elevate healthcare standards by setting up camps.
Yadav also facilitated vaccinations during the pandemic, addressing hesitancy – also helped reduce infant mortality. Despite financial hardships, his passion remained to bring about social change.
Chami Murmu, 52, is a Tribal Environmentalist and Women empowerment champion from Seraikela Kharsawan and will receive Padma Shri in the field of Social Work (Environment afforestation).
She spearheaded afforestation efforts planting over 30 lakh plants with 3,000 women. She ushered socio-economic change by empowering over 30,000 women across 40+ villages through the formation of numerous SHGs & providing employment opportunities.
Through her NGO ‘Sahayogi Mahila’, initiated impactful programmes in safe motherhood, anaemia & malnutrition, & emphasized adolescent girls’ education.
Her relentless campaign against illegal logging, timber mafia & naxal activities & dedication towards protecting wildlife & forests has made her a force to reckon with.
Gurvinder Singh, 53, a Divyang Social Worker from Sirsa, worked for the betterment of the homeless, destitute, women, and orphans and Divyangjan has also been awarded Padma Shri in the field of Social Work (Divyang).
With his unwavering dedication, he nurtured 300 children’s dreams by setting up a childcare institute named Bal Gopal Dham.
He provided free ambulance services to over 6,000 accident victims and pregnant women. He was paralyzed from the waist down after being hit by a truck & is confined to a wheelchair for life. Despite the odds, he channelled his personal tragedy to work for welfare of others.
Sathyanarayana Beleri, 50, a paddy farmer from Kasaragod who emerged as a custodian of the paddy crop by preserving over 650 traditional rice varieties, will receive Padma Shri in the field of Others (Agriculture Cereal Rice).
He successfully introduced ‘Rajakayame’ rice, boosting production and conservation across 3 states – Karnataka, Kerala & Tamil Nadu.
Through 15 years of hardwork, innovated technique, ‘Polybag Method’ – conserved not only indigenous rice varieties but also traditional seeds of arecanut, nutmeg and black pepper.
Fostered research and conservation by providing 50 rice varieties to research centers and distributed free rice seeds to farmers.
Dukhu Majhi, 78, a Tribal Environmentalist from Sindri village, Purulia planted over 5,000 Banyan, Mango and Blackberry trees on barren land while travelling to new destinations on his bicycle every day, will receive Padma Shri in the field of Social Work (Environment Afforestation).
He dedicated 5 decades to planting trees & spreading awareness for a greener future. Planted over 5,000 Banyan, Mango and Blackberry trees on barren land, while traveling to new destinations on his bicycle every day.
Raised awareness about tree planting and featured in the documentary ‘Rukhu Mati Dukhu Majhi’. Working for a greener tomorrow since the age of 12.
Could not complete his education due to financial constraints, but that did not stop him from coming up with innovative solutions for protecting and safeguarding against wood theft and spreading awareness about the
importance of trees.
K Chellammal, 69, an organic Farmer from South Andaman who successfully developed a 10-acre organic farm, will receive Padma Shri in the field of Others (Agriculture Organic).
She has developed efficient coconut and palm tree damage control measures. Used intercropping method for cultivation of crops like Clove, Ginger, Pineapples, Banana and motivated more than 150 farmers to adopt it.
She devised innovative & economical solutions for coconut & palm tree damage control measures. She harvested over 27,000 coconuts per annum & cultivated 2 hectares of coconut plantation with 460 palms of Andaman Ordinary Tall variety.
Studied till class 6, but innovating in farming for past 5 decades with commitment and enthusiasm.
Sangthankima, 63, a social worker from Aizawl who has been running Mizoram’s largest orphanage ‘Thutak Nunpuitu Team’, to receive Padma Shri in the field of Social Work (Children).
Over the course of 3 decades, addressed issues related to children’s welfare, addiction, HIV-AIDS awareness, education, and other civic issues.
Continuously providing shelter and rehabilitation services to orphans, divyangjan, drug addicts, and alcoholics.
Worked for North Eastern communities and Burmese through his rehabilitation centres in 4 districts of Assam.
Hemchand Manjhi, 70, a traditional medicinal practitioner from Narayanpur providing affordable healthcare to villagers for over 5 decades, having started serving the needy at the age of 15, to receive Padma Shri in the field of Medicine (AYUSH Traditional Medicine).
He is known for his special knowledge of herbs in remote forests of Abujhmarh. Charges meagre amount to treat patients suffering from varied diseases.
Despite repeated threats & personal attacks by Naxals, he continued to serve people with sincerity and zeal.
Yanung Jamoh Lego, 58, East Siang-based herbal medicine expert who has provided medical care to over 10,000 patients, educated 1 lakh individuals on medicinal herbs and trained SHGs in their use, will receive Padma Shri in the field of Others (Agriculture Medicinal Plants).
She planted over 5,000 medicinal plants annually & promoted setting up of herbal kitchen gardens in every household across the district.
Despite financial constraints & personal challenges, she dedicated her life for revival of the lost traditional healing system of Adi tribe in particular & the entire Arunachal Pradesh as a whole – becoming instrumental in keeping the traditional knowledge of medicines alive.
Somanna, 66, a Tribal Welfare Worker from Mysuru working tirelessly for the upliftment of the Jenu Kuruba tribe for over 4 decades, has been conferred Padma Shri in the field of Social Work (Tribal PVTG).
He assisted in acquiring title deeds to ensure the legal recognition and protection of more than 500 tribal communities residing in forest areas.
His social work extended to environmental conservation, emphasizing the importance of preserving natural habitats.
Jenu Kuruba is a honey-collecting tribe from Nilgiris with around 40,000 inhabitants.
Previously a bonded labourer, he realised the true importance of freedom and rights and went on to dedicate his life to advocating for the rights of tribals.
Prema Dhanraj, 72, a Plastic Reconstructive Surgeon Social Worker dedicated to the care and rehabilitation of burn victims her legacy extends beyond surgery, championing burn prevention awareness and policy reform, will receive Padma Shri in the field of Medicine (Indigenous Burns).
She founded Agni Raksha NGO, provided free surgery to 25,000 burn victims + Authored 3 books on Plastic Surgery.
As part of her global humanitarian efforts, established Ethiopia’s 1st burns unit, and educated doctors in Kenya, Tanzania, Norway, Ethiopia.
A survivor of 50% burns at age of 8 (when a stove burst on her face while playing in the kitchen), she triumphed over personal tragedy to become a driving force of change.
She underwent more than 14 surgeries as a child at Christian Medical College Vellore – and went on to become a Surgeon & HoD in the same hospital.
Sarbeswar Basumatary, 61, a Tribal Farmer from Assam’s Chirang successfully adopted a mixed integrated farming approach and cultivated varieties of crops like coconuts, oranges, paddy, litchis and maize from Assam.
He has been awarded the Padma Shri. Demonstrating a community-focused approach, he transmitted his knowledge and learnings to other farmers, helping increase efficiency and uplift livelihoods.
Once a daily wage labourer, his enduring spirit and enthusiasm has become a role model for the agricultural community – despite lacking any formal education and against heavy odds.
Uday Vishwanath Deshpande, 70, International Mallakhamb Coach, who worked relentlessly in reviving, revitalizing and popularizing the sport at the global level, has been awarded Padma Shri in the field of Sports (Coach – Mallakhamb).
He personally trained over 5,000 people from 50 countries – introduced Mallakhamb to diverse groups including women, divyangjan, orphans, tribals and senior citizen.
As director of Vishwa Mallakhamb Federation, played a pivotal role in contributing significantly to it’s international reach.
He created a rule-book with criteria of judgement and competition and standardizing all regulations which was recognised by Indian Olympic Association.
Yazdi Maneksha Italia, 72, has been awarded Padma Shri for dedicating his life to fight sickle cell anemia amongst Tribals of Gujarat.
He pioneered development of India’s inaugural Sickle Cell Anemia Control Program (SCACP).
He pioneered newborn screening through heel prick dry blood samples in collaboration with ICMR – prevented & controlled new births with SCD by screening 2 lakh tribals.
He screened more than 95 lakh tribal individuals across Gujarat, identifying 7.2 lakh Sickle Cell trait cases, and issuing colour-coded cards for effective counselling.
Among the other honorees were Shanti Devi Paswan and Shivan Paswan (Bihar) in the field of Art (Painting – Folk – Madhubani), Ratan Kahar (West Bengal) in the Art (Vocals- Folk – Bhadu), Ashok Kumar Biswas (Bihar) in the field of Art (Painting – Folk – Tikuli), Balakrishnan Sadanam Puthiya Veetil (Kerala) in Art (Dance – Classical – Kathakali), Uma Maheshwari D (Andhra Pradesh) in Art (Storytelling – Harikatha), Gopinath Swain (Odisha) in the Art (Vocals – Bhajan – Odia), Smriti Rekha Chakma (Tripura) in Art (Textile – Weaving – Loinloom) in Art (Theatre – Folk – Mach), Omprakash Sharma (Madhya Pradesh), Narayanan EP (Kerala) in Art (Dance – Folk – Theyyam), Bhagabat Padhan (Odisha) in Art (Dance – Folk – Sabda Nrutya), Sanatan Rudra Pal (West Bengal) in Art (Sculpture), Badrappan M (Tamil Nadu) in Art (Dance – Folk – Kummi), Jordan Lepcha (Sikkim) Art (Craft – Bamboo) in Art (Craft – Pottery – Black) , Machihan Sasa (Manipur), Gaddam Sammaiah (Telangana) in Art (Dance – Yakshagana), Jankilal (Rajasthan) in Art (Theatre – Folk – Rajasthani), Dasari Kondappa (Telangana) in Art (Music – Instrument – String – Burra Veena), Babu Ram Yadav (Uttar Pradesh) in Art (Craft – Brass), Nepal Chandra Sutradhar ( West Bengal) Art (Craft – Mask Making – Chau) have also been awarded Padma Shri. (ANI)
(With agency inputs)
