Padma Awards 2026 Nomination Process, Types, Eligibility

Explore Padma Awards 2026 details including nomination process, eligibility, award types, and key dates. Learn how to nominate individuals for Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan, and Padma Shri awards before 31 July 2025.

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The Padma Awards 2026 are among India’s highest civilian honors. This award recognised individuals for their unique contributions across various disciplines. The Padma Awards are announced annually on the Republic Day eve and are conferred by the President of India.

Padma Awards 2026

The Padma Awards 2026 are among the highest civilian honors in India awarded to recognise outstanding achievements in various fields. These awards are announced on Republic Day (January 26) eve to celebrate excellence and achievements of the nation. This award ceremony is held at Rashtrapati Bhavan and is conferred by the President of India.

Also Read: Gallantry Awards 2025

What are Padma Awards? 

The Padma Awards are the highest civilian honors in India, instituted in 1954 by the Government of India to recognize exceptional and outstanding contributions in various fields such as Art, Literature and Education, Science and Engineering, Sports, Social Work, Public Affairs, Trade and Industry, Medicine and Civil Services. 

The Padma Awards aim to honor individuals who have made outstanding contributions to society, often including unsung heroes who are working at the grassroots level.

Padma Awards 2026 Nominations Process

Padma Awards 2026 nominations commenced on March 15, 2025 and will remain open until July 31, 2025. Nominations are submitted online through the Rashtriya Puraskar Portal. The Indian government encourages citizens to participate actively in the Padma Awards 2026 nomination process including self nominations. Collaborative efforts are made to promote talented individuals whose achievements and accomplishments really deserve to be recognized from women, weaker sections of society, Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), persons with disabilities (Divyang), and those engaged in selfless service to society. 

Individuals nominating for Padma Awards 2026 should include comprehensive details as specified on the portal, along with a narrative citation (maximum 800 words) that clearly outlines the nominee’s distinguished and exceptional achievements in their respective field.

Types of Padma Awards

The Padma Awards are divided into three categories, each signifying a specific level of recognition for different categories. These awards are announced annually by the Government of India and presented by the President of India:

  • Padma Vibhushan
    • Second-highest civilian award in India (after the Bharat Ratna).
    • Awarded for exceptional and distinguished service in any field including government service.
  • Padma Bhushan
    • Third-highest civilian award
    • Often awarded to individuals with a long and impactful career in their area of work.
  • Padma Shri
    • Fourth-highest civilian award
    • Given for distinguished service in any discipline, often to grassroots-level workers and emerging contributors as this recognizes the efforts of individuals working quietly to bring about change in their communities.

Each Padma award is a recognition for the individual dedication and impact in their field, irrespective of nationality or profession.

Which Padma Award is Highest?

The Padma Vibhushan is the highest in rank among the three Padma awards. This is the second-highest civilian award in India after the Bharat Ratna. The Padma Vibhushan is awarded for exceptional and distinguished service by any individual in their service such as art, literature, science, public affairs, and social work.

Here’s a hierarchy of civilian awards in India:

  1. Bharat Ratna – Highest civilian award
  2. Padma Vibhushan – Second-highest
  3. Padma Bhushan – Third-highest
  4. Padma Shri – Fourth-highest

The Padma Vibhushan award represents national recognition of outstanding service with a lasting impact on the nation. 

Also Read: Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar 2025

Padma Awards 2026 Eligibility 

The Padma Awards 2026 are open for all individuals without any distinction between gender, occupation, religion, or nationality. These awards recognize individuals exceptional services in their respective fields such as art, literature, education, science, sports, social work, public affairs, medicine, trade & industry, civil service, and more.

Who is eligible for Padma Awards?

  • All Indian citizens are eligible 
  • Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), Overseas Citizens of India (OCIs), and foreigners are also eligible.
  • Government servants, including those working with Public Sector Undertakings, are generally not eligible, except for doctors and scientists.

Note: The awards are not given posthumously, unless there are highly exceptional cases. The government encourages individual nominations of unsung heroes doing selfless service at the grassroots level.

Padma Awards 2025 Winners List

The Padma Awards 2025 were awarded o 139 distinguished individuals across various fields:

  • Padma Vibhushan: 7 awardees
  • Padma Bhushan: 19 awardees
  • Padma Shri: 113 awardees

Here is the list of Padma Award 2025 Winners:

List of Padma Vibhushan 2025 Winner List
SN Name Field State/Country
Shri Duvvur Nageshwar Reddy Medicine Telangana
Justice (Retd.) Shri Jagdish Singh Khehar Public Affairs Chandigarh
Smt. Kumudini Rajnikant Lakhia Art Gujarat
Shri LakshminarayanaSubramaniam Art Karnataka
Shri M. T. Vasudevan Nair (Posthumous) Literature and Education Kerala
Shri Osamu Suzuki (Posthumous) Trade and Industry Japan
Smt. Sharda Sinha (Posthumous) Art Bihar

 

List of Padma Vibhushan 2025 Winner List
SNo. Name Field State/Country
  1. 1
Shri A Surya Prakash Literature and Education-Journalism Karnataka
Shri Anant Nag Art Karnataka
Shri Bibek Debroy(Posthumous) Literature and Education NCT Delhi
Shri Jatin Goswami Art Assam
Shri Jose Chacko Periappuram Medicine Kerala
Shri Kailash Nath Dikshit Others-Archaeology NCT Delhi
Shri Manohar Joshi(Posthumous) Public Affairs Maharashtra
Shri Nalli Kuppuswami Chetti Trade and Industry Tamil Nadu
Shri Nandamuri Balakrishna Art Andhra Pradesh
Shri P R Sreejesh Sports Kerala
Shri Pankaj Patel Trade and Industry Gujarat
Shri Pankaj Udhas(Posthumous) Art Maharashtra
Shri Rambahadur Rai Literature and Education-Journalism Uttar Pradesh
Sadhvi Ritambhara Social Work Uttar Pradesh
Shri S Ajith Kumar Art Tamil Nadu
Shri Shekhar Kapur Art Maharashtra
Ms. Shobana Chandrakumar Art Tamil Nadu
Shri Sushil Kumar Modi(Posthumous) Public Affairs Bihar
Shri Vinod Dham Science and Engineering United States of America

 

List of Some Padma Shri 2025 Winner List
SNo.  Name Field State/Country
Shri Adwaita Charan Gadanayak Art Odisha
  1. 3
Shri Achyut Ramchandra Palav Art Maharashtra
Shri Ajay V Bhatt Science and Engineering United States of America
Shri Anil Kumar Boro Literature and Education Assam
Shri Arijit Singh Art West Bengal
Smt. Arundhati Bhattacharya Trade and Industry Maharashtra
Shri Arunoday Saha Literature and Education Tripura
Shri Arvind Sharma Literature and Education Canada
Shri Ashok Kumar Mahapatra Medicine Odisha
Shri Ashok Laxman Saraf Art Maharashtra
Shri Ashutosh Sharma Science and Engineering Uttar Pradesh
Smt. Ashwini Bhide Deshpande Art Maharashtra
Shri Budhendra Kumar Jain Medicine Madhya Pradesh
Shri C S Vaidyanathan Public Affairs NCT Delhi
Shri Hugh and Colleen Gantzer(Posthumous)(Duo)* Literature and Education-Journalism Uttarakhand
Shri Inivalappil Mani Vijayan Sports Kerala
Smt. K Omanakutty Amma Art Kerala
Shri Kishore Kunal(Posthumous) Civil Service Bihar
Shri L Hangthing Others-Agriculture Nagaland
Shri R Ashwin Sports Tamil Nadu
Shri R G Chandramogan Trade and Industry Tamil Nadu
Smt. Radha Bahin Bhatt Social Work Uttarakhand
Shri Radhakrishnan Devasenapathy Art Tamil Nadu
Shri Ramdarash Mishra Literature and Education NCT Delhi
Shri Ranendra Bhanu Majumdar Art Maharashtra
Shri Ratan Kumar Parimoo Art Gujarat
Shri Reba Kanta Mahanta Art Assam
Shri Renthlei Lalrawna Literature and Education Mizoram
Shri Ricky Gyan Kej Art Karnataka
Shri Sajjan Bhajanka Trade and Industry West Bengal

Conclusion

The Padma Awards is a testament to the importance of diverse talents and selfless service of individuals across India. These awards not only honor individual achievements but also inspire others to contribute meaningfully to society. The government’s initiative to transform the Padma Awards into “People’s Padma” underscores its commitment to inclusivity and public participation in the nomination process.

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Padma Awards 2026 FAQs

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 The three types of Padma Awards are Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri.

The Padma Vibhushan is the highest among the three Padma Awards.

Any individual, irrespective of occupation, gender, or nationality, who has rendered exceptional service in their field, is eligible. This includes NRIs, OCIs, and foreign nationals. Government servants are generally excluded except doctors and scientists.

 Nominations can be submitted online at www.padmaawards.gov.in before 31st July 2025. Anyone can nominate, including self-nominations.

 


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