Padma Vibhushan

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Padma Vibhushan

Padma Vibhushan medal suspended by a ribbon

Type

National Civilian

Country

Presented by

Ribbon

Obverse

A centrally located lotus flower

is embossed and the text "Padma

(पद्म)" written in

Devanagari script is placed

above and the text "Vibhushan

(विभूषण)" is placed below

the lotus.

Reverse

A platinum

placed in the centre with the

national motto of India,

" (Truth alone

triumphs) in Devanagari Script

Established

1954

; 72 years ago

First award

1954

Final award

2026

(posthumous)

Total

348

Website

Precedence

Next (higher)

(civilian)

Next (lower)

← Padma Vibhushan "Pahla Varg" (Class I)

The

Padma Vibhushan

(

Padma Vibhūṣaṇa

pronounced

lit.

Lotus Grandeur

) is the second-highest

the

, after the

. Instituted on 2 January

1954, the award is given for "exceptional and distinguished service." All

persons without distinction of race, occupation, position or sex are

eligible for these awards. However, government servants including those

working with

, except doctors and scientists,

are not eligible for these Awards. As of 2024

, the award has been

bestowed on 336 individuals, including 31 posthumous and 21 non-citizen

recipients.

During 1 May and 15 September of every year, the recommendations for the

award are submitted to the Padma Awards Committee, constituted by the

. The recommendations are received from all the

state and union territory governments, the Ministries of the Government

of India, the

and previous

the Institutes of Excellence, the Ministers, the

and the

, and the Members of Parliament including private

individuals. The committee later submits their recommendations to the

Prime Minister and the

for further approval. The award

recipients are announced on

The first recipients of the award were

, and

, who were honoured in 1954. The 1954 statutes did not

allow posthumous awards, but this was subsequently modified in the January

1955 statute. The "Padma Vibhushan", along with other personal

, was briefly suspended twice, from July 1977 to January 1980 and

from August 1992 to December 1995. Some of the recipients have refused or

returned their conferments.

, and

refused the award, the family members of

(2011) and

(2016) declined their posthumous

conferments, and

returned his 1986 conferment in 1991.

In 2026, the award was bestowed upon five recipients –

(posthumous),

, P. Narayanan, &

(posthumous)

History

[

]

On 2 January 1954, a press release was published from the office of the

secretary to the President of India announcing the creation of two

civilian awards—

, the highest civilian award, and the three-

tier Padma Vibhushan, classified into "Pahela Varg" (Class I), "Dusra

Varg" (Class II), and "Tisra Varg" (Class III), which rank below the

Bharat Ratna.

On 15 January 1955, the Padma Vibhushan was reclassified

into three different awards: the Padma Vibhushan, the highest of the

three, followed by the

and the

The award, along with other personal

, was briefly

suspended twice in its history;

for the first time in July 1977 when

was sworn in as the fourth

, for

being "worthless and politicized".

The suspension was rescinded on

25 January 1980 after

returned as Prime Minister.

The civilian awards were suspended again in mid-1992, when two

were filed in the

, one in the

on 13 February 1992 by Balaji Raghavan and another in

the

(Indore Bench) on 24 August 1992 by Satya Pal Anand. Both petitioners questioned the

civilian awards being "titles" per an interpretation of

of the

On 25 August 1992, the Madhya Pradesh High Court issued a notice temporarily suspending all civilian awards.

Special Division Bench of the Supreme Court of India was formed comprising five judges: A. M. Ahmadi C. J.,

, B. P. Jeevan Reddy, N. P. Singh, and S. Saghir Ahmad. On 15 December 1995, the Special Division Bench restored

the awards and delivered a judgment that the "Bharat Ratna and Padma awards are not titles under Article 18 of the

Constitution of India".

Regulations

[

]

The award is conferred for "exceptional and distinguished service", without distinction of race, occupation, position,

or sex. The criteria include "service in any field including service rendered by Government servants", but excludes

those working with the

, with the exception of doctors and scientists.

The 1954 statutes

did not allow posthumous awards,

but this was subsequently modified in the January 1955 statute;

, and

became the first recipients to be honoured posthumously in 1972.

The recommendations are received from all state and union territory governments, the Ministries of the Government of

India, the

and previous

, the Institutes of Excellence, the Ministers, the

, the

, and the Members of Parliament, including private individuals. The

recommendations received during 1 May and 15 September of every year are submitted to the Padma Awards Committee,

convened by the

. The Awards Committee later submits its recommendations to the Prime Minister

and the President of India for further approval.

The Padma Vibhushan award recipients are announced every year on

and registered in

—a publication released weekly by the Department of Publication,

used for official

government notices.

The conferral of the award is not considered official without its publication in the

Gazette

Recipients whose awards have been revoked or restored, both of which actions require the authority of the President,

are also registered in the

Gazette

and are required to surrender their medals when their names are struck from the

Specifications

[

]

The original 1954 specifications of the award called for a circle made of gold gilt

⁄

inches (35 mm) in diameter,

with rims on both sides. A centrally located lotus flower was embossed on the obverse side of the medal and the text

"Padma Vibhushan" written in

script was inscribed above the lotus along the upper edge of the medal. A

floral wreath was embossed along the lower edge and a lotus wreath at the top along the upper edge. The

was placed in the centre of the reverse side with the text "Desh Seva" in Devanagari Script on the lower edge. The

medal was suspended by a pink riband

⁄

inches (32 mm) in width divided into two equal segments by a white vertical

line.

A year later, the design was modified. The current decoration is a circular-shaped bronze toned medallion

⁄

inches

(44 mm) in diameter and

⁄

inch (3.2 mm) thick. The centrally placed pattern made of outer lines of a square of

⁄

inches (30 mm) side is embossed with a knob carved within each of the outer angles of the pattern. A raised

circular space of

⁄

inches (27 mm) in diameter is placed at the centre of the decoration. A centrally located

lotus flower is embossed on the obverse side of the medal and the text "Padma" written in

script is placed

above and the text "Vibhushan" is placed below the lotus.

The

is placed in the centre of the reverse side with the national motto of India, "

(Truth alone triumphs), in Devanagari Script, inscribed on the lower edge. The rim, the edges. and all embossing on

either side is of white gold with the text "Padma Vibhushan" of silver gilt. The medal is suspended by a pink riband

⁄

inches (32 mm) in width.

The medal is ranked fourth in the order of precedence of wearing of medals and decorations.

The medals are

produced at

, Kolkata along with the other civilian and military awards like

, and

Recipients

[

]

Main article:

Award recipients by decade

Year

Number of recipients

1954–1959

1960–1969

1970–1979

1980–1989

1990–1999

2000–2009

2010–2019

2020–present

Award recipients by field

Field

Number of recipients

Arts

Civil Service

Literature & Education

Medicine

Others

Public Affairs

Science & Engineering

Social Work

Sports

Trade & Industry

The first recipients of the Padma Vibhushan were

, and

, who were honoured in 1954. As of 2020

, the award has been

bestowed on 314 individuals, including seventeen posthumous and twenty-one non-citizen recipients.

Some of the conferments have been refused or returned by the recipients;

and

refused the award.

The family members of

(2011) and

(2016) declined their posthumous conferments.

returned his 1986 conferment in 1991.

Droupadi Murmu, President of India, announced the recipients of the prestigious Padma Awards on 24 April 2024. The

awards, including Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan, and Padma Shri, honor individuals for exceptional contributions in

various fields. The announcement highlights the nation's recognition of outstanding achievements and service to

society.

Explanatory notes

[

]

Per Article 18 (1) of the

: Abolition of titles, "no title, not being a military or academic distinction,

shall be conferred by the State".

was offered the award in 1973 for, among other services, his crucial diplomatic role in brokering the

and the

, but declined as "Accepting an award for work done somehow causes

an inexplicable discomfort to me."

refused

(1964),

(1968), and Padma Vibhushan (2000) and stated that "the selection

committees were incompetent to judge [his] music".

, the General Secretary of the

(of the

from

1964) and the first

(1957–59, 1967–69), declined the award in 1992, as it went against his nature to

accept a state honour.

declined the award in 2000 as it was conferred to him as an individual and not to the

died on 14 November 2010, at the age of 84.

His family refused to accept the posthumous honour as Jain

was against accepting state honours.

's family refused to accept the posthumous honour as Joshi's work for good of farmers is not reflected in

the Government policies for them.

In 1991,

returned the award, along with the

conferred in 1971, to protest against the treatment given to

the tribals during the construction of

References

[

]

Lal, Shavax A. (1954).

(PDF)

The Gazette of India

. The President's

Secretariat (published 2 January 1954): 2. Archived from

(PDF)

on 14 May 2014

. Retrieved

26 September

2015

The

President is pleased to institute an award to be designated 'Padma Vibhushan' in three classes, namely: 'Pahela Varg', 'Dusra

Varg' and 'Tisra Varg'

Ayyar, N. M. (1955).

(PDF)

The Gazette of India

. The President's

Secretariat (published 15 January 1955): 8. Archived from

(PDF)

on 18 May 2014

. Retrieved

26 September

2015

All

persons upon whom the decoration of Padma Vibhushan (Pahela Varg) was conferred under the Regulations issued with Notification

No. 2-Pres./54, dated the 2nd January, 1954, shall, for all purposes of these regulations, be deemed to be persons on whom the

decoration of Padma Vibhushan has been conferred by the President.

, p. 96.

Mukul, Akshaya (20 January 2008).

The Times of India

. Retrieved

17 May

2014

, p. A248.

, p. C-105.

, p. A253.

(PDF)

. Ministry of Law and Justice (India). p. 36. Archived from

(PDF)

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September 2014

. Retrieved

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2014

. Supreme Court of India. 4 August 1997.

Archived from

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(PDF)

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(PDF)

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(PDF)

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(PDF)

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(PDF)

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(PDF)

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2016

(PDF)

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(PDF)

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. Retrieved

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2017

(PDF)

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(PDF)

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. Retrieved

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2018

(PDF)

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(PDF)

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2019

(PDF)

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(PDF)

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. Retrieved

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(PDF)

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. Retrieved

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(PDF)

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. Retrieved

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2023

(PDF)

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3–

. Retrieved

27 January

2025

pib.gov.in

. Retrieved

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(PDF)

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. Retrieved

27 January

2026

. Indian Army.

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2015

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2008

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. ABC-CLIO. p. 411.

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. 20 January 2008. Archived from

on 24 November 2013

Retrieved

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Bibliography

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]

Bhattacherje, S. B. (2009).

. Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd.

Edgar, Thorpe (2011).

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. Vol.

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External links

[

]

Wikimedia Commons has media

related to

. Ministry of Home Affairs (India). 14 September 2015

. Retrieved

22 October

2015

Arts

Civil service

Literature and

education

P. Narayanan

Medicine

Other

Public affairs

Science and

engineering

Social work

Sports

Trade and industry

This page was last edited on 23 March 2026, at 02:40

(UTC)

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