The Centre on Sunday announced the Padma Awards for 2026, approving 131 civilian honours across the Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri categories. This year, five Padma Vibhushan, 13 Padma Bhushan and 113 Padma Shri awards were cleared, recognising contributions across public life, arts, sports, literature and public affairs.
Among the Padma Vibhushan awardees are veteran actor Dharmendra Singh Deol and former Kerala chief minister V S Achuthanandan, both honoured posthumously. Other recipients include classical violinist N Rajam, former Supreme Court judge K T Thomas and noted writer P Narayanan.
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The Padma Bhushan list features singer Alka Yagnik, actor Mammootty, industrialist Uday Kotak, former Uttarakhand chief minister Bhagat Singh Koshyari, advertising veteran Piyush Pandey (posthumous) and tennis legend Vijay Amritraj.
The list includes 19 women, six foreign nationals or persons of Indian origin abroad, and 16 posthumous awards.
