Former Japanese PM Abe among Padma Vibhushan winners
Former chief minister of Assam Tarun Gogoi and former union minister Ram Vilas Paswan have also been awarded the Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian award posthumously
Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and music legend SP Balasubrahmanyam have been awarded the Padma Vibhushan, the second highest civilian award in India, the government announced on Monday, reports the NDTV.
Celebrated singer SP Balasubrahmanyam was conferred the honour posthumously. He died in a Chennai hospital last year after almost two months of treatment.
Former chief minister of Assam Tarun Gogoi and former union minister Ram Vilas Paswan have also been awarded the Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian award posthumously. Former Lok Sabha speaker Sumitra Mahajan has also been conferred the Padma Bhushan.
The Padma awards were announced this evening by the government honouring 119 prominent personalities from various fields like sports, medicine, art, literature and others for their distinguished work. The awards are conferred in three categories: Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri.
102 people have been honoured with the Padma Shri this year which include wrestler Virender Singh and renowned musician Bombay Jayashri.
Odisha sculptor Sudarshan Sahoo, Islamic scholar Maulana Wahiduddin Khan and archaeologist BB Lal are also among the Padma Vibhushan awardees.