The Government of India has announced the conferment of 131 Padma Awards for 2026, approved by the President on the eve of Republic Day. The awards are given in three categories – Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri – for service in fields including art, public affairs, social work, science and education. The list includes 5 Padma Vibhushan, 13 Padma Bhushan and 113 Padma Shri recipients. Nineteen of the awardees are women, six belong to the Foreigners/NRI/PIO/OCI category, and 16 awards are posthumous.
The Padma Vibhushan, the second-highest civilian award, has been conferred on five individuals for distinguished service. The recipients include Dharmendra Singh Deol (posthumous) for art, K T Thomas for public affairs, N Rajam for art, P Narayanan for literature and education, and V S Achuthanandhan (posthumous) for public affairs.
The Padma Bhushan awards, given for distinguished service of a high order, have been approved for 13 individuals. Among these are Alka Yagnik for art, Bhagat Singh Koshyari for public affairs, Kallipatti Ramasamy Palaniswamy for medicine, Mammootty for art, Dr Nori Dattatreyudu for medicine and Uday Kotak for trade and industry. The list also includes awardees recognised posthumously.
In the Padma Shri category, which honours distinguished service in any field, several recipients from the Northeastern states have been named. The list includes contributions in areas such as art, social work, agriculture, literature and education.
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From Assam, Haricharan Saikia has been awarded in the field of art. Jogesh Deuri has been recognised for work related to agriculture and sericulture. Pokhila Lekthepi and Nuruddin Ahmed have also been awarded in the arts category. The list includes a posthumous Padma Shri for Kabindra Purkayastha in public affairs.
Other recipients from the Northeast include Hally War from Meghalaya for social service, Sangyusang S Pongener from Nagaland for contributions in the arts, Naresh Chandra Dev Varma from Tripura in literature and education, and Techi Gubin from Arunachal Pradesh for social work.
The Padma Awards are announced annually on Republic Day, with the investiture ceremony usually held at Rashtrapati Bhavan in March or April. The 2026 list includes recipients from across the country and overseas, covering a range of professional and social fields.
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