Padma Awards 2024: ‘Queen of elephants’, burn victim, 87-year-old dance guru among awardees

Padma Awards 2024: Indian President Droupadi Murmu announced the prestigious Padma Awards on the eve of Republic Day on January 25. This year, the President approved 132 Padma Awards including 2 duo cases (in a duo case, the Award is counted as one).

Among the132 awards, five are Padma Vibhushan, 17Padma Bhushan and 110 Padma Shri. The list constitutes 30 women awardees, including eight foreign persons and nine posthumous awardees.

The Padma awards are given in various disciplines or fields like art, social work, public affairs, science and engineering, trade and industry, medicine, literature and education, sports, civil service etc.

Add WION as a Preferred Source

Also Read |Trouble in INDIA paradise? Bihar CM Nitish Kumar may return to BJP-led NDA fold: Reports

Over the last few years, awards have been conferred upon some of India’s unsung heroes who have shown exceptional skill, resilience and determination in their field. Their unwavering passion for social cause has made India proud and has shown light in times of darkness. Here are some of those stories-

‘Queen of elephants’, a burn victim to burn surgeon, 87-year-old dance guru among Padma awardees

Badrappan M is an 87-year-old dance guru of a regional folk dance called Valli Oyil Kummi, predominant in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu. Through thisdance, Badrappan addresses social issues and spreads knowledge aboutIndian history and mythology.

The Valli Oyil Kummi Folk Dance is a male-dominated art form. But Badrappan, a believer in womenempowerment breaksthe shackles of tradition to also trainwomen. He receives Padma Shri in the category Art (Dance-Folk).

Prema Dhanraj is a 72-year-old plastic reconstructive surgeon and a social worker from Karnataka. She burntherself at the age of 8 when a stove burst on her face while playing in the kitchen. She suffered 50 per cent burns and underwent more than 14 surgeries as a child, but this did not break her spirit as she went on to become a surgeon at theChristian Medical College Vellore.

She founded Agni Raksha NGO as a surgeon and provided free surgery to 25,000 burn victims. As part of her global humanitarian efforts, she established Ethiopia’s 1st burns unit, and educated doctors in Kenya, Tanzania, Norway, and Ethiopia.

She receives Padma Shri in the field of Medicine (Indigenous Burns).

Gurvinder Singh, 53, is a differently-abled Social Worker from Sirsa, Haryana. He worked for the betterment of the homeless, destitute, women, orphans and differently-abled people. Singh hasbeen awarded Padma Shri in the field of Social Work (Divyang or differently-able).

Singh was paralysed after being hit by a truck, but this did not stop him from helping other people in need. He has provided free ambulance services to over 6000 accident victims and pregnant women.

Parbati Baruah, also known as Hathi ki Pari (Fairy of Elephant) or Queen of Elephant hails from Assam and is India’s first woman elephant mahout. She overcame stereotypes to create a space for herself, which is said to be a male-dominated field.

She started taming the wild elephants at the age of 14, a skill that she learnt from her father.

The 67-year-old stood out for her commitment of mitigating human-elephant conflict with the help of the application of scientific practices – assisted 3 state governments to tackle and capture wild elephants. She is awarded Padma Shri in the field of Social Work (Animal Welfare).

These awards will be conferred by the President of India at ceremonial functions which are held at Rastrapati Bhawan (President’s House) usually around March/April every year.

(With inputs from agencies)