<p>Two unsung heroes, Bipin Ganatra and Karimul Haque,&nbsp;from India&rsquo;s eastern state of Bengal have been conferred the Padma Shri award -&nbsp;the highest civilian award&nbsp;of the country.&nbsp;</p>

<p>60-year-old Bipin Ganatra is&nbsp;a volunteer firefighter from West Bengal&#39;s capital Kolkata. Ganatra has dedicated the last four decades of his life towards&nbsp;firefighting and saving hundreds of lives.</p>

<p>Ganatra was only twelve when he lost his elder brother Narendra Ganatra to a fire. Since that day, he has not looked back. He has doused over hundreds of fires in the city of Kolkata, putting his own life at risk</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/bipin%20ganatra-20170125021348.jpg" />
<div class="media-description">
<p>Bipin Ganatra is a 60-year-old voluntary firefighter from Kolkata. (Image source: PIB) (Others)</p>
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="javascript:void(0)" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

<p>He almost lost his life once, while dousing a fire that broke out at the warehouse on Strand Road in South Kolkata. He has also suffered injuries on several occasions.</p>

<p>An electrician by profession, he remains glued to&nbsp;news channels to pay attention to any news of fire breaking out in the city. He also calls the Fire and Emergency Department Headquarters in Kolkata at regular intervals to update himself with any news of a fire&nbsp;in the city.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Speaking to WION, Ganatra said, &ldquo;I am very excited after I heard the news of the Padma Shri award being conferred upon me. I feel privileged that the President of India will give away this award to me. This instils in me a sense of responsibility and encourages me to work even harder and save lives around me.&rdquo;</p>

<p>Locally known as the &quot;ambulance-dada&quot;,&nbsp;Karimul Haque runs a 24*7 bike-ambulance service in Bengal&#39;s Jalpaiguri district.&nbsp;Haque is a tea garden worker, who ferries ill and the aged to&nbsp;nearby hospitals on his bike-ambulance.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/thumbnail_karimul%20haque-20170125020902.jpg" />
<div class="media-description">
<p>Karimul Haque runs a 24*7 bike-ambulance service in Bengal&#39;s Jalpaiguri district. (Image source: PIB) (Others)</p>
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="javascript:void(0)" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>Haque would ferry ill and the aged, sometimes even poor, who cannot pay a huge sum to reach the hospital. He even ferries pregnant women on his bike-ambulance to the hospital in case of emergencies.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&ldquo;The area I come from, Jalpaiguri is uneven and has rough roads and to find an ambulance in case of an emergency is a far-fetched dream for many villagers. This bike-ambulance has helped over 3,000 villagers in the last few years,&rdquo; said Haque.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
Haque also provides door to door medical services. Besides this, he also sets up health camps in the region.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
He also gets financial aid from the West Bengal state government amounting to Rs.4,000, of which, he spends half of it on the fuel for his bike-ambulance. Recently Bajaj Motors upgraded his bike-ambulance. Now, his upgraded ambulance has a waterproof stretcher and provision for oxygen cylinders.</p>

<p>(WION)</p>


A 60-year-old voluntary firefighter and a tea garden worker who runs a 24x7 bike-ambulance service have been conferred the Padma Shri award

Two unsung heroes, Bipin Ganatra and Karimul Haque, from India’s eastern state of Bengal have been conferred the Padma Shri award - the highest civilian award of the country. 60-year-old Bipin Ganatra is a volunteer firefighter from West Bengal's capital Kolkata. Ganatra has dedicated the last four decades of his life towards firefighting and saving hundreds of lives. Ganatra was only twelve when he lost his elder brother Narendra Ganatra to a fire. Since that day, he has not looked back. He has doused over hundreds of fires in the city of Kolkata, putting his own life at risk Bipin Ganatra is a 60-year-old voluntary firefighter from Kolkata. (Image source: PIB) (Others) × He almost lost his life once, while dousing a fire that broke out at the warehouse on Strand Road in South Kolkata. He has also suffered injuries on several occasions. An electrician by profession, he remains glued to news channels to pay attention to any news of fire breaking out in the city. He also calls the Fire and Emergency Department Headquarters in Kolkata at regular intervals to update himself with any news of a fire in the city. Speaking to WION, Ganatra said, “I am very excited after I heard the news of the Padma Shri award being conferred upon me. I feel privileged that the President of India will give away this award to me. This instils in me a sense of responsibility and encourages me to work even harder and save lives around me.” Locally known as the "ambulance-dada", Karimul Haque runs a 24*7 bike-ambulance service in Bengal's Jalpaiguri district. Haque is a tea garden worker, who ferries ill and the aged to nearby hospitals on his bike-ambulance. Karimul Haque runs a 24*7 bike-ambulance service in Bengal's Jalpaiguri district. (Image source: PIB) (Others) × Haque would ferry ill and the aged, sometimes even poor, who cannot pay a huge sum to reach the hospital. He even ferries pregnant women on his bike-ambulance to the hospital in case of emergencies. “The area I come from, Jalpaiguri is uneven and has rough roads and to find an ambulance in case of an emergency is a far-fetched dream for many villagers. This bike-ambulance has helped over 3,000 villagers in the last few years,” said Haque. Haque also provides door to door medical services. Besides this, he also sets up health camps in the region. He also gets financial aid from the West Bengal state government amounting to Rs.4,000, of which, he spends half of it on the fuel for his bike-ambulance. Recently Bajaj Motors upgraded his bike-ambulance. Now, his upgraded ambulance has a waterproof stretcher and provision for oxygen cylinders. (WION)

Two from Bengal get Padma Shri award for selfless service

<p><br />
The government today released the list&nbsp;of Padma award winners - one of the highest civilian awards of the country. &nbsp;The awards are given in various fields of activities from art, social work to public affairs,&nbsp;science and engineering, trade,&nbsp;industry, medicine, literature,&nbsp;education and&nbsp;sports.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Padma Vibhushan is awarded for exceptional and distinguished service,&nbsp;the Padma Bhushan for distinguished service of high order and Padma Shri for distinguished service in any field. The awards will announced formally on the occasion of Republic Day tomorrow. The awards are conferred by the President Pranab Mukherjee&nbsp;at a ceremonial function&nbsp;which is&nbsp;held at Rashtrapati Bhawan usually around March every year.&nbsp;</p>

<p>This year President Pranab Mukherjee&nbsp;has approved conferment of Padma Awards to eighty-nine&nbsp;persons. The list comprises of seven&nbsp;Padma Vibhushan, seven&nbsp;Padma Bhushan and seventy-five&nbsp;Padma Shri awardees. There are nineteen&nbsp;women in the list which includes five persons from the category of foreigners, NRIs, PIOs and six posthumous awardees.</p>

<p>Noted singer K J Yesudas has been selected for Padma Vibhushan, India&#39;s second highest civilian award but big names from Indian film industry did not feature in the list that was announced today.</p>

<p>Musicians and singers were given preference this year with Grammy-winning musician Vishwa Mohan Bhatt being named for Padma Bhushan while singer Kailash Kher and Anuradha Paudwal were named for Padma Shri.</p>

<p>The focus of this year&#39;s Padma awards, according to the officials in the Home Ministry, was on recognising talent of unknown and unsung heroes of the country.</p>

<p>Yesudas, who has a record contribution of more than 50,000 film songs in various languages, including his mother tongue Malayalam, Tamil, Bengali and Hindi, has already been a recipient of the Padma Shri (1975) and the Padma Bhushan (2002).</p>

<p>The singer, 77, has made many songs memorable with his mellifluous voice, but for Hindi cinema music fans he is best known for songs like &#39;Jab Deep Jaale Aaana&#39;, &#39;Gori Tera Gaon&#39; and &#39;Surmai Ankhiyon Mein&#39; from &quot;Chitchor&quot; and &quot;Sadma&quot;. Bhatt, who is credited with the creation of the &#39;Mohan Veena&#39;, is a former disciple of Pt Ravi Shankar. The musician is one of the most recognised names in Indian classical music scene.</p>

<p>Kher, known for his earthy-sufi voice, said it was an &quot;overwhelming&quot; moment for him to be recognised by his country. &quot;Thank you to my nation for this honour. I am overwhelmed. I am sure my parents, who are no longer with me, are smiling down at me with pride. This honour is possible beacause of the prayers of my well-wishers and the blessings of my gurus,&quot; a grateful Kher said.</p>

<p>Celebrity chef Sanjeev Kapoor, who has been named for Padma Shri, said it is great to be acknowledged for an &quot;unconventional&quot; field. &quot;The feeling of winning a Padma award is fantastic. 2017 has started on a great note for me. But with the award comes a bigger sense of responsibility and pressure. To acknowledge people who are not from mainstream is a great trend and I hope it continues. I am happy that it is given to someone from a field as unconventional as culinary,&quot; the Padma Shri winner said.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/padma%20bhushan-20170125125708.JPG" />
<div class="media-description">
<p>Padma Vibhushan. (Image source: Ministry of Home Affairs) (Others)</p>
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="javascript:void(0)" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/gjassfdjhajfgsjdag-20170125010320.png" />
<div class="media-description">
<p>Padma Bhushan. (Image Source: Ministry of Home Affairs) (Others)</p>
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="javascript:void(0)" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/hfhu-20170125012607.png" />
<div class="media-description">
<p>Padma Shri. (Image Source: Ministry of Home Affairs) (Others)</p>
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="javascript:void(0)" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/untitled%20design-20170125012825.png" />
<div class="media-description">
<p>Padma Shri. (Image Source: Ministry of Home Affairs) (Others)</p>
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="javascript:void(0)" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>(WION with PTI inputs)</p>


This year President Pranab Mukherjee has approved conferment of Padma awards to eighty-nine persons

The government today released the list of Padma award winners - one of the highest civilian awards of the country. The awards are given in various fields of activities from art, social work to public affairs, science and engineering, trade, industry, medicine, literature, education and sports. The Padma Vibhushan is awarded for exceptional and distinguished service, the Padma Bhushan for distinguished service of high order and Padma Shri for distinguished service in any field. The awards will announced formally on the occasion of Republic Day tomorrow. The awards are conferred by the President Pranab Mukherjee at a ceremonial function which is held at Rashtrapati Bhawan usually around March every year. This year President Pranab Mukherjee has approved conferment of Padma Awards to eighty-nine persons. The list comprises of seven Padma Vibhushan, seven Padma Bhushan and seventy-five Padma Shri awardees. There are nineteen women in the list which includes five persons from the category of foreigners, NRIs, PIOs and six posthumous awardees. Noted singer K J Yesudas has been selected for Padma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian award but big names from Indian film industry did not feature in the list that was announced today. Musicians and singers were given preference this year with Grammy-winning musician Vishwa Mohan Bhatt being named for Padma Bhushan while singer Kailash Kher and Anuradha Paudwal were named for Padma Shri. The focus of this year's Padma awards, according to the officials in the Home Ministry, was on recognising talent of unknown and unsung heroes of the country. Yesudas, who has a record contribution of more than 50,000 film songs in various languages, including his mother tongue Malayalam, Tamil, Bengali and Hindi, has already been a recipient of the Padma Shri (1975) and the Padma Bhushan (2002). The singer, 77, has made many songs memorable with his mellifluous voice, but for Hindi cinema music fans he is best known for songs like 'Jab Deep Jaale Aaana', 'Gori Tera Gaon' and 'Surmai Ankhiyon Mein' from "Chitchor" and "Sadma". Bhatt, who is credited with the creation of the 'Mohan Veena', is a former disciple of Pt Ravi Shankar. The musician is one of the most recognised names in Indian classical music scene. Kher, known for his earthy-sufi voice, said it was an "overwhelming" moment for him to be recognised by his country. "Thank you to my nation for this honour. I am overwhelmed. I am sure my parents, who are no longer with me, are smiling down at me with pride. This honour is possible beacause of the prayers of my well-wishers and the blessings of my gurus," a grateful Kher said. Celebrity chef Sanjeev Kapoor, who has been named for Padma Shri, said it is great to be acknowledged for an "unconventional" field. "The feeling of winning a Padma award is fantastic. 2017 has started on a great note for me. But with the award comes a bigger sense of responsibility and pressure. To acknowledge people who are not from mainstream is a great trend and I hope it continues. I am happy that it is given to someone from a field as unconventional as culinary," the Padma Shri winner said. Padma Vibhushan. (Image source: Ministry of Home Affairs) (Others) × Padma Bhushan. (Image Source: Ministry of Home Affairs) (Others) × Padma Shri. (Image Source: Ministry of Home Affairs) (Others) × Padma Shri. (Image Source: Ministry of Home Affairs) (Others) × (WION with PTI inputs)

Virat Kohli wins Padma Shri, Sharad Pawar, Murli Manohar Joshi win Padma Vibushan

padma-shri

Padma Shri, News on Padma Shri, stories on Padma Shri, articles on Padma Shri, Padma Shri stories at Wion, Padma Shri news, Padma Shri latest news

padma shri

Two from Bengal get Padma Shri award for selfless service

Virat Kohli wins Padma Shri, Sharad Pawar, Murli Manohar Joshi win Padma Vibushan