New Delhi [India] : Former Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan was awarded the Padma Bhushan posthumously on Tuesday at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. The award was received by his son Chirag Paswan. Ram Vilas Paswan passed away on October 8, 2020, from a heart ailment. Ram Vilas Paswan was Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution in the Narendra Modi government. He was also a minister in the previous NDA government. Paswan was first elected to the Lok Sabha in 1977 on a Janata Party ticket from Hajipur in Bihar. President Ram Nath Kovind on Monday posthumously honoured former Union Ministers George Fernandes, Arun Jaitley and Sushma Swaraj with Padma Vibhushan, the country’s second-highest civilian award.
At the event, a total of 119 persons were conferred with Padma awards 2020 which include seven Padma Vibhushan, 10 Padma Bhushan and 102 Padma Shri, in an event which was organised in Rashtrapati Bhavan here in the national capital today. This year’s list of Padma Awards includes seven Padma Vibhushan, 10 Padma Bhushan, and 102 Padma Shri Awards, of which 29 awardees are women, 16 posthumous awardees, and one transgender awardee. The Padma Awards are one of the highest civilian honours of India announced annually on the eve of Republic Day. The Awards are given in three categories: Padma Vibhushan (for exceptional and distinguished service), Padma Bhushan (distinguished service of higher order) and Padma Shri (distinguished service). The award seeks to recognize achievements in all fields of activities or disciplines where an element of public service is involved. The Padma Awards are conferred on the recommendations made by the Padma Awards Committee, which is constituted by the Prime Minister every year.
