Former Defence minister and senior BJP leader, late Manohar Parrikar, world Badminton champion PV Sindhu, businessmen Anand Mahindra and Venu Shrinivasan, former Nagaland chief minister and senior Congress leader S C Jamir and PDP leader and former deputy Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, Muzaffar Hussain Baig are among 18 eminent personalities conferred with the Padma Bhushan awards announced by the government on the eve of the 71st Republic Day on Saturday. Seven personalities including late BJP stalwarts Arun Jaitley and Sushma Swaraj have been conferred with Padma Vibhushan award and 118 people (including duos) have been given the Padma Shri awards.
Monahar Parikar was suffering from advanced pancreatic cancer and passed away on May 17 last year, he was the Chief Minister of Goa at that time.
PV Sindhu won the World Championships in Switzerland last year in August, becoming the first Indian to do so.
SC Jamir is a senior Congress leader, who has served as the governor of Odisha, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Goa apart from holding the position of the Chief Minister of Nagaland.
Muzaffar Hussain Baig is a senior PDP leader, who also served as erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir's deputy Chief Minsiter and as a MP in Lok Sabha's last term.
Lucknow-based historian and journalist Yogesh Praveen, Assam-based historian Jogendra Nath Phukan are among the Padma Shri awardees.