Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, who presented the Padma Vibhushan to Dilip Kumar at the veteran actor's residence here today, described the thespian as a 'jewel' of the nation and hailed his contribution to the society.
"In the last 40-50 years, artists have been seeing Dilip Kumar as their idol. He is a jewel of the nation. For his immense contribution, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had recommended his name for Padma Vibhushan to the President and he has approved it," Singh told ANI.
"Dilip Kumar ji couldn't attend the ceremony (award conferring) due to health reasons. So I have come here to present the award with the permission of the President," he added.
Maharashtra's Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis also accompanied the Home Minister to confer the second-highest civilian award on the matinee idol, who turned 93 on December 11.
The announcement to honour Dilip Kumar, Amitabh Bachchan and a few others with Padma Vibhushan was made by the government on the eve of Republic Day on January 25, 2015.
The acting legend could not attend the special function held in Rashtrapati Bhavan in April when other Padma awardees were honoured by President Pranab Mukherjee.
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