Former Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan awarded Padma Bhushan

Former Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan was awarded the Padma Bhushan by President Ram Nath Kovind at Rashtrapati Bhawan on Tuesday.

Veteran politician Mahajan was the Speaker of Lok Sabha from 2014 to 2019. She belongs to Bharatiya Janata Party and represented the Indore constituency of Madhya Pradesh from 1989 to 2019.

Padma Bhushan is the country's third-highest civilian award, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri.

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 the highest order) and Padma Shri (distinguished service). The award seeks to recognise achievements in all fields of activities or disciplines where an element of public service is involved.

119 Padma Awards will be presented by President this year. The list comprises seven Padma Vibhushan, 10 Padma Bhushan and 102 Padma Shri Awards. 29 of the awardees are women, 16 Posthumous awardees and one transgender awardee.

The Padma Awards are conferred on the recommendations made by the Padma Awards Committee, which is constituted by the Prime Minister every year.