Padma Bhushan For Dishom Guru Shibu Soren, Many Tribals In Award List Yet Again

New Delhi

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Sunday released the official list of Padma awardees for 2026, celebrating individuals whose work has left a lasting impact on the society. The Padma Awards, across three categories, are among India’s most prestigious civilian honours announced on the eve of Republic Day every year in the fields of art, social work, public affairs, science and engineering, trade and industry, medicine, literature and education, sports, civil service, etc.

One of the tallest tribal leaders of India and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) co-founder Dishom Guru Shibu Soren, who passed away on August 4 last year at the age of 81 years, has been posthumously named for conferment of Padma Bhushan in the Public Affairs category. He was a sitting Rajya Sabha MP at the time of his death. His son Hemant Soren is at present the Chief Minister of Jharkhand.

Following his death, there have been demands for conferment of Bharat Ratna — India’s highest civilian honours — from several quarters.

Many other tribal personalities too have been honoured this year like earlier.

The first full-time Director of National Institute of Sowa-Rigpa (NISR) in Ladakh, Dr Padma Gurmet, a Tibetan medicine expert, has been named for Padma Shri (medicine) for focusing on the preservation of Himalayan traditional knowledge and the development of high-altitude medicinal plants. 

He advocates for the integration of traditional Sowa-Rigpa, or “Amchi,” medicine with modern healthcare and leads projects like the Tribal Health Care Research Program and capacity building for tribal healers.

West Bengal-based writer (Santali language) Rabilal Tudu has been awarded Padma Shri in the Literature and Education category. Tudu had the Sahitya Akademi Award in 2015.

Techi Gubin from Arunachal Pradesh has been named for Padma Shri award for his Social Work. He has been working relentlessly for preserving the indigenous faith and culture of the Nyishi community even as his patriotism-filled travel across the border villages has gained much traction.

Sangyusang S Pongener has been awarded Padma Shri for his inspiring work in the field of Art, wherein he has been promoting and preserving Naga indigenous folk traditions. A creator of original folk dramas and songs, he has been training the youth of his State in the field too.

Meghalaya’s Hally War of Siej village in East Khasi Hills has been selected for the Padma Shri in the category of social work, in recognition of his lifelong contribution to the conservation of living root bridges. Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma congratulated War on his selection calling him “a true ambassador of our heritage, traditions, and sustainable living”.

Pokhila Lekthepi, the iconic Karbi folk singer from Assam has been chosen for Padma Shri for her four decades of contribution to the field of Art. Her voice has resonated across the hills of Karbi Anglong for over 40 years. She received the Assam Gaurav Award, the state’s third-highest civilian honour, in 2024.

Bundeli war art trainer Bhagwandas Raikwar from Madhya Pradesh, Bhiklya Ladakya Dhinda, the 90-year-old Tarpa (musical instrument made of bamboo and bottle gourd) player from Maharashtra and Santali author Charan Hembram from Odisha too figure among the awardees.

‘Padma Vibhushan’ is awarded for exceptional and distinguished service; ‘Padma Bhushan’ for distinguished service of high order and ‘Padma Shri’ for distinguished service in any field. These Awards are conferred by the President of India at ceremonial functions which are held at Rashtrapati Bhawan usually around March/ April every year.

A MHA press note said the President of India has approved the conferment of 131 Padma Awards this year, including two duo cases, which are counted as a single award. The honours include five Padma Vibhushan, 13 Padma Bhushan, and 113 Padma Shri awards. The awards also reflect geographical diversity, with recipients hailing from multiple states as well as from abroad.

Among the most prominent names are veteran actor Dharmendra and former Kerala Chief Minister V S Achuthanandhan, both honoured posthumously with the Padma Vibhushan, along with renowned violinist N Rajam and jurist K T Thomas.

The Padma Bhushan list features celebrated singer Alka Yagnik, veteran actor Mammootty, industrialist Uday Kotak, advertising ace Piyush Pandey (posthumous) and tennis legend Vijay Amritraj.

The Padma Shri awards honouring a wide range of achievers includes actor R. Madhavan, Indian women’s cricket captain Harmanpreet Kaur, Bollywood actor Satish Shah (posthumous), former Team India captain Rohit Sharma and Indian hockey player Savita Punia among others. The list also includes 19 women awardees, six foreign nationals, and 16 posthumous honours, reflecting the diversity and reach of the civilian awards.

Padma Awards 2026 — Complete List (131 Awardees)