Bharat Ratna (Hindi: भारत रत्न, Hindi pronunciation: Jewel of India) is the highest civilian award of the Republic of India. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conferred “in recognition of exceptional service/performance of the highest order”, without distinction of race, occupation, position, or sex. The award was originally limited to achievements in the arts, literature, science and public services but the government expanded the criteria to include “any field of human endeavour” in December 2011.
Recommendations for the Bharat Ratna are made by the Prime Minister to thePresident, with a maximum of three nominees being awarded per year. Recipients receive a Sanad(certificate) signed by the President and a peepal-leaf–shaped medallion; there is no monetary grant associated with the award. Bharat Ratna recipients rank seventh in the Indian order of precedence, but are constitutionally prohibited from using the award name as a title.
|
Sl.No |
Name |
Awarded |
Born State/Country |
Fields/Activity |
|
1 |
Chakravarti Rajagopalachari |
1954 |
Tamil Nadu |
Independenceactivist, last Governor-General |
|
2 |
C. V. Raman |
1954 |
Tamil Nadu |
Physicist |
|
3 |
Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan |
1954 |
Tamil Nadu |
Philosopher, second President |
|
4 |
Bhagwan Das |
1955 |
Uttar Pradesh |
Independenceactivist, author |
|
5 |
Mokshagundam Visvesvarayya |
1955 |
Karnataka |
Civil engineer, Diwan of Mysore |
|
6 |
Jawaharlal Nehru |
1955 |
Uttar Pradesh |
Independenceactivist, author, first Prime Minister |
|
7 |
GovindBallabh Pant |
1957 |
Uttarakhand |
Independenceactivist, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Home Minister |
|
8 |
DhondoKeshav Karve |
1958 |
Maharashtra |
Educator, social reformer |
|
9 |
Bidhan Chandra Roy |
1961 |
Bihar |
Physician, Chief Minister ofWest Bengal |
|
10 |
Purushottam Das Tandon |
1961 |
Uttar Pradesh |
Independenceactivist, educator |
|
11 |
Rajendra Prasad |
1962 |
Bihar |
Independenceactivist, jurist, first President |
|
12 |
Zakir Hussain |
1963 |
Andhra Pradesh |
Scholar, third President |
|
13 |
Pandurang Vaman Kane |
1963 |
Maharashtra |
Indologist and Sanskrit scholar |
|
14 |
Lal Bahadur Shastri |
1966 |
Uttar Pradesh |
Posthumous, independence activist, second Prime Minister |
|
15 |
Indira Gandhi |
1971 |
Uttar Pradesh |
Fourth Prime Minister |
|
16 |
V. V. Giri |
1975 |
Orissa |
Trade unionist and fourth President |
|
17 |
K. Kamaraj |
1976 |
Tamil Nadu |
Posthumous, independence activist, Chief Minister ofMadrasState |
|
18 |
Mother Teresa |
1980 |
Macedonia |
Catholic nun, founder of the Missionaries of Charity |
|
19 |
VinobaBhave |
1983 |
Maharashtra |
Posthumous, social reformer, independence activist |
|
20 |
Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan |
1987 |
Pakistan |
First non-citizen, independence activist |
|
21 |
M. G. Ramachandran |
1988 |
Sri Lanka |
Posthumous, film actor, Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu |
|
22 |
B. R. Ambedkar |
1990 |
Madhya Pradesh |
Posthumous, chief architect of the Indian Constitution, politician, economist, and scholar |
|
23 |
Nelson Mandela |
1990 |
South Africa |
Second non-citizen and first non-Indian recipient, Leader of the Anti-Apartheid movement |
|
24 |
Rajiv Gandhi |
1991 |
Maharashtra |
Posthumous, Seventh Prime Minister |
|
25 |
Vallabhbhai Patel |
1991 |
Gujarat |
Posthumous, independence activist, first Home Minister |
|
26 |
Morarji Desai |
1991 |
Gujarat |
Independenceactivist, fifth Prime Minister |
|
27 |
AbulKalam Azad |
1992 |
Saudi Arabia |
Posthumous, independence activist, first Minister of Education |
|
28 |
J. R. D. Tata |
1992 |
France |
Industrialist and philanthropist |
|
29 |
Satyajit Ray |
1992 |
West Bengal |
Bengali filmmaker |
|
30 |
A. P. J. Abdul Kalam |
1997 |
Tamil Nadu |
Aeronautical Engineer,11th President ofIndia |
|
31 |
Gulzarilal Nanda |
1997 |
Pakistan |
Independenceactivist, interim Prime Minister |
|
32 |
ArunaAsaf Ali |
1997 |
Haryana |
Posthumous, independence activist |
|
33 |
M. S. Subbulakshmi |
1998 |
Tamil Nadu |
Classical Carnatic singer |
|
34 |
Chidambaram Subramaniam |
1998 |
Tamil Nadu |
Independenceactivist, Minister of Agriculture |
|
35 |
Jayaprakash Narayan |
1999 |
Bihar |
Posthumous, independence activist and politician |
|
36 |
RaviShankar |
1999 |
Uttar Pradesh |
Sitar player |
|
37 |
Amartya Sen |
1999 |
West Bengal |
Economist |
|
38 |
Gopinath Bordoloi |
1999 |
Assam |
Posthumous, independence activist, Chief Minister ofAssam |
|
39 |
Lata Mangeshkar |
2001 |
Madhya Pradesh |
Playback singer |
|
40 |
Bismillah Khan |
2001 |
Bihar |
Hindustani classical shehnai player |
|
41 |
Bhimsen Joshi |
2008 |
Karnataka |
Hindustani classical singer |
|
42 |
Sachin Tendulkar |
2013 |
Maharashtra |
Cricketer /Sports person |
|
42 |
C.N.R. Rao |
2013 |
Karnataka |
Chemist |
