The Centre has announced that the Padma awards ceremony which was scheduled to be held on April 3 at the Rashtrapati Bhavan has now been postponed, due to the Coronavirus scare. The new date and time will be announced later, said the government statement.
The centre has also declared coronavirus outbreak as a national disaster so that much-needed assistance under the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) can be provided.
As many as 141 Padma Awards, including four duo cases, will be handed over this year. The list comprises seven Padma Vibhushan, 16 Padma Bhushan and 118 Padma Shri Awards.
As many as 33 awardees are women and the list includes 18 persons from foreigners category, NRI, PIO, OCI and 12 posthumous awardees.
Political leaders George Fernandes, Arun Jaitley and Sushma Swaraj will be conferred Padma Vibhushan awards posthumously in the public affairs category while Vishveshateertha Swamiji Sri Pejavara Adhokhaja of Udupi Mutt will be honoured with similar award posthumously in the spiritual category.
Padma Awards -- conferred in Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri categories -- are among the highest civilian awards given in various disciplines/fields such as art, social work, public affairs, science and engineering, trade and industry, medicine, literature and education, sports, and civil service.
Padma Vibhushan is awarded for exceptional and distinguished service, Padma Bhushan for distinguished service of a high order, and Padma Shri for distinguished service in any field. The awards are announced on the occasion of the Republic Day every year.
The total number of coronavirus cases is Indi has gone up to 84 and the total recovered cases are 10. India has also reported two deaths due to coronavirus with one death in the national capital and one in Karnataka.
Meanwhile, the Central government along with the state government has taken several measures to contain the spread of the virus.
(With IANS inputs)
