(MENAFN- The Peninsula) Seventeen people from other countries, including a few of Indian origin, are among 104 people chosen for the Padma awards.
Karim Al Hussiani Aga Khan of France has been conferred with the Padma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian award.
Manjul Bhargava, David Frawley, Bill Gates and Melinda Gates - all from the US - and Saichiro Misumi from Japan will receive the Padma Bhushan.
Jean-Claude Carriere and Jacques Blamont (France), Huang Baosheng (China), Nandrajan 'Raj' Chetty, George L. Hart, Tripti Mukherjee, Dattatreyudu Nori, Raghu Rama Pillarisetti (all from the US), Jagat Guru Amrta Suryananda Maha Raja (Portugal), Saumitra Rawat (Britain) and Annette Schmiedchen (Germany) were named for the Padma Shri, a government statement said yesterday.
BJP leader L K Advani, , actors Dilip Kumar and Amitabh Bachchan and Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal were named for the Padma Vibhushan.
Also among the Padma Vibhushan awardees is senior nuclear scientist M R Srinivasan, 84, who had negotiated on behalf of India with Russia for supply of reactors for Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KNPP).
Jagat Guru Ramanandacharya Swami Rambhadracharya and three other spiritual leaders, including an NRI in Portugal, were also conferred with Padma awards. Swami Rambhadracharya, from Uttar Pradesh, was among the nine awarded India's second highest civilian honour, the Padam Vibhushan.
Swami Satyamitranand Giri from Uttar Pradesh, and Shivakumara Swami from Karnataka were among the 20 recipients of the Padma Bhushan, a home ministry release said.
Jagat Guru Amrta Suryananda Maha Raja, who is based in Portugal, was among the 75 recipients of the Padma Shri award.
Former Asian Games gold medal-winning wrestler Satpal, who also coached inspirational Sushil Kumar, was named for the prestigious Padma Bhushan award, while national hockey team captain Sardar Singh and two-time badminton World Championships bronze medallist P V Sinhdu were among the five sportspersons chosen for this year's Padma Shri awards.
Former women's hockey captain Saba Anjum, Arunima Sinha - the first woman amputee mountaineer to climb Mount Everest in 2013 - and Indian women's cricket team skipper Mithali Raj were the other sportspersons selected for this year's Padma Shri awards.
Acclaimed filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali and celebrated writer-lyricist and ad guru Prasoon Joshi were named for Padma Shri honour. They will receive the award for their contribution to art over the years.
A glance over Bhansali's films showcases grandeur and originality and his knack of story telling. Be it his "Khamoshi: The Musical", "Devdas", "Black" or "Goliyon Ki Raasleela: Ram-Leela", Bhansali has connected with the audience in a special way.
Joshi, whose lyrics echoes melody and originality, is known to juggle between the two worlds of advertising and Bollywood.
Other awardees in the Art category are - Kanyakumari Avasarala, Naresh Bedi, Rahul Jain, Ravindra Jain, Prafulla Kar, Tarak Mehta, Neil Herbert Nongkynrih, Kota Srinivasa Rao, Shekhar Sen, Mahesh Raj Soni and Tripti Mukherjee.
Late cartoonist Pran Kumar Sharma, also known as Pran, has also been conferred the award posthumously.
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