About

• ‘Bharat Ratna’, the highest civilian Award of the country, was instituted in the year 1954.
• Any person without distinction of race, occupation, position or sex is eligible for these awards.
• It is awarded in recognition of exceptional service/performance of the highest order in any field of human endeavour.
• The recommendations for Bharat Ratna are made by the Prime Minister himself to the President. No formal recommendations for this are necessary.
• The number of annual awards is restricted to a maximum of three in a particular year.
• On conferment of the award, the recipient receives a Sanad (certificate) signed by the President and a medallion. The Award does not carry any monetary grant.

• Those honored with the Bharat Ratna hold the esteemed seventh position in the Indian order of precedence.
• The first recipients of the Bharat Ratna were scientist C. V. Raman, philosopher Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, and politician Rajagopalachari, who were awarded on January 26, 1955. 
• The award was suspended from 1977 to 1980, and was revived in 1980. The award was also briefly abolished in 1992, following a Supreme Court case that challenged its constitutional validity, but was restored in 1995 after the court upheld its legality.
• In terms of Article 18 (1) of the Constitution, the award cannot be used as a prefix or suffix to the recipient’s name. 
  • However, should an award winner consider it necessary, he/she may use the following expression in their bio- data/letterhead/visiting card etc. to indicate that he/she is a recipient of the award:
    • ‘Awarded Bharat Ratna by the President’ or ‘Recipient of Bharat Ratna Award’.

Why in News?

• The President of India Droupadi Murmu presented Bharat Ratna at an Investiture Ceremony held at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

List of Bharat Ratna awardees this year

1. Karpoori Thakur (Posthumous) (politician and former Bihar chief minister): 

• Karpoori Thakur, a well-known socialist leader from Bihar and former chief minister of the state, will be posthumously honoured with Bharat Ratna. 
• Fondly referred to as ‘Jan Nayak’ (people’s leader), Thakur will become the 49th recipient of this prestigious award.

2. Lal Krishna Advani (politician and former deputy prime minister): 

• Veteran leader Advani served as both the home minister and deputy Prime Minister under the leadership of Atal Bihari Vajpayee from 1999 to 2004

3. PV Narasimha Rao (Posthumous) (former Prime Minister of India): 

• PV Narasimha Rao, a respected leader, served a full five-year term as Prime Minister from 1991 to 1996 and is widely lauded for his pivotal role in introducing economic reforms.

4. Chaudhary Charan Singh (Posthumous) (former Prime Minister of India): 

• Singh, a prominent leader hailing from western Uttar Pradesh, served as Prime Minister during 1979-80.
• Renowned as the chief architect of land reforms in Uttar Pradesh, Charan Singh spearheaded significant legislative initiatives aimed at agricultural reforms. 

5. Mankombu Sambasivan Swaminathan (Posthumous) (agriculture scientist): 

• Swaminathan, who is known as the father of the ‘Green Revolution’, is known for his significant contributions to agriculture and the welfare of farmers. 
• He revolutionized Indian agriculture, ensuring both food security and prosperity for the nation.

https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2016698