Irrationalities in giving Padma awards damage their sanctity - T. N. Pandey - Article published in Business Advisor, dated May 25, 2016 - http://www.magzter.com/IN/Shrinikethan/Business-Advisor/Business/ Tweeted on www.twitter.com/BusinessAdvDM #BusinessAdvisorArchives

1. Volume XV Part 4 May 25, 2016 3 Business Advisor
Irrationalities in giving Padma awards
damage their sanctity
T. N. Pandey
Recognising good work has been an age-old practice for
motivating people to put in their best for excellent
results in various fields of their work and also to
innovate and invent. After India became independent, a
scheme to appreciate such work on a national level was
conceived in the form of Padma awards, to be given each
year on the eve of Republic day.
Each year on the eve of Republic Day, the Govt. makes
announcement about conferment of Padma awards like
Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri – the highest national
awards for those who show extraordinary achievements in their respective
areas of work and assignment.
This year too, on 25th January, 2016, a list of recipients of such awards was
published and only sometime back, in two glittering ceremonies, the Hon‟ble
President of India gave such awards to the awardees; with such conferment,
the exercise for the next year may start. However, before that starts, some
fundamental issues which this year‟s list raises, need to be addressed.
The list announced for the year 2016 comprises 112 persons – 10 Padma
Vibhushans, 19 Padma Bhushans and 13 Padma Shris.
Regretfully, it is noticed [without any disrespect to the recipients] that, over
the years, the exercise in this regard is deviating from the objectives with
which such awards were started and the guidelines framed for these. The
guidelines are as under:-
*Padma Vibhushan is to be awarded for „exceptional and distinguished
service‟.
*Padma Bhushan is for „distinguished service of a high order‟.
*Padma Shri is for „distinguished service‟.
The word „distinguished‟ is not defined in the guidelines. According to
dictionaries, distinguished implies something remarkable, eminent, of high-
standing, etc.

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Guidelines expect that, through the awards, recognition will be given for
works of distinction for distinguished and exceptional achievements/ service
in all fields of activities/ disciplines such as art, literature and education,
sports, medicine, social work, science and engineering, public affairs, civil
service, trade and industry, etc.
*For giving awards, the awardees must be having not only „excellence in
work‟ but should be „excellence plus‟.
*The award is normally not to be conferred posthumously. However, in
highly deserving cases, the Govt. could consider giving an award
posthumously if the demise of the person proposed to be honoured has been
recent – say within a period of one year preceding the Republic Day on
which it is proposed to be announced. Such practice is followed uniformly in
respect of „gallantry awards‟ in defence services such as for Ashok Chakra,
Kirti Chakra, etc. Such awards in defence services are not given after 10-15
years from the year of the death of the persons to be honoured.
Arts 28 Science & engineering 8
Medicines 18 Trade & industry 8
Literature & education 11 Public affairs 7
Social work 10 Literature, education 5
Sports 4 Others* 12
Civil services 1
*Others include spiritualism (3), culinary (1), adv. & comm. (1), wild life
conservation (1), yoga (3), farming (1), environment conservation (1) &
architecture (1).
The decisions taken can now be examined vis-à-vis the awardees to see
whether these are in accordance with the avowed objectives. It is clarified
that this does not mean any disrespect to any awardee when some cases
(without stating the names) are mentioned only to show that there have
been wide deviations from the prescribed guidelines, without any apparent
justification, for the same.
Four posthumous awards have been given, out of which, perhaps, only one
death occurred within one year of giving the award. One award is given

3. Volume XV Part 4 May 25, 2016 5 Business Advisor
under the category of trade & industry to a person who died in the year
2002, that is, nearly 14 years back. This is in total disregard of the
guidelines prescribed for such awards mentioned earlier. What inspired the
Govt. to award Padma Vibhushan to the awardee after nearly 14 years,
much after one year time as stipulated in the guidelines (supra), needs to be
elucidated for the knowledge of the people of the country.
In giving awards, some promotions have also been made. One awardee,
according to his own version, was awarded Padma Shri in 1971, Padma
Bhushan in 1977 and Padma Vibhushan in the 2016, under the cateogory
of „public affairs‟. The guidelines provide for Padma Vibhushan for
„exceptional and distinguished service‟.
There have been no media reports or Govt.‟s notifications concerning such
work from such awardee after the confirmation of Padma Shri in 1971 or
Padma Bhushan in 1977, justifying Padma Vibhushan in 2016. Promotions
in Padma awards could be justified provided there are exceptional
achievements to move from „distinguished service‟ to „distinguished service
of high order‟ and from that to „exceptional and distinguished service‟.
There is nothing in public domain to support the aforesaid guidelines,
justifying two promotions in Padma ladder. Similar situations have been
noticed in promotions given to film personalities. Such promotions are
frustrating for those who have or wish to do something distinguished for the
country, which is not short of deserving persons so as to justify 3 awards to
only one person one after another.
A question also arises in regard to picking up the persons from various
fields for conferring the awards. Highest 28 awards have been given for „art‟,
where most of the awardees are from the film industry. In a country where
nearly 70% of the population is engaged in agriculture and where
substantial innovations are being made concerning this sector, to find only
one person for Padma Shri award from the field of farming is surprising.
Similarly, only one person from civil services, and that too a retiree from
amongst more than 50 lakh employees in the Central Govt. itself is totally
un-understandable. This has almost been the practice in the past also.
Ignoring persons who are deserving from these fields shows that there is
something wrong in the selection process.
The Indian Revenue Services comprising nearly a lakh of employees,
collecting crores of rupees by way of income-tax, central excise, service tax
and customs duties, which provide the fuel for running the Govt., have been
almost totally neglected for Padma awards. In 60 years since these awards

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were instituted, only 2 or 3 officers from IRS have been conferred such
distinctions even when the shares of other sectors have been substantially
increasing year-after-year.
Likewise, persons from other services too contribute by their outstanding
achievements to make the nation feel proud from their respective spheres of
work by new inventions and innovative ways of working with new ideas,
which improve efficiency in work and cost, but their number in getting such
awards is practically zero.
Why is such discrimination practised when „civil services‟ are the backbone
of the country and are one of the fields for award of Padma awards in the
guidelines?
There is no reason why persons from other disciplines should be deprived
from getting such awards. Persons such as film artists primarily work for
themselves and their contribution to the country is incidental.
The civil servants, in return for some minimum benefit as emoluments,
mainly work for the country and their contribution is immense. Hence, not
giving due considerations to them for such awards is, prima-facie, unfair.
To sum up, there is apparent ad hocism, discrimination and unprincipled
use of discretion in picking up persons from different disciplines for Padma
awards. The way such discrimination has been perpetuated from year-to-
year raises valid grounds for having a re-look at the system by which some
awardees are picked up in utter disregard of the prescribed guidelines
without any reason or accountability. At least reasons need to be given for
deviations from the guidelines.
Otherwise, such decisions give a feeling that all is not well in the present
way of working.
One Central Minister has publicly admitted that there was lobbying from an
actress from film industry to recommend her name for Padma awards.
Unbridled exercise of power by deviations from the laid-down policy
guidelines damages the sanctity of such solemn highest national awards
and credibility of the Govt.
There does not seem to be any reason why the highest standards should not
be maintained for such awards. Only outstanding merit – not any other
consideration – should be the criterion in selecting people for such awards.
(T. N. Pandey is Former Chairman, Central Board of Direct Taxes.)