Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh emerged as the third highest award-winning state in the Padma Awards 2026, with 11 recipients from the state featuring in the national list of awardees.Of the 131 Padma Awards announced, only Maharashtra (16 awards) and Tamil Nadu (15 awards) have higher recipients than Uttar Pradesh.Uttar Pradesh has one Padma Vibhushan and 10 Padma Shri awards, with no Padma Bhushan recipient this year.The lone Padma Vibhushan was conferred on N Rajam for her legendary contribution to Hindustani classical music as a globally acclaimed violin maestro.Padma Vibhushan awardee N Rajam is a renowned Hindustani classical violinist and former professor at BHU, where she served as head of the department and dean. She received Padma Shri in 1984 and Padma Bhushan in 2004, and the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship. Born in Chennai in 1938, she was trained initially in Carnatic music by her father A Narayana Iyer and later learnt raga development from Omkarnath Thakur.The Padma Shri awardees include Anil Kumar Rastogi (theatre and academic research), Ashok Kumar Singh (agricultural science and genome-edited rice), Buddha Rashmi Mani (archaeology and heritage conservation), Chiranji Lal Yadav (traditional brass engraving), Kewal Krishan Thakral (Ayurveda), Mangala Kapoor (music education and resilience as an acid-attack survivor), Praveen Kumar (Paralympic sports), Raghupat Singh (posthumous for sustainable farming), and Rajendra Prasad and Shyam Sundar (medical sciences), underscoring Uttar Pradesh’s wide-ranging contributions across arts, science, sports and public service.Among Padma Shri awardees, Dr Anil Rastogi, an eminent theatre actor and scholar who performed in over a thousand shows of 99 plays. He participated in several global theatre festivals. He has also acted in over 75 films, 14 web series and around 500 television episodes. A senior theatre artist, film actor and educationist, he has been awarded Abhyudaya International Shalaka Samman for his contribution to theatre and acting. Based in Lucknow, his career spans both science and performing arts. A noted scientist, he served as head of biochemistry at CSIR-CDRI. He published more than a hundred research papers.Dr Kewal Krishan Thakral, eminent Ayurvedic surgeon, has won the award for his six-decade contribution to ‘Shalya Shalakaya’. He pioneered the Karna Vedhan technique for asthma and authored several books. Expressing gratitude, he said the honour belongs to his teachers, students and Ayurveda. Born in 1938, the former Dean of Kanpur University and Director, Ayurveda and Unani Services, Uttar Pradesh, guided doctoral research, served as research surgeon at the University of California, San Francisco, and led social service through asthma, eye and rehabilitation camps.Respiratory medicine specialist Prof Rajendra Prasad has been awarded Padma Shri for his contribution to pulmonary care and medical education. A pulmonologist with five decades of service, he pioneered TB and MDR-TB care, established DOTS centres, treated over five lakh patients, supervised 150 researches and authored six books. A Dr BC Roy Award recipient, he has nearly 60 years of association with the profession. At KGMU, he introduced video bronchoscopy in 1999 and set up UP’s first sleep lab in 2006.Prof Shyam Sundar from IMS-BHU has been awarded Padma Shri for his work on Kala-azar. A recipient of the Visitor Award and Dr PN Raju Oration honour, he developed single-dose liposomal amphotericin B therapy recognised by WHO. He also pioneered multi-drug therapy and developed miltefosine, the first effective oral drug for Kala-azar, widely used in national and global elimination programmes.Former professor at BHU, Mangla Kapoor is a classical musician and an acid attack survivor. Attacked in 1965, she remained hospitalised for six years but later completed her studies and became a professor. Associated with the Gwalior gharana, she was honoured with ‘Kashi ki Lata’ award and the Rajya Sabha ‘Role Model’ award. She provides free music education. A Marathi film Mangla is based on her life.Raghupat Singh, a farmer from Moradabad, was posthumously awarded Padma Shri for his contribution to sustainable agriculture. A Dalit farmer for over five decades, he developed more than 100 crop varieties, conserved over 30 native species and trained nearly three lakh farmers. Known as ‘Krishi Pandit’, he revived extinct vegetables, promoted weather-based farming and received 11 national awards.Chiranji Lal Yadav, a veteran brass artisan from Moradabad, has been awarded Padma Shri for preserving traditional brass carving. He has worked for over five decades, trained young artisans and supported livelihoods through the craft. He said the award recognises both the art form and the artisans involved in rare brass traditions.Buddha Rashmi Mani, renowned archaeologist and heritage conservationist, uncovered the earliest Gupta inscription and led excavations at Ayodhya and Sarnath. She revived museums and authored influential works. Mani directed excavations at 20 archaeological sites including the significant Ayodhya excavations, monitored development of 44 ASI site museums and has conserved many monuments in various parts of the country and abroad. He discovered a significant Gupta period image of Hariti from Sarnath, containing an inscription of Srigupta, the first Gupta king and which is the first inscription of the dynasty. Explored in a limited way in Sone Valley (Mirzapur) mainly at Chopan Mesolithic site.Para athlete Praveen Kumar from Gautam Budh Nagar competed with able-bodied athletes till 2018 before shifting to para sports. Praveen has won the Arjuna Award (2021) and Khel Ratna (2024). He claimed silver at the Tokyo Paralympics and gold at the Paris Paralympics in high jump T64. He said the honour fulfilled his long-cherished dream and boosted his confidence further.Ashok Kumar Singh, a plant geneticist and former director of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), is best known for his work developing high-yielding Basmati rice varieties. His research has focused on integrating molecular breeding with conventional methods to improve grain quality and disease resistance.
