Gandhian, doctor among unsung heroes honoured with Padma Shri

Age or adversities did not deter them and now the country has honoured them with Padma Shri.

A 102-year-old Gandhian activist from Assam, a 92-year-old traditional martial art exponent from Kerala, a late 89-year-old doctor who developed treatment protocols for victims of Bhopal Gas Tragedy and a late bureaucrat who carried out his assigned charge of ensuring oxygen availability during Covid-19 even from his hospital bed are among 107 Padma Shri awards announced on Wednesday on the eve of Republic Day.

Shakuntala Choudhary (102), who hails from Kamprup, is a Gandhian Social Worker from Kamrup and popularly known as 'Shakuntala Baideo' while Sankaranarayana Menon Chundayil (92) is a veteran 'guru' of Kalaripayattu in Kerala's Thrissur for over six decades.

One of Madhya Pradesh's senior-most doctors, late Narendra Prasad Misra was chosen for Padma Shri for developing treatment protocols for victims of Bhopal Gas Tragedy as well as Covid-19.

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Guruprasad Mohapatra (60), an IAS officer, was chosen for the national honour posthumously for carrying out his assigned charge of ensuring oxygen availability, especially during the second wave of Covid-19, even from his hospital bed. Dilip Shahani (71), an engineer, academician and technocrat who played an instrumental role in India's Electronic Voting Machine technology platform, is also in the list.

An author from Nagaland, 76-year-old T Senka Ao, a teacher and journalist, was honoured for preserving Nagaland's Ao language through his writings over decades.

Another writer who was chosen for preserving a language was Akhone Asgar Ali from Kargil for preserving and promoting Balti language and culture.

Globally acclaimed for his treatment and research on scorpion and snake bites, Himmatrao Bawaskar (71) finds his name in the list for serving the needy in Maharashtra's Raigad.

S Ballesh Bhajantri (63) who composed Shehnai music for over 50,000 songs across five decades and 88-year-old Sulochana Chavan, a legendary Lavani singer from Kolhapur who made immeasurable contribution in the past 75 years are other veterans in the list.

Khandu Wangchuk Bhutia (62), an eminent Tangkha Painter who specialises in traditional Buddhist paintings on cotton and silk, is the lone choice from Sikkim.

An 84-year-old Polish national Christopher Byrski, a Sanskrit scholar and Koodiyattam enthusiast who authored over 100 publications on Indian theatre, was chosen for her contribution to the literary, art and culture field.

Another choice was Basanti Devi from Uttarakhand who inspired women and for her contribution towards revitalising the Kosi River.

Aditya Prasad Dash (70), a distinguished Biologist specialising in vector-borne tropical diseases like Dengue, Malaria, Kala-azar and Chikungunya and Lata Desai (75), who was providing healthcare services among rural and tribal communities in Gujarat for over five decades were among the doctors who were selected for Padma Shri.

Lourembam Bino Devi (77) made the cut for the national honours for her service in preserving the Leeba textile art of Manipur over five decades. Another winner Muktamani Devi (49), also from Manipur, has been an inspirational woman entrepreneur exporting and popularising handcrafted woollen shoes.

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