M.V. Subbiah, B. Muthuraman conferred Padma Bhushan

Seven corporate sector honchos of the country feature among those who will be conferred with the Padma Awards, among the highest civilian honours of the country

On the eve of the 63rd Republic Day, the awards for this year were announced. Contrary to expectations no Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award, was announced. In the 109 awards approved by the President of India, Ms Pratibha Patil, five are Padma Vibhushan, 27 Padma Bhushan and 77 Padma Shri awardees.

The late cartoonist Mario Miranda and the late musician Bhupen Hazarika were amongst the five people awarded the Padma Vibhushan. Among the 27 who will be conferred the Padma Bhushan awards are two senior corporate leaders: Mr M.V. Subbiah of the Murugappa Group and Mr B. Muthuraman, Tata Steel Vice-Chairman and President, CII.

Padma Shri awardees include Ms Priya Paul (Apeejay Surrendra Park Hotels), Dr Swati A. Piramal (Piramal Healthcare Director), Mr Shoji Shiba (international expert in total quality management), Mr Gopinath Pillai (finance, industry and trading expert), and Mr Arun Hashimal Firodia (Chairman, Kinetic Group).

The awards will conferred by the President at Rashtrapati Bhawan in March or April. Mr Muthuraman joined Tata Steel in 1966 and has held various positions at the company. He is on the Boards of several companies which include, among others, Bosch Ltd and Tata Industries. Mr Subbiah, former Chairman of the Murugappa Group, is Chairman of the National Skill Development Corporation, which has a mandate to skill 150 million youth in India. He also serves on the Boards of Axis Bank, SRF and LMW.