New Delhi:
The Padma Shri awards celebrate the 'Unsung Hero' this year - among them a 76-year-old martial arts expert, a weaver, doctors, environmentalists and civic workers. Over the years, these silent workers have enriched India in many ways - from cleaning up clogged rivers to building bridges at one-tenth the time and cost or saving thousands from fires, road accidents or trafficking. The list of the nation's fourth highest civilian awards, announced every year on Republic Day, also includes sports icons like cricket captain Virat Kohli, hockey captains PR Shreejesh and Olympians Dipa Karmakar and Sakshi Malik. Paralympian gold medalist Mariappan Thangavelu is also among the awardees.
Here are the highlights of this year's 'Unsung Heroes' list:
Meenakshi Amma: The 76-year-old from Kerala is India's oldest exponent of Kalaripayattu, a centuries old martial art form, and has been practising it for more than 68 years. She was introduced to the sport at the age of 7 by her father.
Daripalli Ramaiah: Known as the tree man, this 68-year-old from Telangana has planted over 1 crore trees. He walks around with seeds in his pocket and whenever he sees a barren spot, he plants them. He and his wife Janamma have taken it as their mission to bring back the green cover.
Bipin Ganatra: The 59-year-old volunteer firefighter from Kolkata has been to every fire accident site over the last 40 years. Saving people from fire became his mission in life after he lost his brother to a fire accident.
Dr Subroto Das: The 51-year-old from Gujarat had set up the Lifeline foundation after being involved in an accident and realizing the lack of adequate emergency services. Till today, his foundation has helped more than 1,200 people get emergency medical care
Dr Bhakti Yadav: The much-loved Doctor Dadi to villagers in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh has delivered thousands of babies for free. The first woman to get an MBBS degree in Indore, she spurned a job at a government hospital and dedicated her life to treating poor patients.
Karimul Haque: A tea garden worker from Bengal, he has converted his bike into an ambulance offering free service. The vehicle is the lifeline for 20 villages in Dhalabari, which has helped save more than 3,000 lives. He devoted his life to the cause after his mother died because he could not get her to hospital in time.
Shekhar Naik: The captain of Blind Cricket Team which led India to victory in T20 World Cup 2012, and the One-Day International World Cup in 2014. He is the best batsmen in blind cricket today -- scoring 32 centuries in 13 years.
Sukri Bommagowda: Indigenous folk singer who has been a singer and performer of tribal music for 58 years. Be it birth, marriage, festivals, rituals or agricultural operations like weeding and transplantation, she has a song for every occasion.
Girish Bhardwaj: An engineering graduate, he devoted himself to building bridges after he failed to get a job. The 66-year-old from Karnataka has built more than 100 bridges across Karnataka, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh. His bridge technology takes one-tenth of the conventional cost and time.
Dr. Suniti Solomon: The posthumous awardee from Tamil Nadu had taken up the cause of AIDS research at a time when few discussed it due to the stigma attached. She diagnosed the first AIDS case in India in 1985 and established India's first AIDS Resource Group.
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