Former President Pranab Mukherjee, Music maestro Bhupen Hazarika & Social Activist Nanaji Deshmukh conferred Bharat Ratna,

August 8: Former President Pranab Mukherjee, Music Maestro Bhupen Hazarika and Social Activist Nanaji Deshmukh were awarded the country’s highest civilian award, Bharat Ratna, by President Ram Nath Kovind on Thursday at Rashtrapati Bhavan. Bhupen Hazarika and Nanaji Deshmukh were honoured posthumously. The announcement for Bharat Ratna was made on 25 January in a statement issued by the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

‘Bard of the Brahmaputra’ Dr. Bhupen Hazarika is the second person from Assam, after Gopinath Bordoloi, Assam first chief minister to have been honoured with the prestigious award. The award was received by his son Tez Hazarika at the Rashtrapati Bhawan. Hazarika has also received the National Film Award, Padmashri, Dada Saheb Phalke Award, Padma Vibhushan, and many other prestigious honours.

While former President Pranab Mukherjee himself received the award, a relative of Nanaji Deshmukh, Virender Jeet Singh received the award for him. Pranab Mukherjee”s life-long political career spanned about five decades, during which he held various key posts in the Congress as well as in the government and finally became the President of India. The other Presidents, who had been conferred the Bharat Ratna include Dr S Radhakrishnan, Rajendra Prasad, Zakir Hussain and VV Giri.

Nanaji Deshmukh represented Uttar Pradesh’s Balrampur constituency in the Lok Sabha from 1977 to 1979. He also served as a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha from 1999 to 2005. Nanaji Deshmukh was honoured with the Padma Vibhushan earlier. One of the founding members of Bharatiya Jan Sangh, Nanaji Deshmukh established a chain of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh-inspired schools throughout India.