Mary Kom awarded Padma Vibhushan, O Bembem conferred Padma Bhushan

New Delhi, Jan 27
Six-time world champion MC Mary Kom has been awarded the prestigious Padma Vibhushan whereas World Champion shuttler PV Sindhu has been conferred the Padma Bhushan on Saturday.
Mary Kom won a bronze medal in the 2012 London Olympics while also being crowned as world champion six times in an illustrious career.
Sindhu is a silver medallist at the 2016 Rio Olympics and is also the only Indian world champion in badminton. Sindhu has also won four other World Championships medals -- 2 silver and 2 bronze -- besides the gold, she won last year.
The Government announced the final list of names for Padma Awards 2020 on Saturday, the eve of Republic Day. The Padma Vibhushan, which is awarded for exceptional and distinguished service, is the highest civilian award in India after the Bharat Ratna.
The Padma Bhushan is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri.
The other six sportspersons were named for Padma Shri. They are cricketer Zaheer Khan, current Indian women's hockey captain Rani Rampal, former Indian men's hockey player MP Ganesh, shooter Jitu Rai, former Indian women's football team captain Oinam Bembem Devi and archer Tarundeep Rai.
Zaheer Khan was one of the India's finest fast bowlers and only behind the legendary Kapil Dev in terms of wickets among Indian pacers in the Tests. Zaheer also won the 2011 World Cup with the Indian team.
Rani Rampal has played more than 200 matches for India and she recently helped the country secure a Tokyo Olympics berth by beating the United States in the qualification match. India Today