Padma Awards 2025: Environmental Activist Kollakkayil Devaki Amma Gets Padma Shri

New Delhi: The Padma Awards for this year have been announced. Kollakkayil Devaki Amma, a native of Alappuzha and an environmental activist, has been selected for the Padma Shri Award. Under the ‘Unsung Heroes’ category, 45 individuals have received the Padma Shri.

Painter R Krishnan from the Kurumba tribal community (Nilgiris) has been honoured posthumously. Others who received the Padma Shri include Anke Gowda (Karnataka), Armida Fernandes (Maharashtra), Bhagwadas Raikwar (Madhya Pradesh), Brij Lal Bhatt (Jammu and Kashmir), Budri Tati (Chhattisgarh), Charan Hembram (Odisha), Chiranjilal Yadav (Uttar Pradesh), and Dharmik Lal Chunilal (Gujarat).

The Padma Shri awards under the ‘Unsung Heroes’ category are intended to recognize ordinary Indians who have made extraordinary contributions. Individuals who are largely unknown to the public but have made significant contributions at various levels across different parts of India are considered for this honour.

This year’s award list includes, among others, a former bus conductor who established the world’s largest free library, a paediatrician who founded Asia’s first breast milk bank, and a 90-year-old expert in rare musical instruments.