- Former President of India, Pranab Mukherjee has been conferred the Bharat Ratna award.
- The award has also been given posthumously to social activist Nanaji Deshmukh and noted Assamese singer Bhupen Hazarika.
- Bharat Ratna is the highest civilian award of India. It is given for exceptional service towards advancement of Art, Literature and Science, and in recognition of Public Service of the highest order.
- The provision of Bharat Ratna was introduced in 1954. The first recipients of the award were scientists Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman, Rajagopalachari and Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan.
- The ward had had also been given to non-Indian – Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan and Nelson Mandela.
