Awards questions in the exam come in four shapes: the civilian awards and their order (Bharat Ratna, then the three Padma awards), India's gallantry medals in wartime and peacetime order, the Nobel Prize — its categories and India's winners — and which award belongs to which field (cinema, literature, journalism, medicine). Learn the orders and the field-to-award pairs and almost every question becomes a quick recall.
1954
Bharat Ratna & Padma started
Padma Vibhushan/Bhushan/Shri from 1955
6
Nobel Prize categories
Economics added in 1969
3
Max Bharat Ratna per year
Civilian awards — the order
Bharat Ratna is the highest; then the three Padma awards.
| Award | Rank | Key facts |
|---|---|---|
| Bharat Ratna | 1st (highest) | For exceptional service; max 3/year; posthumous allowed since 1966 |
| Padma Vibhushan | 2nd | Exceptional and distinguished service |
| Padma Bhushan | 3rd | Distinguished service of a high order |
| Padma Shri | 4th | Distinguished service |
QUICK CHECK
PYQ · SSC — The first Indian woman to get the Bharat Ratna was:
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Answer: A — Indira Gandhi
Indira Gandhi received the Bharat Ratna in 1971, the first woman to do so.
QUICK CHECK
PYQ · SSC — What is the highest civilian honour received by Mary Kom?
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Answer: B — Padma Bhushan
Boxer Mary Kom got the Padma Shri (2006) and later the Padma Bhushan (2013) — her highest so far.
QUICK CHECK
PYQ · SSC — Who won the Bharat Ratna on his 100th birthday?
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Answer: C — D.K. Karve
Social reformer Dhondo Keshav Karve received the Bharat Ratna in 1958, the year he turned 100.
Gallantry awards — wartime and peacetime
Two separate ladders; don't mix them.
India's gallantry medals
Ashoka Chakra — the highest peacetime gallantry award (shown: 2019 conferment).
President's Secretariat (GODL-India) · GODL-India
QUICK CHECK
PYQ · SSC — Which is the highest gallantry award in India?
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Answer: D — Param Vir Chakra
The Param Vir Chakra is India's highest gallantry (wartime) award.
The Nobel Prize and its Indian winners
Six categories; learn each Indian laureate's field.
| Indian laureate | Field | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Rabindranath Tagore | Literature (India's first Nobel) | 1913 |
| C. V. Raman | Physics | 1930 |
| Mother Teresa | Peace | 1979 |
| Amartya Sen | Economic Sciences | 1998 |
| Kailash Satyarthi | Peace (with Malala) | 2014 |
| Abhijit Banerjee | Economic Sciences | 2019 |
QUICK CHECK
PYQ · SSC — Rabindranath Tagore won the Nobel Prize for:
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Answer: A — Literature
Tagore won the 1913 Nobel Prize in Literature, chiefly for 'Gitanjali'.
QUICK CHECK
PYQ · SSC — C. V. Raman won the Nobel Prize in which category?
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Answer: B — Physics
C. V. Raman won the 1930 Nobel Prize in Physics for the Raman effect (scattering of light).
QUICK CHECK
PYQ · SSC — Amartya Sen won the Nobel Prize for:
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Answer: D — Economic Sciences
Amartya Sen won the 1998 Nobel in Economic Sciences for welfare economics.
QUICK CHECK
PYQ · SSC — Einstein was awarded the Nobel Prize for:
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Answer: B — The photoelectric effect
Einstein's 1921 Physics Nobel was for the photoelectric effect, not relativity.
QUICK CHECK
PYQ · SSC — Kailash Satyarthi won the Nobel Prize for:
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Answer: C — Peace
Kailash Satyarthi shared the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize with Malala Yousafzai for child rights.
Which award belongs to which field
The field-to-award pairs the exam loves.
| Award | Field |
|---|---|
| Dadasaheb Phalke Award | Indian cinema (highest) |
| Jnanpith Award | Literature (highest in India) |
| Pulitzer Prize | Journalism (and letters) |
| Dr. B. C. Roy Award | Medicine |
| Ramon Magsaysay Award | Public service ('Asia's Nobel') |
| Abel Prize / Fields Medal | Mathematics |
| Booker Prize | English-language fiction |
QUICK CHECK
PYQ · SSC — In which field is the B. C. Roy Award given?
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Answer: C — Medicine
The Dr. B. C. Roy Award is given in the field of medicine.
QUICK CHECK
PYQ · SSC — The Pulitzer Prize is given in the field of:
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Answer: A — Journalism
The Pulitzer Prize is the top US award for journalism (with categories in letters too).
QUICK CHECK
PYQ · SSC — Who was the first Indian to win an Oscar?
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Answer: B — Bhanu Athaiya
Costume designer Bhanu Athaiya was the first Indian Oscar winner (for 'Gandhi', 1983).
QUICK CHECK
PYQ · SSC — The first Indian to win the Booker Prize is:
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Answer: B — Arundhati Roy
Arundhati Roy won the 1997 Booker Prize for 'The God of Small Things'.
COMMON TRAPS
- Civilian order: Bharat Ratna > Padma Vibhushan > Padma Bhushan > Padma Shri (Vibhushan beats Bhushan).
- Gallantry: Param Vir Chakra is wartime; Ashoka Chakra is peacetime — don't swap.
- Einstein's Nobel was for the photoelectric effect, NOT relativity.
- Tagore (1913) = India's first Nobel (Literature); first woman Bharat Ratna = Indira Gandhi (1971).
- Dadasaheb Phalke = cinema; Jnanpith = literature; Pulitzer = journalism; B. C. Roy = medicine.
FLASHCARDS
Quick revision
- Highest civilian award
- Bharat Ratna
- Highest wartime gallantry
- Param Vir Chakra
- Highest peacetime gallantry
- Ashoka Chakra
- India's first Nobel
- Tagore, 1913, Literature
- Highest cinema award
- Dadasaheb Phalke Award
- Magsaysay Award
- 'Asia's Nobel' — public service
CHECK YOURSELF
Which is the highest literary award given in India? (a) Pulitzer (b) Booker (c) Jnanpith (d) Sahitya Akademi
Show answer
(c) Jnanpith. It is India's highest literary award; the Sahitya Akademi Award is a notch below, and Pulitzer/Booker are foreign.