Bharat RatnaFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaBharat RatnaBharat Ratna.jpgType CivilianCategory NationalDescription An image of the Sun along with the words "Bharat Ratna", inscribed in Devanagari script, on a peepul leafInstituted 1954First awarded 1954Last awarded 2014Total awarded 45Awarded by Government of IndiaRibbonBharat Ratna Ribbon.svgFirst awardee(s)C. RajagopalachariSarvepalli RadhakrishnanC. V. RamanRecent awardee(s)Madan Mohan Malaviya (Posthumous)Atal Bihari VajpayeeBharat Ratna (Hindi: , Hindi pronunciation: [b a r r n]; Jewel of India)[1] is the highest t t t tcivilian award of the Republic of India. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conferred "in recognition of exceptional service/performance of the highest order", without distinction of race, occupation, position, or sex. The award was originally limited to achievements in the arts, literature,science and public services but the government expanded the criteria to include "any field of humanendeavour" in December 2011. Recommendations for the Bharat Ratna are made by the Prime Minister to the President, with a maximum of three nominees being awarded per year. Recipients receive a Sanad (certificate) signed by the President and a peepal-leafshaped medallion; there is nomonetary grant associated with the award. Bharat Ratna recipients rank seventh in the Indian order of precedence, but are constitutionally prohibited from using the award name as a title.

The first recipients of the Bharat Ratna were politician C. Rajagopalachari, scientist C. V. Raman and philosopher Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, who were honoured in 1954. Since then, the award has been bestowed on 45 individuals including 11 who were awarded posthumously. The original statutes did not provide for posthumous awards but were amended in January 1955 to permit them. In 1966, former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri became the first individual to be honoured posthumously. In 2013, cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, aged 40, became the youngest recipient while social reformer Dhondo Keshav Karve was awarded on his 100th birthday. Though usually conferred on Indian citizens, the Bharat Ratna has been awarded to one naturalised citizen, Mother Teresa in 1980, and to two non-Indians, Pakistan national Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan in 1987 and former South African President Nelson Mandela in 1990. Most recently, Indian government has announced the award to freedom fighter Madan Mohan Malaviya (posthumously) and former PrimeMinister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on 24 December 2014.