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''Bharat Ratna'' (translates to ''Jewel of India''1 or ''Gem of India''2 in English ) is India 's highest Civilian Award , awarded for the highest degrees of national service. This service includes artistic, literary, and scientific achievements, as well as "recognition of public service of the highest order."3 Unlike Knights , holders of the Bharat Ratna carry no special title nor any other honorifics, but they do have a place in the Indian Order Of Precedence . The award was established by the first President Of India , Rajendra Prasad , on January 2 , 1954 .4 Along with other major national honours, such as the Padma Vibhushan , Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri , the awarding of the Bharat Ratna was suspended from July 13 , 1977 to January 26 , 1980 . The honour has been awarded to forty persons, a list which includes two non-Indians an a naturalized Indian citizen. Originally, the specifications for the award called for a circular gold medal carrying the state emblem and motto, among other things. It is uncertain if a design in accordance with the original specifications was ever made. The actual award is designed in the shape of a pipal leaf and carries the Hindi-written words "Bharat Ratna" on the front. The reverse side of the medal carries the state emblem and motto. The award is attached to a two-inch long ribbon, and was designed to be worn around the recipient's neck. HISTORY ]] The order was established by Dr Rajendra Prasad , President Of India , on January 2 , 1954 . The original statutes of January 1954 did not make allowance for posthumous awards (and this perhaps explains why the decoration was never awarded to Mahatma Gandhi ), though this provision was added in the January 1955 statute. Subsequently, there have been ten posthumous awards, including the award to Subhash Chandra Bose in 1992, which was later withdrawn due to a legal technicality, the only case of an award being withdrawn. The award was briefly suspended from July 13 , 1977 to January 26 , 1980 . While there was no formal provision that recipients of the Bharat Ratna should be Indian citizens, this seems to have been the general assumption. There has been one award to a naturalized Indian citizen — Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu, better known as Mother Teresa (1980); and two to non-Indians — Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan (1987) and Nelson Mandela (1990). The awarding of this honour though, has frequently been the subject of litigation questioning the constitutional basis of such. SPECIFICATIONS The original specifications for the award called for a circular gold medal, 35 mm in diameter, with the sun and the Hindi legend "Bharat Ratna" above and a floral wreath below. The reverse was to carry the state emblem and motto. It was to be worn around the neck from a white ribbon. There is no indication that any specimens of this design were ever produced and one year later the design was altered. COMPLETE LIST OF THE AWARDEES NOTES EXTERNAL LINKS |
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