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Hundreds of awards instituted by Indian Government and various ministries under central govt. for different category of achievement.

There is an order of precedence for awards as per their category. Here is the list with order of precedence as per available information as on date.

Also , see a brief about highest level civilian & military awards in subsequent pages.

Name of Award & Order of Precedence of the Awards

1. Bharat Ratna ( Highest Civilian Award of INDIA )
2. Param Vir Chakra ( Highest Wartime Military  Decoration of INDIA )
3. Ashoka Chakra  ( Highest Peacetime Military Decoration of INDIA )
4. Padma Vibhushan
5. Padma Bhushan
6. Sarvottam Yudh Seva Medal
7. Param Vishisht Seva Medal
8. Maha Vir Chakra
9.  Kirti Chakra
10. Padma Shri
11. Sarvottam Jeevan Raksha Padak
12. Uttam Yudh Seva Medal
13.  Ati Vishisht Seva Medal
14. Vir Chakra
15.Shaurya Chakra
16. President's Police and Fire Services Medal for Gallantry
17. President's Police Medal for Gallantry
18. President's Fire Services Medal for Gallantry 
19. President's Correctional Service Medal for Gallantry
20. President's Home Guards and Civil Defence Medal for Gallantry  
21. Yudh Seva Medal
22. Distinguished service and gallantry awards ( Sena Medal/ Nau Sena Medal /Vayu Sena Medal)
23. Vishisht Seva Medal
24. Police Medal for Gallantry
25. Fire Services Medal for Gallantry
26. Correctional Service Medal for Gallantry       
27. Home Guards and Civil Defence Medal for Gallantry
28. Uttam Jeevan Raksha Padak
29. Parakram Padak (Wound Medal)
30. General Service Medal – 1947
31. Samanya Seva Medal - 1965
32. Special Service Medal
33. Samar Seva Star-1965.
34. Poorvi Star
35.Paschimi Star
36. Operation Vijay Star Medal
37. Siachen Glacier Medal
38.  Raksha Medal – 1965
39. Sangram Medal
40.Operation Vijay Medal
41.Operation Parakram Medal
42.Sainya Seva Medal
43.High Altitude Medal
44.Police (Special Duty) Medal - 1962     
45.Videsh Seva Medal
46. President's Police and Fire Services Medal for Distinguished Service
47. President's Police Medal for Distinguished Service
48. President's Fire Services Medal for Distinguished Service      
49. President's Correctional Service Medal for Distinguished Service       
50. President's Home Guards and Civil Defence for Distinguished Service             
51. Meritorious Service Medal
52.Long Service and Good Conduct Medal
53. Police Medal for Meritorious Service              
54. Fire Services Medal for Meritorious Service 
55. Correction Service Medal for Meritorious Service     
56.Home Guards and Civil Defence Medal for Meritorious Service           
57. Jeevan Raksha Padak
58. Territorial Army Decoration
59.Territorial Army Medal
60.Indian Independence Medal-1947
61.Independence Medal - 1950
62. 50th Anniversary of Independence Medal
63. 25th Independence Anniversary Medal
64.30 Years Long Service Medal
65.20 Years Long Service Medal
66.9 Years Long Service Medal
67.Commonwealth Awards        
68.          Other Awards

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Highest Civilian Awards in India are awarded by Central Govt. to recognize the contribution and exceptional achievements  by any Indian Citizen in any fields/disciplines such as art, literature and education, sports, medicine, social work, science and engineering, public affairs, civil service, trade and industry, etc. and also without any distinction of race, religion, color, occupation, position or sex etc.

Below are Highest award names in civilian category.
1-BHARAT RATNA - Highest
2- PADMA AWARDS - 2nd Highest


This is regarded as highest civilian award in INDIA & Instituted in the year 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 confined to the arts, literature, science, and public services, as per the 1954 regulations but In December 2011, the rules were changed to include "any field of human endeavour".

The 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-leaf–shaped medallion and there is no known monetary grant associated with the award.[color=#000000]The awards are produced at Kolkata Mint.[/color]

The medal or decoration is in the form of a peepal leaf(Ficus religiosa), about 5.8 cm long, 4.7 cm wide and 3.1 mm thick. It is of toned bronze. On its obverse is embossed a replica of the sun, 1.6 cm in diameter, below which the words Bharat Ratna are embossed in Devanagari script.

On the reverse are State emblem and the motto  "Satyameva Jayate" (Truth alone triumphs), also in Devanagari. The emblem, the sun and the rim are made of platinum and the inscriptions are in burnished bronze.

Bharat Ratna recipients rank seventh ( 7A )in the Indian order of precedence. The Indian order of precedence has 26 ranks and starts with President of India at top.
They are treated as state guest honour within India . They are also entitled with free air India travel in India & abroad.They are provided with diplomatic passport means equivalent to top diplomats & top officials with special protocols & facilities. They are considered VVIP as per Indian standard across the globe for Indian Mission.

As on the year  of 2017,  the award has been bestowed upon 45 individuals, including 12 who were awarded posthumously.
 
Year Wise Recipient List upto 2017.

1954 –   C Rajagopalachari ,  Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan,  C. V. Raman     
1955   – Bhagwan Das , M. Visvesvaraya, Jawaharlal Nehru           
1957   - Pandit Govind Ballabh Pant
1958   -  Dhondo Keshav Karve
1961   - Bidhan Chandra Roy      , Purushottam Das Tandon           
1962   -  Rajendra Prasad
1963   - Zakir Husain, Pandurang Vaman Kane
1966   - Lal Bahadur Shastri cropped
1971   -Indira Gandhi         
1975   -V. V. Giri     
1976   -K. Kamaraj
1980   -MotherTeresa
1983   -Vinoba Bhave
1987   -Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan
1988   - M. G. Ramachandran
1990   - Dr. Bhim Rao Ambedkar,  Nelson Mandela
1991   - Rajiv Gandhi , Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Morarji Desai
1992   - Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, J.R.D. Tata , Satyajit Ray
1997   - Gulzarilal Nanda, Aruna Asaf Ali, A. P. J. Abdul Kalam
1998   - Ms subbulakshmi , Chidambaram Subramaniam
 1999  - Jayaprakash Narayan, Amartya Sen, Gopinath Bordoloi, Ravi Shankar
2001   - Lata Mangeshkar  , Bismillah Khan
2008   - Pandit Bhimsen Joshi
2014   - C. N. R. Rao, Sachin Tendulkar
2015   Madan Mohan Malaviya,  Atal Bihari Vajpayee




The Padma Awards are the next highest civilian honours of India announced annually on the eve of Republic Day.  This is Instituted in the year 1954. It has below 3 award category.

All persons without distinction of race, occupation, position or sex are eligible for these awards. However,  Government servants including those working with PSUs, except doctors and scientists, are not eligible for these Awards.
The awards are presented by the President of India usually in the month of March/April every year where the awardees are presented a Sanad (certificate) signed by the President and a medallion.

The recipients are also given a small replica of the medallion. All nominations received for Padma Awards are placed before the Padma Awards Committee, which is constituted by the Prime Minister every year. The Padma Awards Committee is headed by the Cabinet Secretary and includes Home Secretary, Secretary to the President and four to six eminent persons as members. The total number of awards to be given in a year (excluding posthumous awards and to NRI/foreigners/OCIs) should not be more than 120.

In 2017, Central Government of India decided to end the practice of ministers recommending names for Padma awards and replaced it with anyone recommending a person for Padma awards online.

 ( I )  Padma Vibhushan – This is for  "exceptional and distinguished service". & Regarded as second highest civilian award in India. This has been bestowed to 303 recipients as on 2018.

It looks as A centrally located lotus flower is embossed and the text "Padma" written in Devanagari script is placed above and the text "Vibhushan" is placed below the lotus. In reverse side , it looks as A platinum Emblem of India placed in the centre with the national motto of India, "Satyameva Jayate" (Truth alone triumphs) in Devanagari Script.

 ( II ) Padma Bhushan – This is for "distinguished service of a high order" and Regarded as third highest civilian award in India . It has been awarded to 1240 people as on 2018.

This medal looks as a  centrally located lotus flower is embossed and the text "Padma" written in Devanagari script is placed above and the text "Bhushan" is placed below the lotus. In  Reverse side, a platinum State Emblem of India placed in the centre with the national motto of India, "Satyameva Jayate" (Truth alone triumphs) in Devanagari Script.

( III ) Padma Shri – This is awarded for "distinguished service" and regarded as last and fourth highest civilian award in India. 2840 medals awarded upto the year 2017. On its obverse, the words "Padma", meaning lotus in Sanskrit, and "Shri", a Sanskrit-derived honorific equivalent to 'Mr.' or 'Ms.', appear in Devanagari above and below a lotus flower.

We discussed above about Highest Civil Award. There are many other civil awards are instituted by GOI for different categories & also included in order of precedence of Indian honour system. Below list is for Various well known ( mentioned in award order of precedence )   civil , civil defence & National Awards as per category. Below list is for information purpose and not maintained as per order of precedence. Some other well known award names are also mentioned.


Police / Civil Defence / Fire Services  Awards

1.       President's Police Medal for Gallantry
2.       President's Fire Services Medal for Gallantry
3.       President's Correctional Service Medal for Gallantry
4.       President's Home Guards and Civil Defence Medal for Gallantry
5.       Police Medal for Gallantry
6.       Fire Services Medal for Gallantry -  
7.       Correctional Service Medal for Gallantry
8.       Home Guards and Civil Defence Medal for Gallantry
9.       President's Police Medal for Distinguished Service
10.   President's Fire Services Medal for Distinguished Service
11.   President's Correctional Service Medal for Distinguished Service
12.   President's Home Guards and Civil Defence for Distinguished Service
13.   Police Medal for Meritorious Service
14.   Fire Services Medal for Meritorious Service
15.   Correction Service Medal for Meritorious Service
16.   Home Guards and Civil Defence Medal for Meritorious Service 
Bravery awards
1.       National Bravery Award
2.       Bharat Award
3.       Sanjay Chopra Award
4.       Geeta Chopra Award
5.       Kritin Bhardwaj
Jeevan Raksha Padak Series of Awards
1.       Sarvottam Jeevan Raksha Padak
2.       Uttam Jeevan Raksha Padak
3.       Jeevan Raksha Padak
National sports awards
1.       Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna
2.       Dronacharya award
3.       Arjuna award
4.       Dhyan Chand Award
5.       C.K. Nayudu Award
Women  Award
         Stree Shakti Puraskar
Children  Award
1.       National Bravery Awards
2.       National Child Award for Exceptional Achievement
3.       National Bal Shree Honour
Central Hindi Promotion Awards
1.       Ganga Sharan Award
2.       George Grierson Award
3.       Mahapandit Rahul Sankrityayan Award
4.       Moturi Satyanarayan Award
5.       Subramanya Bharathi Award
Leadership & International awards
1.       Gandhi Peace Prize awards
2.       Indira Gandhi Prize
3.       Tagore Award for Cultural Harmony
Literature awards
1.       Jnanpith Award - Highest literary honour Award in Literature of India
2.       Sahitya Akademi Award
3.       Sahitya Akademi Fellowship
4.       Bhasha Samman
5.       Translation Awards
6.       Anand Coomarswamy Fellowships
7.       Premchand Fellowship 
Cinema & Film awards
1.       Dadasaheb Phalke Award
2.       National Film Awards
Science & Technology awards
1.       Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize
2.       Kalinga Prize 
Medical award
Dr. B. C. Roy Award 
Other Arts awards
1.       Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship
2.        Sangeet Natak Akademi Award
3.       Lalit Kala Akademi Fellowship

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1.       WARTIME GALLANTRY AWARDS

(A) Param Vir Chakra,  ( B) Maha Vir Chakra ,  ( C ) Vir Chakra
These are highest Wartime Indian gallantry award presented for acts of bravery in the battlefield. Please see below a brief about them.


( PVC ) is the Highest military decoration, whether on land, at sea or in the air.
The award was established on 26 January 1950, with retroactive effect from 15 August 1947. As of November 2017, the medal has been awarded 21 times, of which 20 have been from the Indian Army, and 1 has been from the Indian Air Force.
The medal of the PVC was designed by Savitri Khanolkar, the wife of an Indian Army officer, Vikram Khanolkar of the Sikh Regiment.
The motif symbolizes the sacrifice of Rishi Dadhichi, who gave his bones to the gods to make the vajra to kill the demon Vritra. The medal is suspended from a straight swiveling suspension bar.
The Design
The medal is a circular bronze disc 1.375 inches (3.49 cm) in diameter. On the obverse, or front, the National Emblem appears in the center on a raised circle surrounded by four copies of the vajra, the mythical weapon of Indra, the ancient Vedic king of the gods. On the reverse, around a plain center, are two legends separated by lotus flowers. The words Param Vir Chakra are written in Hindi and English.A purple ribbon, 32 millimetres (1.3 in) long, holds the Param Vir Chakra.
Allowance
The award also carries a cash allowance for those under the rank of lieutenant (or the appropriate service equivalent), and in some cases a cash award. It  carries a monthly stipend of INR 10K.
 

The Maha Vir Chakra (MVC) is the second highest military decoration whether on land, at sea or in the air.
This award is Established by the President of India on 26 January 1950 (with effect from 15 August 1947). This award has been awarded to 218 recipients ( 73 –posthumous ) as on 2017 . The most number of medal are  awarded in Indo-Pak war of 1971.
Design
The medal is made of standard silver and is circular in shape. Embossed on the obverse is a five pointed heraldic star with circular center-piece bearing the gilded state emblem of India in the center. The words "Mahavira Chakra" are embossed in Devanagari and English on the reverse with two lotus flowers in the middle. The decoration is worn on the left chest with a half-white and half-orange riband about 3.2 cm in width, the orange being near the left shoulder.
Allowance - It  carries a monthly stipend of INR 5k and also, case to case basis cash rewards as per standard rule of India.


Third in precedence in the awards for wartime gallantry. 
Vir Chakra is an Indian gallantry award presented for acts of bravery in the battlefield.
This award is Established by the President of India on 26 January 1950 (with effect from 15 August 1947). This award has been awarded to 1322 recipients (361 –posthumous) as on 2017 .
 
Design
The medal is 1-3/8 inch circular silver medal. A five pointed star, with the chakra in the center, and, on this, the domed gilded state emblem. The decoration is named on the rim and suspended from a swiveling straight-bar suspender. The decoration is almost always named and dated on the edge. Around a plain center, two legends separated by lotus flowers; above Vir Chakra in Hindi and in English. The ribbon is 32 mm, half dark blue and half orange-saffron. Dark blue 16 mm, saffron 16 mm.
Allowance - It also carries  Allowance. Rs. 3500/- pm and cash reward as per standard rules & case basis .
 
2.       PEACETIME GALLANTRY AWARDS
Peacetime gallantry awards awarded for valour, courageous action or self-sacrifice away from the battlefield. 
(A) Ashok Chakra , (B)Kirti Chakra , ( C) Shaurya Chakra


It is the highest peacetime award & equivalent of the Param Vir Chakra.
The medal was originally established on 4 January 1952 as the "Ashoka Chakra, for non-combatant bravery decorations.
To date ( as on Nov 2017 ) , 83 people have been awarded the "Ashoka Chakra"
The Design
The design of this award is Circular gold gilt, 1-3/8 inches in diameter. In the center, the chakra (wheel) of Ashoka, surrounded by a lotus wreath and with an ornate edge. Suspended by a straight bar suspender. The medal is named on the edge. Reverse side is a Blank in the center, with "Ashoka Chakra" in Hindi along the upper edge on the medal and the same name in English along the lower rim. On either side is a lotus design. The center is blank. The Ribbon is 32 mm, dark green with a 2 mm central saffron stripe.
Allowance :-  It carries Monthly stipend of  INR 6k & Also in some cases cash rewards.


Second in order of precedence of peacetime gallantry awards.
Established as the "Ashoka Chakra, Class II" by the President of India, 4 January 1952 (with effect from 15 August 1947). The statutes were revised and the decoration renamed on 27 January 1967.
The Kirti Chakra is an Indian military decoration awarded for valour, courageous action or self-sacrifice away from the field of battle. It may be awarded to civilians as well as military personnel, including posthumous awards. It is the peacetime equivalent of the Maha Vir Chakra.
453 recipients ( 198 – posthumous) has been awarded till 2017 for their valour & courageous action.
Design:-
It is circular in shape and is made of standard silver, one and three eight inches in diameter. On the obverse of the medal shall be embossed a replica of Ashoka Chakra in the centre, surrounded by a lotus wreath. On its reverse shall be embossed the words KIRTI CHAKRA both in Hindi and in English the versions being separated by two lotus flowers. Reverse side  For pre-1967 awards, the medal is blank in the centre, with "Ashoka Chakra" in Hindi along the upper edge on the medal and the same name in English along the lower rim, "ASHOKA CHAKRA". On either side is a lotus design. The centre is blank.
Ribbon is a  30 mm, dark green with two 2 mm saffron stripes. Dark green 8.5 mm, saffron 2 mm, dark green 9 mm, saffron 2 mm, dark green 8.5 mm.
 
Allowance- It also carries  Allowance. Rs. 4050/- pm and each bar to the decoration . In some cases , cash reward is also given as per standard rule & norms.
 

Third in order of precedence of peacetime gallantry awards.
Established as the "Ashoka Chakra, Class III" by the President of India, 4 January 1952 (with effect from 15 August 1947). The statutes were revised and the decoration renamed on 27 January 1967.
It is the peacetime equivalent of the Vir Chakra. It is generally awarded for Counter-Insurgency operations and actions against the enemy during peace-time.
Design
It is  Circular bronze, 1-3/8 inches in diameter. In the centre, the chakra (wheel) of Ashoka, surrounded by a lotus wreath and with an ornate edge. Suspended by a straight bar suspender. The medal is named on the edge. On Reverse side,  The centre is blank. Written as "Shauryua Chakra" in Hindi above and "SHAURYA CHAKRA" in English below.
The Ribbon is a 30 mm, dark green with three 2 mm orange stripes. Dark green 6 mm, orange 2 mm, dark green 6 mm, orange 2 mm, dark green 6 mm, orange 2 mm, dark green 6 mm.
Allowance- The central government set a monthly stipend of Rs. 3000 for recipients of the award & also various states provides different awards as per rule. Also it carries some cash reward as per standard rule of India.

See below all Military awards as per available valid resources as on date.



1.       WARTIME GALLANTRY AWARDS
a.       Param Vir Chakra — ( PVC ) is the Highest military decoration.
b.      Maha Vir Chakra – The Maha Vir Chakra (MVC) is the second highest military decoration.
c.       Vir Chakra – Third in precedence in the awards for wartime gallantry.

2.       PEACETIME GALLANTRY AWARDS
a.[size=1]      [/size]Ashok Chakra – It is the highest peacetime award.
b.[size=1]      [/size]Kirti Chakra – Second in order of precedence of peacetime gallantry awards.
c.[size=1]       [/size]Shaurya Chakra – Third in order of precedence of peacetime gallantry awards.

3.       Distinguished service and gallantry awards
a)      Sena Medal (Army) (SM)
b)      Nausena Medal (Navy) (NM)
c)       Vayusena Medal (Air Force )  ( VM )

4.       Wartime Distinguished Service
a)      Sarvottam Yudh Seva Medal
b)      Uttam Yudh Seva Medal
c)       Yudh Seva Medal

5.       Peacetime Distinguished Service
a)      Param Vishisht Seva Medal
b)      Ati Vishisht Seva Medal ribbon
c)       Vishisht Seva Medal

6.       Service and   campaign medals

a)      Wound Medal (Parakram Padak)
b)      General Service Medal 1947
c)       Samanya Seva Medal
d)      Special Service Medal
e)      Samar Seva Star
f)       Poorvi Star
g)      Paschimi Star
h)      Operation Vijay Star
i)        Siachen Glacier Medal
j)        Raksha Medal
k)      Sangram Medal
l)        Operation Vijay Medal
m)    Operation Parakram Medal
n)      Sainya Seva Medal
o)      High Altitude Service Medal
p)      Videsh Seva Medal

7.       Long Service Awards
a)      Meritorious Service Medal
b)      Long Service and Good Conduct Medal
c)       30 Years Long Service Medal
d)      20 Years Long Service Medal
e)      9 Years Long Service Medal
f)       Territorial Army Decoration
g)      Territorial Army Medal

8.       Independence medals
a)      Indian Independence Medal
b)      50th Independence Anniversary Medal
c)       25th Independence Anniversary Medal 

9.       Other Military Award
a)      Mention in Dispatches
b)      Commendation Card