Uday Kotak Awarded Padma Bhushan; Khade, Nuwal Get Padma Shri

For the year 2026, the President has approved conferment of 131 Padma Awards. The list comprises 5 Padma Vibhushan, 13 Padma Bhushan and 113 Padma Shri Awards.

Uday Kotak, Founder & Director, Kotak Mahindra Bank

FinTech BizNews Service

Mumbai, 25 January 2026: For the year 2026, the President of India has approved conferment of 131 Padma Awards including 2 duo cases (in a duo case, the Award is counted as one) as per list below. The list comprises 5 Padma Vibhushan, 13 Padma Bhushan and 113 Padma Shri Awards. 19 of the awardees are women and the list also includes 6 persons from the category of Foreigners / NRI / PIO / OCI and 16 Posthumous awardees.

While Shri Uday Kotak hase been awarded Padma Bhushan; Shri Ashok Khade and Shri Satyanarayan Nuwal have been awarded Padma Shri Awards for their significant contributions to Trade and Industry.

Padma Awards - one of the highest civilian Awards of the country, are conferred in three categories, namely, Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri. The Awards are given in various disciplines / fields of activities, viz.- art, social work, public affairs, science and engineering, trade and industry, medicine, literature and education, sports, civil service, etc. ‘Padma Vibhushan’ is awarded for exceptional and distinguished service; ‘Padma Bhushan’ for distinguished service of high order and ‘Padma Shri’ for distinguished service in any field. The awards are announced on the occasion of Republic Day every year.

These Awards are conferred by the President of India at ceremonial functions which are held at Rashtrapati Bhawan usually around March / April every year. 

Mr Uday Kotak is the Founder & Director of Kotak Mahindra Bank. From launching Kotak Mahindra Finance Ltd. in 1985 to becoming one of the country’s most trusted financial institutions today, it’s been quite a journey. 

Mr Uday Kotak has played an important role in the growth of the Kotak Mahindra group over the past 38 years. Under his leadership, the Kotak Mahindra group has emerged as one of India’s leading diversified and integrated financial services conglomerates, providing a range of financial solutions covering banking, asset management, alternate asset management, life and general insurance stock broking, investment banking, private banking, microfinance and asset reconstruction. Mr. Kotak has always believed that the true measure of performance is sustainable value creation. This is also reflected in the Kotak Mahindra Bank’s growth where an investment of Rs 10,000 in 1985 would be worth around Rs300 crore today.

Mr Ashok Khade is an Indian entrepreneur and the managing director of DAS Offshore Engineering Private Limited, with a turnover of over Rs500 crore. The company that provides services to the offshore oil and gas industry. He is noted for rising from a background of poverty as a member of a Dalit family to establish a major engineering firm. His journey began with just Rs90/month as a dockyard trainee. He got trained in ship designing, and later pursued a Diploma in Mechanical Engineering —while continuing his job.

Mr Satyanarayan Nandlal Nuwal (born July 25, 1952) is an Indian billionaire industrialist and the founder-chairman of Solar Industries India Limited, a leading global manufacturer of industrial explosives and defense ammunition. ounded in 1995 in Nagpur, the company has grown from a small trading unit into a global powerhouse operating in over 65 countries.

Satyanarayan Nandlal Nuwal

Defense Leadership: Under his guidance, Solar Group became the first private company in India to receive a license for manufacturing explosives for the Indian Army. It produces advanced weaponry, including the Nagastra loitering munition and anti-drone systems.

Net Worth: As of early 2026, his net worth is estimated at approximately Rs50,000 to Rs67,500 crore ($5.6 billion+), making him the wealthiest individual in Nagpur.

Mr Uday Kotak has played an important role in defining and developing India’s banking & financial sector over three decades. Mr. Kotak leads several key bodies and is currently Co-Chairman of the Indo-UK Financial Partnership (IUKFP) and Chairman of the Insolvency & Bankruptcy Board of India’s advisory committee on Corporate Insolvency and Liquidation. He is on the International Advisory Panel of Monetary Authority of Singapore, the International Advisory Board of the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation. He was President of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) from June 2020 until May 2021. From October 2018 to April 2022, Mr. Kotak also served as Non-Executive Chairman of a specially constituted board of IL&FS (a state-funded non-banking financial company) by the Government of India to steer IL&FS out of a deep crisis, which he served as his national duty. In 2017, a Committee on Corporate Governance constituted by SEBI under the leadership of Mr. Kotak recommended sweeping changes towards more robust and transparent corporate governance.

Mr. Kotak has been a recipient of the ‘Ernst & Young World Entrepreneur of the Year Award’ in 2014, ‘Economic Times Business Leader of the Year Award’ in 2015, ‘Businessman of the Year 2016’ by Business India, ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ at Financial Express’ Best Banks’ Awards 2016, ‘USIBC Global Leadership Award’ at the 2018 India Ideas Summit organised by the U.S.-India Business Council, ‘Life Time Achievement Award’ at Magna Awards 2019 by Businessworld, ‘Best CEO in Banking Sector’ by the Business Today Best CEO Awards 2019 and ‘India Business Leader of the Year’ by CNBC-TV18 at the India Business Leader Awards 2021.

Mr. Kotak also has a vision for equitable prosperity that extends beyond financial services. The Kotak Education Foundation (KEF), a philanthropic trust founded by Mr. Kotak, works with some of India’s most economically underprivileged communities, attempting to alleviate poverty through education and livelihood programmes.

For the year 2026, the list of the Padma Awardees is as follows:

Padma Vibhushan (5)

Padma Bhushan (13)

Padma Shri (113)