Padma Bhushan Award 1992

1992 saw the largest of these years, with 33 Padma Bhushan recipients, just before a five-year gap in the award (1993-1997) caused by a constitutional challenge. Honorees included playwright-actor Girish Karnad, flautist Hariprasad Chaurasia, dancers Sonal Mansingh and Mrinalini Sarabhai, and activist Kisan Baburao "Anna" Hazare for social work. Space scientist Krishnaswamy Kasturirangan, later ISRO chairman, and Japanese businessman Goro Koyama, honored for Indo-Japanese trade, were also among the recipients, making 1992 unusually broad across science, culture and diplomacy.

The Padma Bhushan is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "distinguished service of a high order, without distinction of race, occupation, position or sex".