Bharat Ratna Unveiled: From Foreigners to Controversies, 10 Surprising Facts

• Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honor, was instituted on January 2, 1954, by Dr. Rajendra Prasad, recognizing extraordinary service in various fields.
• The award carries no cash prize but grants recipients VIP status, including lifelong free first-class travel on Air India and Indian Railways, and ranks them 7th in the Indian Table of Precedence.
• Foreigners like Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan and Nelson Mandela have received the award; Mother Teresa was a naturalized Indian citizen. Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose's posthumous award was uniquely withdrawn in 1992.
• The rule for posthumous awards was added in 1955; Lal Bahadur Shastri was the first recipient. Sachin Tendulkar is the youngest (40), and Dhondo Keshav Karve the oldest (100) recipient.
• In 2024, a historic 5 personalities (Karpoori Thakur, L.K. Advani, Chaudhary Charan Singh, P.V. Narasimha Rao, M.S. Swaminathan) were honored, breaking the usual limit of 3 per year.

Why It Matters: Bharat Ratna is India's top honor, rich in history, unique rules, and surprising facts, including foreign recipients and 2024's record.