New Delhi, May 25 -- Veteran hockey coach Baldev Singh and renowned Silambam exponent K. Pajanivel were conferred with the Padma Shri by President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhawan on Monday in recognition of their outstanding contribution to sports and traditional martial arts.

Baldev Singh, regarded as one of the pioneering figures in Indian women's hockey, played a transformative role in developing Shahabad Markanda in Haryana into a prominent nursery for women's hockey talent.

Over the past two decades, the academy under his guidance has produced more than 80 international players, including eight who went on to captain the Indian women's hockey team.

Several prominent players, including former India captain Rani Rampal, former ...