Choosing Betul
Mohan Nagar’s work brings together water, the environment, tribal education and community mobilisation. His official 2026 Padma profile records him as someone who has done grassroots environmental and educational work in the tribal areas of Madhya Pradesh.
He was born on 23 February 1968 in Raipuria village, Rajgarh district. After an MA in Political Science, around 1991 he began working on tribal welfare and education in the Betul region.
From hilltop to river
His programmes have included awareness yatras, nutrition and vegetable growing, contour trenches, plantation and work on river catchments. The official profile records initiatives such as the Gangavataran Abhiyan of 2016–17, treatment of the Sonaghati hills and the rejuvenation of the Machna river in 2021.
People as the engine
He has linked these projects to shramdaan, voluntary community labour, and to local institutions. Restoring a catchment is a process that covers a whole landscape, and mobilising a community can matter as much as the engineering.
The Padma Shri in 2026 recognises his environmental work together with his long engagement with tribal communities.
Sources
- PIB / Padma Awards 2026: official citations
- Padma Awards 2026: official list
- DD: public video
- static.pib.gov.in/WriteReadData/specificdocs/documents/2026/jun/doc2026623901101.pdf
- padmaawards.gov.in/Document/pdf/notifications/PadmaAwards/PadmaAwards2026.pdf
- youtube.com/watch?v=6m8jdJ1v5y8