Eighty-eight-year-old retired Punjab cadre IPS officer Inderjit Singh Sidhu will receive the Padma Shri from President Droupadi Murmu at a civil investiture ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi, on June 23, formalising the honour announced for him in the social service category on Republic Day this year.Sidhu will be among 65 awardees to be recognised in this second ceremony. The first phase of the civil investiture ceremony was held on May 25, honouring 66 recipients. Notable figures scheduled to receive their honours on June 23 include Malayalam superstar Mammootty (Padma Bhushan) and actor-filmmaker R Madhavan (Padma Shri).Sidhu, who retired as Deputy Inspector General (DIG) from the Punjab Police in 1996, has earned nationwide admiration for his quiet yet powerful commitment to cleanliness in Chandigarh. Every morning at dawn, he steps out of his Sector 49 home to sweep streets and public spaces, often single-handedly collecting garbage and hauling it away in a cycle cart for proper disposal.Born on June 6, 1938, into a military family in Punjab’s Sangrur district, Sidhu joined the Punjab Police in 1961 and was decorated with the President’s Police Medal during his service. He moved to Chandigarh after retiring in 1996, and was struck that the city once feted as India’s best-planned was nowhere near the top of its cleanliness rankings. He began clearing litter from his neighbourhood alone, a routine that gradually consumed his daily walks entirely. “More time was dedicated to picking up trash, and less time for walking. Eventually, I completely stopped walking; only picking up litter remained the goal,” he said.Speaking to The Tribune, Sidhu traces his civic instinct to the teachings of Guru Nanak Dev. “The air is the Guru, water is the father, and the great earth is the mother. If someone spreads filth on their mother, there is no one worse than them,” he said, adding that littering ought to shame people far more than the act of cleaning does. “People do not feel ashamed while littering; instead, they feel ashamed while cleaning.”His son, Amoldeep Singh Sidhu, recalled that the habit predated his father’s cleanliness drive by decades. “When he used to attend weddings, people would drink from disposable cups and throw them away. He would tell them to pick them up and throw them in the dustbin, questioning why they were throwing them on the ground. This was his nature; he was like this from the very beginning,” he said.The elder Sidhu’s solitary clean-ups drew curiosity and even mockery in the early years, with neighbours and acquaintances baffled to see a retired DIG sweeping streets by hand. His son said the persistence quietly altered behaviour in the neighbourhood. “My friends, whenever they came to meet me, used to say, ‘If we weren’t living in your neighbourhood, we would have thrown trash right here. But now we feel that your father will have to pick it up, so we don’t throw it here.’ I have seen a visible change in their behaviour,” he said. Well-wishers offered him gloves, his son noted, but rarely a helping hand — something Sidhu took in his stride, treating the work as duty rather than spectacle.His selfless efforts drew wider attention after videos of him sweeping roads and pulling a cart full of waste went viral on social media, with Mahindra Group Chairman Anand Mahindra among those who hailed Sidhu as a symbol of purpose, discipline and service beyond age and official position. Sidhu said the Padma Shri itself triggered a visible shift among sceptics. According to his son, those who once questioned his father’s habit now express pride at the recognition. “When he the Padma Shri award was announced for him, the very same people who used to ask me, ‘Man, what is your father doing?’ — I saw a complete shift in their behaviour. I am truly proud of him,” Amoldeep shared with The Tribune.Punjab Governor and Chandigarh Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria earlier welcomed the Centre’s decision to honour Sidhu, calling it a fitting recognition of an extraordinary citizen’s spirit. “Inderjit Singh Sidhu has shown that service to society does not end with retirement or age. His dedication to cleanliness and civic responsibility is deeply inspiring and should be emulated by citizens across the country. Such individuals strengthen the moral fabric of our society,” Kataria had told The Tribune.Sidhu, for his part, continues to frame his mission as an open invitation rather than an individual feat. “I try to clean these streets, parks, and public places so that people can see that even at this age, a man is working with his bare hands. We should all join hands with this cause,” he said.The Padma Shri recognition places Sidhu among a diverse group of ordinary Indians making exceptional contributions in their own quiet ways. With the investiture now formally scheduled, Chandigarh’s “broom warrior” prepares to carry his city’s name to Rashtrapati Bhavan — a reminder, residents say, that lasting change often begins not with authority or slogans, but with personal example and unwavering commitment to the common good.