One of the most prestigious and reputable civilian awards in India, the Padma Bhushan Award was incepted in the year 1954 and is presented on a regular basis, since then. The award is presented by the Government of India to those people, who have earned a lot of recognition and reputation for showing extraordinary performances in their respective fields. The people from different fields from India and abroad can get the award. The year 1988 saw a total of 13 people winning the Padma Bhushan Award and all these awardees are considered as the stalwarts in their respective fields.
A detailed list of the 1988 Padma Bhushan Awardees is given below:
| Name | Field | State | Country |
| Akkineni Nageswar Rao | Arts | Andhra Pradesh | India |
| Kelu Charan Mohapatra | Arts | Orissa | India |
| Abid Hussain | Civil Service | Delhi | India |
| Bal Ram Nanda | Literature & Education | Delhi | India |
| Kartar Singh Duggal | Literature & Education | Delhi | India |
| Pratury Trirumala Rao | Medicine | Andhra Pradesh | India |
| Kushok Bakula | Public Affairs | Delhi | India |
| Renuka Ray | Public Affairs | West Bengal | India |
| Badanaval Venkata Sreekantan | Science & Engineering | Maharashtra | India |
| Ram Prakash Bambah | Science & Engineering | Chandigarh | India |
| Shrijans Prasad Jain | Social Work | Maharashtra | India |
| Col. Satya Pal Wahi | Trade & Industry | Uttar Pradesh | India |
| Ashok Sekhar Ganguly | Trade & Industry | Maharashtra | India |
