Which national award is specifically meant to recognise distinguished service of a high order rendered to the nation?

Introduction / Context:
This question focuses on the exact wording used in the description of Indian national awards. Examinations often ask candidates to distinguish between similar phrases like exceptional and distinguished service and distinguished service of a high order. Knowing which phrase belongs to which award helps to correctly interpret official notifications and to answer static general knowledge questions regarding honours and decorations.

Given Data / Assumptions:

- The question asks about distinguished service of a high order to the nation.
- The context is national level awards of India.
- The options include Bharat Ratna and the two highest grades of Padma awards, along with a general term gallantry award and a gallantry decoration.
- We assume the standard official definitions of these awards as issued by the Government of India.

Concept / Approach:
The key to answering is to match the exact phrase in the question with the official description. Bharat Ratna is for exceptional service or performance of the highest order in any field of human endeavour. Padma Vibhushan is for exceptional and distinguished service. Padma Bhushan is for distinguished service of a high order, and Padma Shri is for distinguished service in any field. By remembering this mapping, we can directly match the phrase distinguished service of a high order with Padma Bhushan. Gallantry awards relate to bravery in military or police actions and do not use this wording about service of a high order to the nation in general fields.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Identify the key phrase in the question, which is distinguished service of a high order rendered to the nation. Step 2: Recall the standard descriptions of the major civilian awards: Bharat Ratna, Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan, and Padma Shri. Step 3: Match the phrase to the correct description, which tells us that Padma Bhushan is given for distinguished service of a high order. Step 4: Eliminate other options that either belong to a different category, such as gallantry, or use different qualifying phrases like exceptional and distinguished service or highest order.

Verification / Alternative check:
We can verify by consulting standard summaries, which state that Padma Bhushan is the third highest civilian award of India and is awarded for distinguished service of a high order in any field, including service rendered by government servants. Padma Vibhushan on the other hand is for exceptional and distinguished service, and Bharat Ratna is for exceptional service or performance of the highest order. This clear alignment of wording confirms that Padma Bhushan is the award mentioned in the question stem.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Param Vir Chakra is India highest wartime gallantry award and has nothing to do with general service to the nation in civilian fields, so it does not match the phrase in the question.
Padma Vibhushan is a higher civilian award but its description uses the phrase exceptional and distinguished service, not distinguished service of a high order.
Bharat Ratna is the top civilian honour for exceptional service or performance of the highest order, which is again different in wording from the phrase used in the question.
Gallantry Award is a generic term and not the specific name of any one civilian award that uses the phrase distinguished service of a high order.

Common Pitfalls:
Students often mix up Padma Vibhushan and Padma Bhushan because both involve distinguished service, and they may not recall the exact adjectives used. Another common mistake is to think that the phrase high order must refer to Bharat Ratna because it is the highest, but the official wording for Bharat Ratna is slightly different. Confusing gallantry awards with civilian awards is also a frequent error when candidates focus only on the idea of service to the nation. Memorising the short one line definition of each major award helps avoid these errors.

Final Answer:
The national award meant to recognise distinguished service of a high order rendered to the nation is the Padma Bhushan.