What is the highest civilian honour received by Indian tennis star Sania Mirza?

Introduction / Context:
Sania Mirza is one of India's most successful tennis players, with multiple Grand Slam titles and long years of service to Indian sport. Over time she has received several national honours, including sporting awards and civilian decorations. This question focuses on her highest civilian honour, which is an important detail for sports and honours related general knowledge questions.

Given Data / Assumptions:
- The question asks specifically for the highest civilian honour received by Sania Mirza. - The options include different levels of Padma awards and one sports award. - Bharat Ratna is the highest civilian honour in India overall, but very few people have received it. - Sania Mirza is known to have received multiple awards over her career. - We assume standard Government of India honours lists as the factual reference.

Concept / Approach:
India has a hierarchy of civilian honours: Bharat Ratna at the top, followed by Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri. Sports persons may also receive Arjuna Awards and other sports specific honours. The approach is to recall which level of Padma award Sania Mirza has received most recently and to compare that level with the other options. She was first given the Padma Shri and later elevated to the Padma Bhushan, making Padma Bhushan her highest civilian honour.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Recall that Sania Mirza received the Arjuna Award earlier in her career as a recognition of her sporting achievements. Step 2: Remember that she was also honoured with the Padma Shri, which is the entry level national civilian award. Step 3: In a later round of honours, she was conferred the Padma Bhushan, which is a higher ranking civilian award than Padma Shri. Step 4: There is no official record of Sania Mirza receiving either Padma Vibhushan or Bharat Ratna, which are reserved for a very small number of individuals. Step 5: Among the given options, Padma Bhushan is therefore the highest civilian honour that she has actually received.

Verification / Alternative check:
A simple verification is to recall that many sports based current affairs notes explicitly describe Sania Mirza as a Padma Bhushan awardee. These notes often mention the sequence of honours: Arjuna Award, Padma Shri, Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna and then Padma Bhushan. Bharat Ratna and Padma Vibhushan would have received very wide media coverage if she had been selected, which has not happened. This cross check confirms that Padma Bhushan is the correct and highest civilian honour in her case.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option A (Padma Shri) is wrong as the answer because although Sania Mirza received this award, she has since been honoured with the higher Padma Bhushan. Option C (Padma Vibhushan) is wrong because this higher level award has not been conferred on her. Option D (Bharat Ratna) is wrong because no sportsperson from tennis has received Bharat Ratna and Sania Mirza is not on that list. Option E (Arjuna Award) is wrong because it is a sports award rather than a civilian honour, and it is not at the same level as the Padma awards.

Common Pitfalls:
Many candidates confuse sports awards such as the Arjuna Award or Khel Ratna with civilian honours like the Padma series. Another common mistake is to guess the highest sounding award like Bharat Ratna or Padma Vibhushan without verifying whether the person is actually on the official list of recipients. Some learners also remember that she received a Padma award but forget whether it was Padma Shri or Padma Bhushan. To avoid such confusion, it is helpful to memorise the chronological order of major awards received by leading sportspersons.

Final Answer:
The highest civilian honour received by Sania Mirza is the Padma Bhushan.