The first Akshaya Upanayasa Puraskar, instituted by the Pratibha Ray Foundation Trust, was conferred on writer Swagatika Swain for her novel “Drohakala” in a ceremony at the Jayadev Bhawan here.
The award is instituted in memory of eminent engineer Akshaya Chandra Ray, founder of publishing house Adya Prakashani.
Trust vice-president Dr Adyasha Das informed that the award function coincided with the forty-seventh birth anniversary of Adya Prakashani. The award included a cash prize of Rs 51,000, a citation and a memento.
Chief guest Niranjan Rath said it is a blessing to receive an award instituted by the trust of Jnanpith laureate Pratibha Ray. Guest of honour BB Mishra, writer and ex-Director General of Police, praised the endeavour of the trust to create this opportunity for young writers. Engineer Pravakar Swain elaborated the life and achievements of Akshaya Chandra Ray. Dr Basant Panda discussed the significance of “Drohakala”.
Lalit Das, Additional DG of Police and patron of the trust, explained the plans of the trust for the promotion of Odia literature.
Eminent writer Dr Pratibha Ray, president of the trust, stated that the trust conceived of this award to recognise young writers and encourage more such talents in the field of novel writing in Odia.
Banoj Tripathy, Pakshighar Prakashani, publisher of “Drohakala”, Ohio-based Satya Pattanayak, publisher of Black Eagle Books, USA, Padma Shri Damayanti Besra and Tapas Rout were felicitated for their contributions in respective fields.