Two Odias to get Kendriya Sahitya Akademi awards

Bhubaneswar: Odia writers Birendra Mohanty and Jayadratha Suna have been selected for the prestigious annual Kendriya Sahitya Akademi award 2018.

While Mohanty will be conferred with the 'Bal Sahitya Puraskar' for his anthology of poems titled ’Rumku Jhuma', Suna will receive the 'Yuva Puraskar' for his book of poetry 'Sosa'.

Elated over the news, Suna said "I love writing poetry for the deprived, backward and the oppressed. The award will inspire me to do better and voice the concerns of the people through my poetry."

Similarly, speaking on his achievement, Mohanty said "I am really proud that an Odia book made its way to the national level. It will go a long way in enriching the Odia language."

The Executive Board of the Sahitya Akademi which met today at Guwahati under the chairmanship of its president Dr Chandrasekhar Kambar approved selection of 23 writers including Mohanty for the Bal Sahitya Puraskar 2018, a press release by the academy stated.

The winner will be conferred with copper-plaque and a cheque of Rs 50,000 at a special function to be held on November 14, 2018.

The academy also announced its annual Yuva Puraskar in 22 languages today. Ten books of poetry, seven of short stories, three novels and a play have been selected for the prestigious award.

Kendriya Sahitya Akademi, nation's National Academy of Letters, annually confers on writers of the most outstanding books of literary merit published in any of the major Indian languages every year.