As many as two Odia writers have been selected for two different prestigious Kendra Sahitya Akademi awards for the year 2024. This was announced by the Kendra Sahitya Akademi after its executive body meeting held at Narmada in Gujarat on Saturday. The meeting was held under the Cnairmanship of its president Madhav Kaushik.
While Manas Ranjan Samal will receive the prestigious Kendra Sahitya Akademi Bal Sahitya Puraskar, Sanjay Kumar Panda will be conferred with the Sahitya Akademi Yuva Puraskar.
Samal has been selected for this prestigious award for his short stories book- 'Gapa Kalika'. Similarly, Panda has been selected for the award for his book- 'Hu Baia' which is also a collection of short stories in Odia.
The books were selected based on recommendations made by the jury comprising three members each in the concerned language as per the rules and procedures laid down for the purpose.
According to the procedure, the executive board declares the awards based on a unanimous or majority vote by the jury.
"Both of them are accomplished writers in their own fields. Their awards will go a long way in motivating and inspiring the whole community of Odia writers," said Chittaranjan Chiranjit, a member of the Odia advisory board of Kendra Sahitya Akademi.
"Both the writers have been selected for the awards after a rigorous selection process by a jury board of the Akademi. Their feats are really inspiring because they have been selected amid tough competition among several writers," he added.