Poets from 30 districts grace Damauli literary conference

By Amar Raj Naharki,Tanahun, June 11: The days are extremely hot and the expansion of the Prithvi Highway has made the travel to Tanahun’s Damauli tiresome. However, despite the scorching heat and dusty highway, poets from 30 districts attended the second literary conference organised by the Gandaki Literature Academy and sponsored by Vyas Municipality.

The two-day literary conference, organised on June 9 and 10, was the second edition organised over a gap of 29 years. 

The Academy, which is also known as Gandaki Wangmaya Pratisthan, had planned the second edition three years ago, but the schedule was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The joyful participation in the conference shows that a similar conference is a need of the hour to foster greater activity and responsibility in the fields of art, literature, culture, and tourism. Concerned authorities should organise such conferences occasionally without fail,” said Sagar Udas, Chairman of the Gandaki Literature Academy, Tanahun.

The conference was inaugurated jointly by former Chancellor of the Nepal Academy of Music and Drama and senior writer Sarubhakta alongside Vyas Municipality Mayor Baikuntha Neupane.

“Literature in Nepal should have expanded to new genres after the change in the political system and freedom by now. However, writers are still bound to prioritise corruption and tyranny in their writings,” said Sarubhakta. The literary conference also featured a national-level poetry competition in which 237 poems were received. Of them, 65 were selected as the best ones with Siraha’s Abinash Bhattarai’s “Jindagi Euta Patrika Ho” (Life is a newspaper) in 

the first position. 

Similarly, Sankhuwasabha’s Sijan Shrestha’s “Panhelo Naksha” (Yellow map) and Jhapa’s Keshav Bhattarai’s “Apekshya” (expectation) grabbed the second and third positions respectively.

The winner of the poem competition was presented with a cash prize of Rs. 55,000, and the second, third and consolation winners will receive cash prizes of Rs. 40,000, Rs. 25,000 and Rs. 10,000 respectively.

Rautahat’s Manoj Bishwakarma’s “Ishwor Kalpa”, Chitwan’s Sirjan Abiral’s “Gaunma Aama”, Morang’s Puja Aradhana’s “Chaubato ra jindagi”, Gorkha’s Bharatbabu Dhakal’s “Nari Mukti Awahan” and Sindhupalchowk’s “Sundar Shirish” titled poem received consolation prizes.

The conference also honoured Narayan Prasad Gautam, assistant professor at the Adikabi Bhanubhakta Campus, with the “Gandaki Literature Award 2079” for his contribution to Nepali literature.

The Academy also released a memoir that included the 67 selected poems.