Shrestha to be awarded in Hetauda

BY A STAFF REPORTER,Kathmandu, May 22: Sahitya Sangam Makwanpur has announced to honour eight literary figures. 

According to a press statement issued by the organisation’s president, D.B. Bartoula, various honours will be conferred during the Sangam Sahitya Utsav and the 355th regular Sahitya Sandhya to be held on Saturday (May 25).

The Sahitya Sangam Makwanpur Kriti Samman for the year 2080/81 will be awarded to poet Avaya Shrestha for his poetry collection 'Lahana ra Teer'. The organisation has recognised the book as the best among all Nepali poetry collections published throughout 2081/82 BS. The book is published by Book Hill, Kathmandu. The award, established by Dr. Keshav Shrestha ‘Jyoti’, carries a purse of Rs.25, 001.

Similarly, the Makwanpur Sahitya Samman for 2081 B.S. will be awarded to Makwanpur based writer Rajkumar Lamichhane. The Bhesnath Adhikari Memorial Chhanda Samman will be conferred on Tika Atreya, while the Binod Sunita Subedi Samman will go to journalist Ramkumar Elan. Other honours include the Deepak Mudbhari Memorial Samman for Sameer Pakhrin, the Mangala Devi Memorial Samman for Boby Thapa, the Muktitara Samman for poet Yash Lama, and the Ramhari Devu Samman for Masan Upasak.

The Makwanpur Sahitya Samman, established by the then District Development Committee of Makwanpur, and the Bhesnath Adhikari Memorial Chhanda Samman, instituted by Bishal Adhikari ‘Ashutosh’, both carry a cash prize of Rs. 15,555.

The Binod Sunita Subedi Samman, founded by Binod Subedi, carries a prize of Rs. 11,111. The Deepak Mudbhari Memorial Samman (founded by the Mudbhari family), the Mangala Devi Memorial Samman (established by educationist Dev Prasad Shrestha), the Muktitara Samman (by Muktigovinda Baidya), and the Ramhari Devu Samman (by Rishi KB and Punyashila Shrestha) each carry a purse of Rs. 10,000.

The literary festival will also include poetry recitations by the honoured guests and two panel discussions. The debate titled 'Poetry: A Reflection of the Era' will feature Avaya Shrestha, Tika Atreya, and Ghanshyam Ghimire as the speakers, with Shanti Priyavandana as the moderator and Nimesh Nikhil as the session guardian.

Another discussion, 'Dreams and Possibilities: New Generations in Creative Writing', will involve Sampras Paudel, Pratima Dangol, and Kritika Laudari, with Chhabi Anitya as moderator and Deepak Gautam as the session guardian.

President Bartoula also stated that the event is being organised with the promotion of Hetauda Sub-Metropolitan City, aiming to extend Nepali literature, art, and culture to the international field.