HT Correspondent
SIVASAGAR, Dec 5: Noted short-story writer, former president of Asom Sahitya Sabha, and former DGP of the state, Kuladhar Saikia, was conferred the Lakshminath Bezbaruah Award, instituted by the Sivasagar District Students’ Union (SDSU), in a function held at the KPM Hall on Wednesday evening. The event witnessed the presence of a large number of distinguished guests, including AASU president Utpal Sharma.
Receiving the award, Saikia said that he had some hesitations when he was contacted for the honour, as it has become difficult to distinguish between a genuine award and a business bait nowadays. He remarked that speaking about a colossal figure like Lakshminath Bezbaruah requires a lot of preparation and emphasised that no future generation will be able to forget Bezbaruah’s contributions to Assamese literature and Assam. Saikia expressed his love for Sivasagar and its people, recalling his service in the district as an additional SP, during which he wrote a drama about Laluksula Borphukan. Saikia urged the new generation to read Lakshminath Bezbaruah’s works, particularly his humour and satire as expressed through the character Kripabor Barbaruah. The award includes a memento, a citation, and other gifts.
The award was presented to the recipient by Utpal Sharma, Arundhati Bezbaruah (from Lakshminath Bezbaruah’s family), Lakhikanta Mahanta, Dr Prakash Kotoky, Dr Sabyasachi Mahanta, Prema Gogoi, Sarat Hazarika, Samiran Phukan, Abhibartan Goswami, Anupjyoti Bhuyan, and Dipankar Saikia. The meeting was presided over by Manob Hazarika, president of SDSU.