Patiala, 09 October 2024: The Department of Languages, Government of Punjab, has announced 11 Best Literary Book Awards under its annual program recognizing outstanding works in Hindi, Sanskrit, and Urdu.
The awards will be presented at the state-level closing ceremony of Punjabi Month in November 2024, held at Bhasha Bhawan, Patiala. According to Jaswant Singh Zafar, Director of the Language Department, the awards are based on books published in 2022 and 2023, evaluated by experts in the respective languages.
Each winner will receive prize money, a plaque, and a shawl. Among the winners in the Hindi category for 2023, Amarjit Konke’s Akash Ke Panne Par won the Giani Sant Singh Award (Poetry), Yashpal Sharma’s Basanti Lot I Hai received the Sudarshan Award (Novel/Story), and Dr. Darshan Tripathi’s Aur Shaman Jalti Rahi earned the Mohan Rakesh Award (Drama/Solo).
In the biography category, Veena Vij’s Chut-Put Afsane took home the Giani Gyan Singh Award, while the Children’s Literature Award went to Sukriti Bhatnagar’s Drohar. In Sanskrit, Dr. Sarla Bhardwaj’s Sanskrit Sahitya Mein Molik Mulya Avum Rashtriya Chetna won the 2022 Kalidas Award, and Mohan Lal Sharma’s Kechan Bharatiya Scientist was recognized for 2023.
For Urdu, Malkit Singh Machhana’s Jambeel-e-Rang earned the Rajinder Singh Bedi Award (Novel/Story/Drama), while the Sahir Ludhianvi Award (Nazam) went to Dr. Shashikant Uppal’s Roshni Ka Safar. Additional awards included Dr. Imrana Khatun’s Urdu Rubai Mein Insani Akhdar Ki Thakoh and Muhammad Basheer Malerkotalvi’s Azkar (Khake).
Zafar added that the remaining awards will be announced soon and congratulated the winners for their contributions to literature.
