GUWAHATI, Aug 8 � The prizes of the Gariyoshi Chandra Prasad Saikia Short Story Competition 2011 were presented to the winners on Wednesday at a function held at the auditorium of the Assam State Museum here.
The winners, Parag Kumar Deka (1st prize), Siddharth Goswami (2nd prize) and Sandeep Barman (3rd prize) were felicitated with a citation and Rs 5,000, Rs 2,500 and Rs 1,500 respectively.
Noted writer Dr Dinesh Chandra Goswami presented the prizes to the winners and called upon them to work hard to improve their writing skills further.
Dr Goswami�s speech which was laced with humour and wit, observed on the changes coming in the literary field and techniques of writing and cautioned that the writers should bear in mind their own societal ethos while experimenting with themes and presentation. He said that use of bombastic style, ridiculing a colloquial language, or excessive moralising would rob the intrinsic beauty of a short story. He also emphasised on the need of constructive criticism for the growth and flourishing of the genre of short story.
Renowned playwright Arun Sarma in his address to the gathering said that he felt privileged to have worked for a man like Chandra Prasad Saikia and described him as a hard taskmaster. �Because he kept pressing writers like us that we could contribute to the literary field. Saikia always encouraged young writers and I salute his style of working,� said Sarma recollecting that the literary stalwart also had a leaning towards theatre.
Earlier, floral tribute was paid before the portrait of Chandra Prasad Saikia and the welcome address was delivered by convenor of the competition Ankur Deka.
Dr Satyajit Bhuyan, who judged the competition, said that magazines and newspapers in the State have played a major role in popularising short story. He called upon the budding writers to concentrate in improving their language skill and to be innovative with themes.
On the other hand, editor of Gariyoshi Dr Lakhminandan Bora who presided over the function, said that it was rare to find editors like Chandra Prasad Saikia who was an institution in himself.
Observing on the genre of short story, Dr Bora expressed his dissatisfaction that the literary creations in the last decade failed to reflect the issues of social life.
�Experimentation in the field of literature is most welcome as it broadens the mental horizon, but it should be understandable to the readers,� said Dr Bora adding that to be a good writer it was important to know people and life. He advised the young writers to devote more time to reading and building relationship with people.
