GUWAHATI, Feb 20 - Eminent poet and literary critic Hirendra Nath Dutta, retired Prof of English of the Gauhati University, passed away at the GNRC Hospital in the wee hours today.
He was 79. Dutta was admitted to the hospital following a head injury he had suffered after an accidental fall at his residence on February 3. He was also operated upon. His demise came at 3.30 am today, hospital sources said.
Born at Titabor in Jorhat district in 1937, Dutta had to his credit several collections of poems � Somadhir Sowarani Aru Annyanya Kavita (1981), Manuha Anukule (2000) and Pal Anupalar Anch (2007) being some of those. He had two collections of critical essays � Nirbasita Xomalosana (2011) and Mor Prabandha (2014). He also edited an anthology of Assamese poetry � One Hundred Years of Assamese Poetry (2007).
After finishing his school from Mihiram Saikia High School, Titabor, Dutta completed his Intermediate Science exam from Cotton College in 1954 and then did his BA in English from the same college in 1956. He obtained his Master�s degree in English Literature from the University of Calcutta in 1958. He joined JB College of Jorhat as a lecturer in the Dept of English in 1959 and in the same year joined the Gauhati University as a lecturer in English. He served as a Reader in the Dept of English there before retiring in 1997.
Dutta�s poetry is marked by unusual and impressive imagery, density of form and his own characteristic poetic diction that manages to project the tremor and confusions of his times without being cynical.
Recipient of Sahitya Akademi Award in 2004, Padmanath Vidya Vinod Smriti Sahitya Puraskar in 2013, and Assam Valley Literary Award in 2015, Dutta participated in the Kabi Bharati Poets� Conference at Bhopal in 1987 and several poets� conferences held in New Delhi, Bangalore and Calcutta organized by the Sahitya Akademi.
He was elected president of Kabi Sanmilan of Asam Sahitya Sabha�s Doomdooma session in 1989. He also attended the World Poetry Conference held in Madras in 1976.
Condolences: Meanwhile, the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee, the BJP and the CPI(M) have condoled Dutta�s death.
In a statement, the APCC said Dutta�s literary contributions would remain immortal even as his death created an intellectual void in the State.
Sarbananda Sonowal, president of the State unit of BJP, expressed deep sorrow at the demise of the celebrated poet. In a condolence message, Sonowal recalled the contributions of Dutta and extended deepest condolences to the members of the bereaved family.
The CPI(M), in its condolence message, termed Dutta as a great humanist whose literary works shone with the brilliance of his creativity and upheld the values of democracy and pluralism.