GUWAHATI, June 2 � The first Mamoni Raisom Goswami Award, instituted by the State government in the name of the renowned writer, poet, scholar and Jnanpith award winner Dr Indira Goswami, was conferred on another reputed writer, Nirupama Borgohain in a function held today at Rabindra Bhawan.
The award carries a cheque of Rs one lakh, sorai, citation and a shawl.
Dr Nirupama Borgohain, a Sahitya Akademy award winner and writer of Abhiyatri, Sei Nadi Nirawadhi, Ipar Sipar and many more novels and short stories, also worked as an educationist and a journalist. She also edited three periodicals.
In her acceptance speech, Borgohain said that the love and affection of the people was the real award in the life of a writer, though formal awards are also of great significance. �We write for people and their feedbacks are no lesser than prestigious awards,� she said, thanking the State government for honouring her with an award in the name of Dr Mamoni Raisom Goswami. She also recalled her personal association with Dr Goswami, on the occasion.
Speaking on the occasion, Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said that Mamoni Raisom Goswami was a revolutionary writer and she expressed this spirit in her novels and short stories. Lauding the role of Assamese women in different walks of life, he said that progress of women was a must to ensure the progress of the State and the country.
Journalist and litterateur Kanaksen Deka, while speaking on the occasion said that both Dr Goswami and Nirupama Borgohain epitomise the multitalented women of Assam. �Literature in Assam is now ruled by the women with many veteran and upcoming women writers proving themselves to the world,� he added.
State Cultural Minister Bismita Gogoi, sister of Mamoni Raisom Goswami Sabita Sarma, vice president of Srimanta Shankardev Kalakshetra Society Surjya Hazarika, among others, were also present on the occasion.