GUWAHATI, Oct 22 - Tributes were paid to Ayodhya Prasad Goswami, a pioneer of the cooperative and library movement in Assam, and his contribution towards the propagation of the message of Panchayati Raj was recalled at a function held at Pandit Tirthanath Sarma Bhawan on the occasion of his 90th birthday today.
Prafulla Pran Mahanta, social organiser and general secretary of the Assam Journalist and Literary Pensioners� Association presided over the function. Lalit Chandra Nath explained the purpose of the function and welcomed the guests.
Inaugurating the function, senior journalist DN Chakravartty recalled his association with Goswami during his college days over six decades ago and described Goswami as a brilliant organiser, a disciplined volunteer and a knowledgeable student leader. He also spoke about Goswami�s role in the erstwhile Assam Student Congress which was one of the largest student bodies of the country.
Dr Sunil Pawan Baruah, while releasing a book Atmatatva Gyan by Goswami, referred to the intellectual brilliance and organisational skills of Goswami as a scion of one of the leading families of sattradhikars of Assam.
�He led an ideal religious life besides engaging himself in diverse social works including organisation of a network of rural libraries and strengthening the Panchayati Raj system in the State,� Baruah said.
Prof Parikshit Hazarika and educationist Nilakanta Sarma, in their speeches, said that Goswami represented the earlier band of student leaders of Assam who were inspired by the ideals of Gandhiji, besides being influenced by the teachings of Jayprakash Narayan and Dr Ram Manohar Lohia.
Prafulla Pran Mahanta in his presidential speech recalled his association with Goswami right from school days to college life and described him as a man of the masses, and also an ideal sattradhikar.