Bhubaneswar: Eminent Odia writer and scholar Pratibha Ray was conferred the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship here on Thursday, becoming the first woman writer from Odisha to receive the Akademi’s highest honour. Sahitya Akademi president Madhav Kaushik presented the fellowship plaque to Ray and, in his address, described her as a “living legend of Indian literature”. He highlighted the wide reach of her literary works, which have been translated into several languages.The fellowship presentation followed a Samvad programme chaired by Sahitya Akademi’s Odia advisory board convener Gourahari Das. Das said Ray’s recognition was significant not only for her contribution to Odia literature but also because she was the first woman writer from the state to receive the Akademi Fellowship. Writer Debaprasad Dash, Prof Sanghamitra Mishra and Prof Prafulla Kumar Mohanty spoke about Ray’s life and literary contributions.In her acceptance speech, Ray spoke about the importance of her mother tongue, Odia, and its rich literary tradition. She underlined the need to preserve and promote the language and its literary heritage.
