A book of collection of travelogues in Dogri entitled “Astha de Rattandeep” written by noted writer and veteran newscaster Narinder Bhasin was released today in a function organized by Dogri Sanstha, Jammu.
The function was presided over by Prof. Lalit Magotra, in which Darshan Darshi, convenor of Dogri Advisory Board in Sahitya Akademi was the Chief Guest and Dr. Arvinder Singh ‘Amn’, Additional Secretary, J&K Aacademy of Art Culture and Languages was the Guest of Honor.
Prakash Premi, a senior Dogri writer read a paper on the released book. He said the travelogues are concerning the religious pilgrimages of the author,but the author has covered many heritage aspect of other places, cities and towns which he visited during his journey.
Narinder Bhasin, the author, also spoke on the occasion and read some portions from the book. Speaking on the occasion, Darshan Darshi complimented Bhasin for the painstaking manner in which he has recorded and brought out the details of the visited places, events those took place and experiences that the author had during his journeys. He appreciated the keen sense of observation and intense desire of the
author to collect as much useful information as possible.
Prof. Lalit Magotra in his presidential address said that the travelogues
mostly concern the religious pilgrimage. He said that most of the Dogras are religious minded and hence these travelogues have a large section of readership to which this book is likely to appeal very much. Prof. Magotra said that for wholesome growth of Dogri Languages and Literature there is a need to cater to all sections of Dogri speaking public and in that sense the book is an important addition to Dogri corpus.
Dr. Arminder Singh Aman said that the author has given such a graphic
description of his travels that the reader feels that he is not reading a book but is actually travelling alongside the author. He categorized the travelogues as excellent pieces of Dogri Prose. He complimented Dogri Sanstha for providing platform to writers and the author for writing prolifically during the past few years.
The programme was conducted and anchored by Dr. Nirmal Vinod, General Secretary of Dogri Sanstha who also thanked the audience and the media at the conclusion of the programme.
