Dogri Sanstha Jammu organised an online function to release a book of Dogri short stories “Koi Te Hai” written by Ashok Dutta, a retired senior official of Rural Bank. Prof. RD Sharma, former Vice-Chancellor of University of Jammu, was the chief guest in the function . Rajeshwar Singh Raju, a well known short story writer, a critic and a columnist, read a paper on the merits of the released book. Ashok Dutta also spoke on the occasion and read out some interesting portions of the stories from the released book.
Prof. RD Sharma, speaking on the occasion complimented Dutta that in spite of having taken up the writing only after his retirement, he has come up with three books of collection of short stories in this short span of time, which is a great feat.He wished him good health so that he may continue to serve Dogri language by writing such high quality literature in future as well.He said that Dutta’s stories exhibit his vast and varied experiences of life and are very humanistic in Spirit. Prof. Sharma congratulated Dogri writers,Dogri Sanstha and Dogras in general on Dogri having being granted the status of official language of J&K. He said that whereas it is a matter of celebration but it also devolves many responsibilities on Dogri writers as well as the young Scholars & students who are studying Dogri at University and college level.
Prof. Lalit mangotra, while welcoming the participants and the viewers , said that whereas the restrictions due to Corona pandemic have severely limited most of the literary activities but paradoxically it has opened up many new avenues , mostly through the social media,to propagate and promote literature and culture in a big way. He said that while in actual functions the audience/ viewers are limited, in cyber programs the viewership can be unlimited. He also spoke on the distinguishing characteristics of the stories written by Ashok Dutta and complimented him on his Deep and thorough understanding of the social issues confronting us in modern times, especially the situations faced by the senior members of the society.
Prof. Shashi Pathania, Vice-President of Dogri Sanstha and former Head of the Dogri Department of Jammu University, conducted and anchored the program and also presented the vote of thanks. Herself a renowned short story writer and a well-known critic, she made many insightful observations on the quality and style of writing of Dutta. Pawan Verma co-ordinated the whole proceedings on the web and provided all the technical support for the smooth conduct of the program.
