A TRUE TRIBUTE LIES IN INSTALLING STATUE OF VISHARAD JE

A TRUE TRIBUTE LIES IN INSTALLING STATUE OF VISHARAD JE

12-JUNE-ENG 6

RAJIV NAYAN AGRAWAL

PATNA---------------------------While presiding over the Silver Jubilee celebrations of the Bihar Hindi Sahitya Sammelan, the 'Rashtrakavi' (National Poet) Ramdhari Singh 'Dinkar' reverently recalled Babu Ramdhari Prasad 'Visharad'—the key figure behind the Sammelan's establishment—and urged the organization to erect a grand statue of him within its premises, encircled by a golden girdle; he remarked that nothing less would constitute a true tribute to him. The Sammelan was established through the monumental efforts of 'Visharad', who was its primary architect. The idea of ​​founding a provincial Hindi literary conference originated with him; after securing the approval of 'Deshratna' Dr. Rajendra Prasad, he convened a gathering of Hindi proponents at the Hindu Bhavan in Muzaffarpur on October 19, 1919, where the decision to establish the Sahitya Sammelan was taken. Throughout his life, he remained synonymous with the Sammelan.

Dr. Anil Sulabh, the President of the Sammelan, shared these sentiments on Thursday while presiding over a function and a short-story symposium organized at the Sammelan to mark 'Visharad' ji's 126th birth anniversary. He noted that 'Visharad' ji had been elected President of the Sammelan's 19th session, held at Bounsi in Bhagalpur. Prior to that, he had served as the General Secretary and Vice-President of the Sammelan for many years. His services toward the advancement of Hindi can never be forgotten; it is thanks to him that this institution has been able to render invaluable service to the Hindi language. We will soon initiate efforts to install his statue within the Sammelan complex.

Inaugurating the event, former Patna High Court Judge Mandhata Singh stated that 'Visharad' ji holds a significant place among the respected luminaries who enriched Hindi literature. He dedicated his entire life to the establishment and operation of the Sahitya Sammelan. Senior litterateur Prof. Sunil Kumar Adhyay, poetess Aradhana Prasad, Kamal Nayan Srivastava, Chanda Mishra, Mithilesh Kumar Sinha, and Pravir Kumar Pankaj also expressed their views. At the short-story session organized for the occasion, Dr. Jangbahadur Pandey (former Head of the Hindi Department, Ranchi University) read ‘Mamta’; Dr. Pushpa Jamuar read ‘Lahrein’; Vibha Rani Srivastava read ‘Ant Ki Saans’; Dr. Poonam Anand read ‘Daan’; Kumar Anupam read ‘Ahimsa’; Siddheshwar read ‘Basera’; Dr. Samarendra Narayan Arya read ‘Phir Kabhi’; Jyoti Pascal read ‘Mausam Ka Asar’; Sagarika Rai read ‘Niyamat’; and Indu Bhushan Sahay read ‘Wah Re Insaan’. The proceedings were conducted by Brahmanand Pandey, and the vote of thanks was proposed by Krishna Ranjan Singh.

Distinguished individuals such as Ranjan Kumar Amritnidhi, Rajesh Raj, Prem Prakash, Satyendra Singh, Santosh Kumar, Naresh Kumar, Anil Kumar, and Nandan Kumar Meet were present at the event.