Assam: Bishnupriya Manipuri Sahitya Sabha felicitates its ex-president, seven others

Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI: The Bishnupriya Manipuri Sahitya Sabha (BMSS) felicitated its former president Manindra Kumar Sinha (IFS), retired Conservator of Forest, Assam, and six other prominent social workers at a simple function with Sabha's president Prof. (Dr.) Smriti Kumar Sinha in the chair in Guwahati today.

Besides contributing much to the prolonged legal wrangling that the community had to face in its fight in support of the right and just nomenclature and OBC status of the community, the retired IFS officer left indelible prints in the field of Bishnupriya Manipuri literature as the editor of the mouthpiece, a literary magazine of the Sahitya Sabha.

In his brief yet eloquent speech, the retired IFS officer chanted the unity mantra, the lack of which robbed the Bishnupriya Manipuri of various democratic rights that an indigenous community of Assam is entitled to.

The other prominent personalities felicitated at the function are (i) BMSS' former office-bearer Binod Sinha, (ii) former general secretary of Bishnupriya Manipuri Samaj Sanstha, Guwahati, Shanti Kumar Sinha, who played a crucial role in the legal battle relating to the OBC status and correct nomenclature of the community right from the OBC Commission, Assam, (iii) BMSS secretary Prof. Nalini Kanta Sinha (retired from NEHU, Shillong), an astute thinker and a critic of repute, (iv) former MSEB (Meghalaya State Electricity Board) Chief Engineer Sudhir Sinha, (v) former office-bearer of Bishnupriya Manipuri Samaj Sanstha, Guwahati, Ranjit Sinha (in absentia), (vi) for Deputy Secretary to the Assam Government Birendra Sinha (in absentia), and (vii) Prof. Arun Kumar Sinha, who also played an important role in the legal battle of the community up to the Supreme Court of India.

In his brief speech, BMSS president Dr. Smriti Kumar Sinha, who is the Vice Chancellor of Pragjyotishpur University, spoke on the importance of the digital archive that the Sahitya Sabha has taken to develop. Among other works that BMSS has lined up, he mentioned the publication of a number of books, besides observing birth anniversaries of the departed social workers of all fields, let alone literature.

BMSS working president and former SCERT, Assam, Director Kumkum Sinha was also among those in the dais.

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