Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Jan 11: Dogri Sanstha Jammu today released a collection of Dogri poems ‘HirkhiPaungar’ by veteran writer and Sahitya Akademi Awardee Inderjeet Kesar . This is Kesar’s 22nd book and 12th book of poetry.
Sanjeev Verma, Divisional Commissioner Jammu, was chief guest in the function, which was presided over by Prof Lalit Magotra, President of Dogri Sanstha and Darshan Darshi, Convener of Dogri Advisory Board in Sahitya Akademi was the guest of honour.
Sanjeev Verma said that it is a rare achievement on the part of Kesar that inspite of being a civil servant he could find time for this creative activity. It speaks of his love and dedication for his mother tongue, he added. The Div Com further said that the Government was fully committed to the development and promotion of all regional languages of the Union Territory, including Dogri which is a major language of UT and has the honour of being included in the 8th Schedule of Indian Constitution.
Prof Lalit Magotra, in his presidential address, said that the distinctive quality of the poetry of Kesar is that in simple language and direct manner it conveys the hard realities of life and always gives a positive message. He also drew the attention of Divisional Commissioner towards the urgent steps to be taken to effectively implement the Government’s decision to teach Dogri at various levels of education, especially the primary level. He also reiterated the need to have a Duggar Channel for all languages of Jammu region on the pattern of Kashir Channel.
Darshan Darshi spoke extensively on the poetic merit of Kesar’s writing. He said, his poetry contains the fragrance of Duggar land, because of its chaste Dogri language and typical Dogra idiom.
Sandeep Dubey, Assistant Professor, in Dogri Department of Jammu University, presented a very scholarly paper on the released book. He analyzed both the emotional and thought content of his poetry, emphasizing the fact that his poetry is basically humanitarian in its approach and is written in simple and direct style suitable for communicating with all levels of audience.
Earlier, Inderjeet Kesar recited some poems from his book, which were much liked by the audience. The programme was anchored and conducted by Prof Shashi Pathania, the Vice President of Dogri Sanstha and former Head, PG Department of Dogri, University of Jammu.