A couple of days back, legendary poet and writer Surjit Patar passed away at his residence in Ludhiana. He breathed his last on Saturday. Following his demise, Punjab CM Bhagwant Maan announced that the stare government would start an award in the memory of the legendary writer.
The award will have prize money of ₹1 lakh and will be presented annually to emerging poets by the Punjab government, he said. Students from Class 8 to graduation level will be allowed to participate in the competition and a panel will be formed to choose the winner.
While speaking to the media, Mann said, “We want young individuals to write poetry after taking inspiration from Dr Patar. The awardee will receive ₹1 lakh cash award and a certificate.”
“However, this award is too small a token in Dr Patar’s memory. What he has left behind is a great ideology and literature which we want the new generation to read, write, and take inspiration from,” the CM added.
