Bhubaneswar: Renowned Odia poet and former bureaucrat Ramakanta Rath died at his residence in the Kharvel Nagar area here Sunday, family sources said. He was 90.
Rath, a Padma Bhushan awardee, was survived by three daughters and a son.
Several leaders and eminent personalities from Odisha mourned the demise of Rath and gathered at his house to pay their last respects.
Expressing deep grief over the demise of Rath, Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi said Ramakanta Rath will always be remembered for his contribution to the Indian administrative service and the world of literature.
Majhi prayed before Lord Jagannath for heavenly abode of the departed soul and expressed his condolences to the bereaved family.
He also announced that Rath’s last rites would be performed with full state honour.
After the arrival of his son from abroad, Rath’s last rites will be performed Monday in Puri Swargadwar, informed the poet’s younger daughter.
Rath was born December 13, 1934, in Cuttack. After completing an MA in English literature from Ravenshaw College (now university), Rath joined the IAS in 1957. He retired as chief secretary of Odisha in 1992 after holding several important posts in both state and central governments.
Some of the major poetry collections of Rath include Kete Dinara (1962), Aneka Kothari (1967), Sandigdha Mrugaya (1971), Saptama Rutu (1977), Sachitra Andhara (1982), Sri Radha (1985), and Sreshtha Kavita (1992). Some of his poetry has been translated to English and other languages.
Rath was honoured with the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1977, the Sarala Award in 1984, the Bishuva Samman in 1990, and the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship in 2009.
In recognition of his outstanding contribution to literature, he was conferred with the Padma Bhushan in 2006.
He also served as the vice president of the Kendra Sahitya Akademi from 1993 to 1998 and the president from 1998 to 2003.
PTI
