Bhubaneswar, April 28: Noted Odia author, writer, editor and columnist Manoj Das passed away at a private hospital in Puducherry on Tuesday.Das was undergoing treatment in a hospital in Puducherry for old age ailments. 

The bilingual author

For thousands of men, women and children of the past two or three generations, Manoj Das has been the very synonym of light and delight, whose writings in Odia and English inspire in his countless readers faith in the purpose of life and also open up concealed horizons of confidence and compassion in humanity a dire need today.Born at Shankari, Balasore, Orissa, Manoj Das was perhaps the foremost bilingual Oriya writer and a master of dramatic expression both in his English and Oriya short stories and novels.  Das’s persons in fiction are from so many varied backgrounds and display many different dimensions of human nature. He was a philosopher, a thinker-writer whose works can be defined as a quest for finding the eternal truth in everyday circumstances. 

Recognition

He edited a prestigious monthly, The Heritage, for five years (1985-1989).He received the Sahitya Akademi Award, 1972, in English; Orissa Sahitya Akademi Award, 1965 and 1982; Sarala Award, 1981; Vishuba Award, 1986; and Sahitya Bharati Award, 1995; Saraswati Samman, 2000; Padma Shri in  2001.

His major works are Shesha Basantara chithi, Manoj Dasanka Katha o Kahani, Dhumabha Diganta, The Crocodiles Lady : A Collection of Stories, The Submerged Valley and Other Stories, A Tiger at Twilight, and others .

Condolence

Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnail wrote on Twitter,” Deeply saddened to know about the passing away of legendary litterateur #ManojDas. Shri Das has left an indelible mark in the field of literature with his vast variety of immortal works and left a void which can never be filled.”