K K Birla Fellowship for Dr Deshpande

New Delhi, Mar 13 (UNI) Dr L S Deshpande, a former principal of the Pratibha Niketan College, Nanded, was today selected for the K K Birla Foundation Fellowship in Comparative Indian Literature for this year.

Dr Deshpande will take up the study of contemporary Indian theatre involving Hindi, Bangla, Kannada and Marathi drama, said the K K Birla Foundation.

Writer Nabneeta Dev Sen headed the selection board, which also comprised Sahitya Akademi Secretary Prof K Satchidanandan.

The one-year fellowship carries a tax-free stipend of Rs 14,000 per month and a contingency grant of Rs 40,000.

As many as 21 fellows have completed their studies since the fellowship was instituted in 1994 for higher studies in the field of Comparative Indian Literature.

The studies of ten of the fellows, including those of Malayalam poet Prof K Ayyappa Paniker and Tamil novelist Ashokamitran, have already been published.

UNI FZ LR HT1517