Sarawati Saman for Oriya writer Jagannath Prasad Das

New Delhi, Feb 12 (UNI) Noted Oriya writer Dr Jagannath Prasad Das has been selected for the prestigious Saraswati Samman, 2006 for his collection of poems 'Parikrama'.

Dr Das, a former bureaucrat, is the sixteenth recipient of the Award, instituted in 1991.

The award, which is given every year by the K K Birla Foundation for outstanding literary work written in any Indian language and published during the past 10 years, carries a cash prize of Rs 5 lakh.

A high-level 'Chayan Parishad' or selection committee, presently presided over by former Chief Justice G B Patnaik, selects the winner in accordance with thw Saraswati Samman 'Niyamavali' 'Parikrama', published in 1998, is a collection of short and simple lyrics that reveal complexity of modern sensibility.

Popularly known as JP in literary circle, Dr Das has authored 10 collections of poems, 5 plays, 7 collections of short stories, one historical novel and a book of poems for children, besides other books.

The previous recipients of the award include Dr Harivansh Rai Bachchan, Vijay Tendulkar and K Ayyappa Paniker.

UNI