People pay tributes to poet Belal Chowdhury

Staff Correspondent: People from all walks of life have paid their respects to prominent poet Belal Chowdhury who died at a hospital in Dhaka yesterday at the age of 79.

His body was brought to the Central Shaheed Minar at 11:06am on Wednesday.

At the beginning, Dhaka University Vice-Chancellor Prof Md Akhtaruzzaman paid his tribute to the prominent poet. Afterwards, Bangla Academy Director General Prof Shamsuzzaman Khan, Cultural Affairs Minister Asaduzzaman Noor, Prof Emeritus Anisuzzaman, Social Welfare Minister Rashed Khan Menon and cultural personality Ramendu Majumdar paid their respects to the Ekushey Padak winning poet.

Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader, AL Office Secretary Abdus Sobhan Golap, AL's cultural affairs secretary Ashim Kumar Ukil and other leaders came to pay their respects to the poet.

Besides, Sector Commanders' Forum leader Maj Gen (retd) KM Shafiullah, journalist Harun Habib, PM's Principal Secretary Dr Kamal Abdul Naser Chowdhury, Former chairman of University Grants Commission (UGC) Prof AK Azad Chowdhury and other cultural personalities paid their tributes to the poet.

The body of the poet will be brought to Dhaka University Central Mosque for first namaz-e-janaza. After the namaz-e-janaza, the poet will be taken to his village Sharsdi of Feni for his burial. The poet will be buried at his family graveyard.

The prominent poet breathed his last at 12:01pm yesterday at Anwar Khan Modern Hospital in the capital's Dhanmondi area.

The poet was admitted to Anwar Khan Modern Hospital in Dhanmondi on November 2 last year. Since then he was admitted at the hospital.

The poet was suffering from diabetes and kidney problem for long.

Belal Chowdhury served Bharat Bichitra as its editor, published from Indian embassy in Dhaka. He was also an editor of Shaptahik Sandwip and Krittibas, a Bengali poetry magazine edited by Sunil Gangopadhyay.

He had also reputation as journalist, essayist and translator. He was awarded Ekushey Padak in 2014 for his literary contribution. He also received Bangla Academy Literary Award.

Belal Chowdhury was born on November 12, 1938 in Sharsdi village of Feni in the then Bengal Presidency under the British rule.


risingbd/Dhaka/April 25, 2018/Yeamin/AI