Srinivas Rayaprol Poetry Prize announced

Hyderabad|India|October'2008:The Srinivas Rayaprol Literary Trust has announced an annual Srinivas Rayaprol Poetry Prize for excellence in poetry written in English. To be administered jointly by the Trust and the Department of English, University of Hyderabad, the winner would be chosen, from among entries to be invited nationally, by a distinguished panel of literary figures.The inaugural prize, consisting of a cash award of Rs.10,000 and a citation, would be awarded in 2009.

This was declared today on the 83rd birthday of the late Srinivas Rayaprol, a Secunderabad-based poet, who was hailed by many as one of the significant personalities of early Indian English poetry in India. At a poetry evening organized on the University campus in Gachibowli to mark the occasion, well-known poet, Jeet Thayil read from his own work and Sridala Swami read selections from Srinivas Rayaprol's poetry. The event also celebrated the recent arrival of important anthologies of Indian poetry in English, two of which were edited by Jeet Thayil and one for the National Book Trust edited by Eunice D'Souza. Srinivas Rayaprol's work finds a pride of place in all these collections.

The Srinivas Rayaprol Literary Trust was started in 2000 to perpetuate the memory of the poet and also promote Indian writing in English. The Department of English houses the literary collection of Srinivas Rayaprol, donated by the Trust in 2001.

Prof. B.P. Sanjay, Pro Vice-Chancellor of the University, Prof. Mohan G. Ramanan, Dean, School of Humanities, and Prof. Sachidananda Mohanty, Head, Department of English were among those present on the occasion.