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Jeelani Bano shares Urdu literary award with Pakistani writer

Eminent Urdu writer from India, Jeelani Bano, is to receive the coveted Majlis-e-Farogh-e-Urdu award for 1998.

Bano will share the Urdu world's highest literary award with renowned Pakistani litterateur Intizar Hussain, for lifetime contribution to the language, according to Idrees Dehlvi, co-ordinator for the award in India.

Instituted two years ago by the Majlis-e-Farogh-e-Urdu Adab of Doha (Qatar) to foster Urdu and promote greater understanding through literature, the cash component of the award has been increased from this year. The two awardees will now receive a gold medal each, along with a cash award of Rs 125,000 each as against Rs 100,000 each earlier.

The awards will be presented at a function in Doha on September 17 this year in the presence of distinguished Urdu litterateurs, heads of diplomatic missions, and other eminent personalities.

The decision to confer the award on Bano was taken by a panel of noted Urdu writers headed by Prof Gopi Chand Narang. The other members of the panel were Prof Hamidi Kashmiri (Srinagar), Prof Wahab Ashrafi (Patna), Prof Abul Kalam Qasmi (Aligarh) and Idrees Dehlvi, who is also editor of the Shama group of magazines.

A separate panel in Pakistan decided to name Intizar Hussain for the honour.

Born on July 14, 1936, Bano took to short story writing and novels at a young age. She has so far published 18 books, many of which have been highly acclaimed. Many of her works have been translated into various Indian languages besides foreign languages including English, French, and Russian.

Among her awards are the Uttar Pradesh Urdu Academy award, the Soviet Land Nehru award, the All India Qaumi Haali award, and the Modi Ghalib award. Some of her more prominent works are Aiwan-e-Ghazal, Baarish-e-Sang, Jugnu Aur Sitarey, Roshni ke Minar, Nirvaan and Paraya Ghar.

The first award in 1996 was presented jointly to Prof Ale Ahmed Suroor of India and Ahmed Nadeem Qasmi from Pakistan, while Qurratulain Hyder from India and Ashfaq Ahmed from Pakistan received it last year.

UNI

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