Kathmandu, Sept 25: The National Dalit Journalists Association Nepal has set up journalism awards commemorating three Dalit leaders making significant contribution to the Dalit movement and journalism.
These awards include the TR Bishwakarma Memorial Journalism Award, the Ram Maya Chyame Public Journalism Award and the Devabrat Pariyar Memorial National Award.
Association president Binod Pahadi said a meeting of the Association held here recently decided to institute the three awards.
The Association is an umbrella organization of around 1,200 journalists from the Dalit community, active throughout the country. Bishwakarma was a writer, journalist and political leader who was involved in the movement for a long time.
Chyame worked as a sweeper in the central jail and she helped in the country’s movement for democracy by secretly working as a post woman giving and taking letters from jailed pro-democracy leaders like Ganesh Man Singh among others during the time of the movement to overthrow the Rana autocracy.
Pariyar was the founding general secretary, writer and the first film director of Nepali movies. These awards would be presented on the occasion of the Association’s founding day.
Likewise, the Association has appointed Parbat Portel the Province In-charge for State 1, Bhola Paswan for State 2, Bhim Bahadur Ghimire for State 3, Deepak Pariyar for Gandaki State, Sona Khatik for State 5, Amar Sunar for Karnali State and Milan Paryar for Sudur Paschim State.
