Punjabi poet Padma Shri Surjit Patar passes away at 79; CM Bhagwant Mann says, ‘proud son of Punjabi language’

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PTI, Patar's family members stated that he passed away peacefully in his sleep. His demise has elicited sorrow from various political figures, including Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, who described it as a “significant loss for the Punjabi literary world". Patar's poetic works include ‘Hawa Vich Likhe Harf’, ‘Hanere Vich Sulagdi Varanmala’, ‘Patjhar Di Pazeb’, ‘Lafzaan Di Dargah’ and 'Surzameen'.

Surjit Patar was honoured with the Padma Shri in 2012 for his contributions to literature and education. He served as the president of the Punjab Arts Council and had previously held the position of president at the Punjabi Sahit Akademi. Throughout his illustrious career, Patar received prestigious awards such as the Sahitya Akademi Award, Panchnad Puruskar, Saraswati Samman, and the Kusumagraj Literary Award.

Also Read: Padma awards 2024: Venkaiah Naidu, Mithun Chakraborty, Ram Naik receive prestigious honour from President Droupadi Murmu Originally from Patar village in Jalandhar district, he completed his graduation at Randhir College in Kapurthala. He pursued his PhD in “Transformation of Folklore in Guru Nanak Vani" at Guru Nanak Dev University. He retired as a professor of Punjabi from the Punjab Agricultural University in Ludhiana.

Patar has also translated the three tragedies of Federico Garcia Lorca, Girish Karnad's play Nagmandala, and poems of Bertolt Brecht and Pablo Neruda into Punjabi. Also Read: Padma Awards 2024: Check the full list of 132 winners of India's second-highest civilian honour Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring called it an irreparable loss for Punjabi literature. He said, “Our beloved Padma Shri S.