The ‘IFIC Bank Sahitya Puroshkar 2016’ (IFIC Bank Literary Award 2016) was conferred for the sixth time, with the introduction of a new segment called Sahitya-Ratna Sommanona. Veteran writers Khosru Chowdhury and Shakoor Majid were given the prestigious award this year, while eminent writer Hasan Azizul Huq received the first Sahitya-Ratna Sommanona.
The awards were handed over to the recipients at a function held on 22nd September 2018 at the IFIC Tower in the capital’s Purana Paltan area. Bangladesh Bank (BB) governor Fazle Kabir attended the ceremony as chief guest, while Private Industry and Investment Advisor to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and IFIC Bank Chairman Salman F Rahman and IFIC Bank Managing Director & CEO Shah A Sarwar, senior officials of the bank and invited guests were present on the occasion.
Hasan Azizul Huq, a pioneering short story writer and novelist of Bangladesh, was honoured with the first-ever ‘Sahitya-Ratna Sommanona’ and Tk. 10 lakh for his distinctive contribution to Bangla literature.
On the other hand, Khosru Chowdhury won the award for his book ‘Sundarboner Bagher Pichu Pichu’ and Shakoor Majid was awarded for his book ‘Pherauner Gram’. Both writers were also awarded crests, certificates and Tk. 5 lakh each in cash as the most creative litterateurs of 2016.