Mumbai, June 13: Noted English writer Amitav Ghosh has conferred the 54th Jnanpith award for the year 2018. The award was given for his outstanding contribution in English. Former Governor of West Bengal Gopalkrishna Gandhi presented the award to Mr Ghosh at a function in New Delhi on Wednesday.
“Amitav Ghosh is a path-breaking novelist. In his novels, Ghosh treads through historical settings to the modern era and weaves a space where the past connects with the present in relevant ways. His fiction is endowed with extraordinary depth and substance through his academic training as a historian and a social anthropologist," a statement from Bharatiya Jnanpith read.
Ghosh is the first English writer to get this award. The works of Amitav Ghosh portray a vast range of subjects.
Amitav Ghosh said, Jnanpith is a very special award in India and it's the first time English has been recognized.