Bhubaneswar: The 41st All Odisha Visual Art Award Giving Ceremony was held at the convention hall of Sanskruti Bhawan here on Saturday.
The programme was jointly organized by the Odia Language, Literature & Culture Department and Odisha Lalit Kala Academy.
Minister of Odia Language, Literature & Culture Aswini Kumar Patra congratulated all the awardees.
In his congratulatory message, Patra said that Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has taken a slew of initiatives for the promotion of the arts and artists. The artists of the State have achieved excellence at the national and international level.
The State Government has announced that the award will be given in 12 categories from this year, while previously awards were given in eight categories, he said.
Attending the programme as Chief Guest, Commissioner-Cum-Secretary of Odia Language, Literature & Culture Department Sujata Rout Karthikeyan there is no discrimination in the art. An artist always gives importance to portray the reality in art flawlessly. Heritage and culture play a major role for the progress of the nation, she said.
Dilip Routrai, Director of the Department, who attended as the guest of honour, said that the realistic works of artists are always exciting. Appropriate steps have been taken by the Department for their improvement.
Odisha Lalit Kala Academy president and international renowned sand artist Padma Shri Sudarsan Pattnaik presided over the programme and said that the award winners were selected by the committee comprising eminent artists from outside the state.
He advised the unrewarded artists to continue their efforts.
This year, 12 artists selected by the high-level selection committee have been awarded for their best artworks.
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