post news network
Bhubaneswar, July 13: The Oriya daily ‘Utkal Dipika’ celebrated its 150th anniversary at Press Club of Odisha here Wednesday. The newspaper is the oldest such publication in the state.
When it was established in 1866, Gourishankar Ray and Bichitrananda were its editors. The newspaper played an important role in uniting Oriya people under one administration. It also played a crucial role in developing Oriya language and literature but had to wind up in 1936.
Writer Bibhuti Patnaik, who was one of the dignitaries at the celebratory event, said: “Being the first newspaper published in before Independence, the paper played a vital role in uniting Oriyas. It helped establish the identity of Oriyas and the language.”
Bibhuti also said the work of Gourishankar Ray revolutionised Oriya literature.
The event also featured screening of a 20-minute documentary on ‘Utkal Dipika’. It contained clips of Gourishankar discussing the motive behind starting the paper following the great famine of Orissa and what it took to run the paper.
Bhagyalipi Malla, the superintendent of State Archives said copies of the paper had been digitised and preserved. “It will help future generations learn about the history of journalism in Orissa.”
The event was attended by personalities including Akhaya Mishra, Sanghmitra Mishra, Amar Sathpathy,Nityanada Sathpathy and Ramesh Parida. Some of them were felicitated for their contributions to journalism.
