15-16 June 2022 at Hotel Akbari, Cuttack

15 June 2022

After the Delegates Registered for the Conference, the Inaugural Session began with Professor Bijay Kumar Das, the President of the Association in Chair. At the outset, the Guests Professor C.N. Srinath (Former Professor of English, Bangalore University, Bengaluru, and Mysore University, Mysuru), Professor Rajiva Verma (Former Professor of English, Delhi University, Delhi), and Dr. Ramesh Prasad Panigrahi,(Well known Playwright and former Reader in English, Ravenshaw College, Cuttack) lighted the lamp. Dr. Sonali Das, Associate Professor of English and Head, P.G.Department of Language and Literature, F. M. University, Balasore, Dr. Premalata Rout, Reader in English, Jagannath Higher Secondary School, Keonjhar, and Dr. Dolon Ray Asst. Professor of English, C.C. Mahavidyalaya, Bankura University (W.B.) introduced the Guests to the audience. Mr. Braja Kishore Pall, Reader in Engish, Oupada College, Balasore read out the proceedings of the Last Seminar held on 3 April 2022. Professor Bijay Kumar Das delivered the Welcome Address and introduced the Theme of the Conference to the Delegates. Dr. Sonali Das compered the programme.

Inaugural Session 11:05 A.M

Professor C.N. Srinath delivered his inaugural address by highlighting the importance of "The Waste Land". Professor Rajiva Verma delivered his Keynote Address under the caption "Re-reading The Waste Land" and Some other Poems by T.S. Eliot".
Both the Inaugural Address and the Keynote Address went off well with the audience Dr. Jnan RanjanPadhi, Associate Professor and Head, P.G. Dept. of English, Jawaharlal Nehru College, Pasighat, Arunachal Pradesh proposed a vote of Thanks.
The highlight of the Session was the launch of the Memorial Volume in Honour of Professor C.D, Narasimhaiah and Professor Shiv K. Kumar with beautiful photographs and Write-ups, the first-ever such a Volume in the Country.

Paper Reading Session I

Chair: Dr. Ramesh Prasad Panigrahi
Paper Presenter: Prof. Ashoka Kumar Mohanty, S.O.A University, Bhubaneswar
Application of New Theory to Ancient Poetry

Plenary Session I

Chair: Professor Rajiva Verma
Speaker: Professor Bijay Kumar Das
The Achievement of "The Movement Poets"
Professor Das spoke on 9 Movement Poets emphasizing the contribution of Philip Larkin, Thom Gunn, and Ted Hughes to twentieth-century English Poetry. His Lecture was distributed in the form of a Booklet among the delegates.
The Landmark of the Conference was the launching of Bijay Kumar Das's book, Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism (9th Revised and Enlarged Edition, 2022) which contains 70 Chapters in 620 pages. Both the Hard Bound Edition and Paper Back Editions are issued by Atlantic Publishers, New Delhi.

Paper Reading Session II

Chair: Dr. Nibedita Maitra, Professor, and Head, Dept. of English H.S.Gour University, Sagar (MP).

Paper Presenters:
1 - Dr. Rajendra Kumar, Govt. P.G. College, Mirzapur (UP)
Poetry of Lesser-Known Indian English Poet: Makr and Paranjappe

2 - Dr. Dolon Ray
Nissim Ezekiel in the Tradition of T.S. Eliot
Both the papers were well received by the Delegates. The Session was well conducted by Prof. Maitra.

After having organized "Meet the Teachers Sessions" between 1998 and 2021, The Researchers'Association, Odisha has started a new Programme Meet the Translator and honored Professor C.N. Srinath as a Translator.

Chair: Professor Bijay Kumar Das
Translator: Professor C.N. Srinath
Professor Das spoke on the Art of Translation, a way of introducing the program, and Professor Srinath delivered a lecture under the caption Translation: Agony and Ecstasy". His lecture was distributed among the delegates in the form of a Booklet.

Paper Reading Session III

Chair: Dr. Satya Sindhu Ghosh, Retd. Associate Prof. of English, Khandra College (Burdwan University)

Paper Presenters:
1 - Dr. Ujjwal Dutta (West Bengal Education Service, Burdwan)
"An Exploration of Self in Shiv K. Kumar's Poetry"
2 - Dr. Tapu Biswas
Reading: "The Waste Land" in Bengali Translation

Both the papers were well received. Dr. Manmohan Mishra, Reader in English. Begunia College proposed a vote of thanks. In the evening, the Odishi Dance was performed by a group of dancers. Mrs. Verma (Delhi) and Dr. Nivedita Maitra Sagar felicitated the Dancers.

Paper Reading Session IV

Chair: Dr. Sonali Das, Associate Professor of English and Head, P.G. Dept. of Language and Literature, F.M. University, Balasore.

Paper Presenters:
1 - Dr. Rima Ghosh, Asst. Prof. of English, S.N.Girls' College West Bengal
A Reading of Sri Aurobindo's Poetry
2 - Dr. Gargi Bhattacharya, Asst. Prof. of English, S.N.Girls' College, West Bengal.
Unreal City; Opening of the Gates to Postmodern specialty in "The Waste Land"
3 - Ms. Sanghamitra Thakur, Librarian, S.N. Girls' College, West Bengal.
Can we leave "The Waste Land" behind Ever? Re-Reading "The Waste Land in Post-Pandemic Fragmented World.
All three papers were well received. Prof.C.N.Srinath, Prof. Rajiva Verma, and Prof. Kalidas Mishra participated in the discussions. The Chair Persson, Dr. Sonali Das admirably summed up all the 3 papers and made some insightful observations.

Mr. Laxmidhar Panda Retd Reader in English, Nimapaa College proposed a Vote of Thanks.

Workshop on World Poetry in English in the last 100 years.

Professor Bijay Kumar Das conducted the workshop taking British Poetry, Commonwealth Poetry, American Poetry, and Indian English Poetry and the poets into consideration. 40 Questions (each with 3 options) were asked and the response from the audience was enthusiastic. Professor Rajiva Verma and Professor C. N. Srinath enjoyed the program and appreciated it.

Open Forum: Debate on The Waste Land and Four Quartets

Moderator: Prof. C.N.Srinath

Panelists:
1. Prof. Rajiva Verma
2. Prof. Bijay Kumar Das
3. Prof.C.R.V. Rao
4. Prof. Kalidas Mishra

Dr. Sonali Das read out Professor C.R ViswesswarRao'sPaper, "The Waste Land: Approaches to the Poem and its Multivoicedness". (Prof. Rao is now in the USA).
The debate was very lively. It was to the delight of the Delegates and a great event. Dr. Nibedita Maitra proposed a Vote of Thanks.

Paper Reading Session V

Chair: Dr. Jnan Ranjan Padhi, Associate Professor of English and Head, J.N. College, Pasighat, Arunachal Pradesh.

Paper Presenters:
1 - Dr. Premalaa Rout, Reader in English. Kenjhar
Kamala Das: A Feminist View
2 - Mr. Braja Kishore Pall, Reader in English
A Study of Diasporic Ethos in the Poetry of Nissim Ezekiel and A.K. Ramanujan
3 - Mr. Laxmidhar Panda
T.S. Eliot, Wallace Stevens, and Supreme Fiction

Both the papers evoked lively responses from the audience. The Question Hour was exciting. After the Chair Person's remarks, Dr. Rima Ghosh proposed a Vote of Thanks.

Valedictory Session

Chair: Prof. Ashok Kumar Mohanty

Speakers:
1 - Dr. Ramesh Prasad Panigrahi
2 - Dr. Nivedita Maitra

Both Dr. Panigrahi and Dr. Maitra spoke at length on the deliberations of the 2 Day Conference and Prof. Mohanty summed up the deliberations. Dr. Sonali Das gave away the Gift copies of the Back Issues of "The Critical Endeavour" to the new participants. In the end Prof. Rajiva Verma gave away the Participation Certificates. Dr. Pravat Kumar Mishra, the Treasurer of the Researchers' Associaton gave an overview of the two days of deliberations and Proposed a Vote of Thanks.

Launch of Prof. BK Das's New Book

By: Prof. CN Srinath and Prof. Rajiva Verma

Images from Conference