Jatiya Nazrul Samaj has handed over Nazrul Awards to 16 personalities of the country for their outstanding contribution to their respective fields.
The awards were given away at a function at the Engineers' Institute auditorium in the city yesterday on the occasion of the 109th birth anniversary of National Poet Kazi Nazrul Islam.
Secretary of the president's office Md Sirajul Islam, Executive Chairman of Board of Investment Kamal Uddin Ahmed, Vice Chancellor (VC) of Darul Ihsan University Prof Monirul Haque and Dhaka University Pro-VC Prof AFM Yusuf Haider attended the function as the special guests.
Poet Mahfuzullah (literature), Zafar Ahmed Chowdhury (literature), Saiful Bari (journalism), Zaglul Ahmed Chowdhury (journalism), Prof Aminul Islam (education), Prof Golam Mowla (education), Yousuf Abdullah Harun (business and social service), Shykh Siraj (agricultural research and development), Yasmin Mustari (music), Begum Ismat Noor (music), Prof NA Kamrul Ahsan (medical science), Dr Sheikh Mohammad Bahar Hossain (medical service), Md Abdul Mannan (banking), Iftekhar Ahmed Tipu (organiser), Anu Jaigirdar (industry) and ARM Fazlul Karim Bahar (social service) got the awards.
Jatiya Nazrul Samaj Vice President poet Abdul Hye Sikder chaired the function in the absence of its President Dr Ashraf Siddique due to his illness.
Speakers recalled the outstanding contribution of poet Nazrul in establishing human rights, communal harmony and bringing freedom for the distressed humanity.
They said Nazrul is a shining star in the struggle of the nation for building a society free from hunger, poverty and deprivation, adding that he has become a model of equality, justice and communal harmony in our society.