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Sahitya Akademi

Rabindra Bhawan, Delhi
Rabindra Bhawan, Delhi Image: Wikimedia Commons. Ekabhishek / CC BY-SA 3.0

Overview

The Sahitya Akademi is India's National Academy of Letters, an autonomous institution dedicated to the promotion of literature in the languages of India. Established by the Government of India, it works for the development of Indian letters, sets high literary standards, fosters and coordinates literary activities in the recognised Indian languages, and promotes through them the cultural unity of the country.

Key Facts

Type National academy; autonomous body
Field Literature
Founded 12 March 1954
Headquarters Rabindra Bhavan, New Delhi
Parent Ministry of Culture, Government of India
Recognised languages 24 Indian languages, including English
Major awards Sahitya Akademi Award, Sahitya Akademi Fellowship, Bhasha Samman, Yuva Puraskar, Bal Sahitya Puraskar, Translation Prize

Background

The idea of a national cultural body for letters was discussed in the years after independence, alongside the formation of similar academies for the performing arts and the visual arts. The Sahitya Akademi was inaugurated by the Government of India on 12 March 1954 and registered as a society in 1956 under the Societies Registration Act, 1860. It functions as an autonomous organisation funded by the Ministry of Culture.

The Akademi recognises 24 Indian languages for its activities. These include the 22 languages listed in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution of India, along with English and Rajasthani.

Structure and Functioning

The Akademi is governed by a General Council, an Executive Board, a Finance Committee and language-specific Advisory Boards for each of the recognised languages. Its day-to-day work is led by a President, a Vice-President and a Secretary. The Advisory Boards play a central role in nominating recipients of awards and in planning publications and seminars in their respective languages.

Its headquarters is at Rabindra Bhavan in New Delhi, with regional offices in Kolkata, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Chennai, and additional sub-offices to support work in different linguistic regions.

Activities

  • Publication of books, anthologies, monographs and translations across the recognised languages.
  • Publication of literary journals such as Indian Literature (English), Samakaleena Bharatiya Sahitya (Hindi) and Samskrita Pratibha (Sanskrit).
  • Organisation of seminars, symposia, lectures, readings and literary festivals.
  • Maintenance of a multilingual library and archives at its New Delhi headquarters.
  • Documentation of writers through the "Meet the Author" programme and audio-visual recordings.

Awards and Honours

The Akademi confers several literary honours, of which the most prominent are:

  • Sahitya Akademi Fellowship – the highest honour conferred by the Akademi, reserved for "the immortals of literature".
  • Sahitya Akademi Award – given annually since 1955 for outstanding books in each of the 24 recognised languages.
  • Bhasha Samman – instituted in 1996 for significant contribution to languages not formally recognised by the Akademi, and for classical and medieval literature.
  • Translation Prize – instituted in 1989 for outstanding translations into the recognised languages.
  • Yuva Puraskar – instituted in 2011 for young writers under the age of 35.
  • Bal Sahitya Puraskar – instituted in 2010 for contribution to children's literature.
  • Ananda Coomaraswamy Fellowship and Premchand Fellowship – for scholars and writers from SAARC countries and other parts of the world.

Timeline

  • 1954 – Sahitya Akademi inaugurated by the Government of India on 12 March.
  • 1955 – First Sahitya Akademi Awards announced.
  • 1956 – Registered as a society under the Societies Registration Act.
  • 1968 – Sahitya Akademi Fellowship instituted.
  • 1989 – Translation Prizes instituted.
  • 1996 – Bhasha Samman instituted.
  • 2010 – Bal Sahitya Puraskar instituted.
  • 2011 – Yuva Puraskar instituted.

Significance

The Sahitya Akademi is one of the principal institutions sustaining the multilingual literary culture of India. By treating each recognised language on an equal footing, supporting translation between them, and publishing works that might not otherwise reach a national readership, it has contributed to a shared sense of Indian literature across linguistic boundaries. Its archives, recordings and bibliographic projects also serve as primary resources for the study of modern Indian writing.

References

  • Sahitya Akademi, official website of the National Academy of Letters, New Delhi.
  • Ministry of Culture, Government of India – autonomous bodies.
  • Wikidata entry: Q3349399.