No Pratima Baruah Pandey Award This Year: AASU

The AllAssam Students' Union (AASU) has paid tribute to the folk artist Padmashree PratimaBaruah Pandey on her 17^th death anniversary at Chandmari and decidednot to confer the award in memory of the artist this year in protest againstthe Citizenship Amendment Act.

AASU who confers Pratima Baruah Pandey award to folk artists every year on her death anniversary has decided that they will not confer the award keeping in mind the tensed situation in the state against the Citizenship Amendment Act.

AASUPresident Dipanka Kumar Nath said that they will again confer the award fromnext year and this year they will not confer the award in protest against theCitizenship law.

Meanwhile,AASU Adviser Samujjal Kumar Bhattacharjee said that the state government evenfailed to preserve the house of Pratima Baruah Pandey at Matia in Goalparadistrict. "We have repeatedly asked the government to preserve the house of thefolk artist but the government has not taken any step to conserve the work ofthe singer. We urge the government to take step for the preservation of thefolk artist's house and her work and if they can't do then they shouldsurrender so that we can move forward with the help of the people to preserveher work and her home," said Bhattacharjee.