By Our Staff Reporter
Guwahati, May 21: The country’s longest poem in a single page is written by a poet from Goalpara. The poem was today released formally in a book format by senior jourlist Ajit Bhuyan at a function organized at Guwahati Press Club.
The poem, titled ‘Bir Biranga’, is written in Assamese language by Pankaj Mahato. The poem consists of 10, 670 words in 2, 662 lines and was written in a page of 440 feet length. It describes 45 martyrs of Assam, Bengal, Bihar and Odisha who died during freedom movement.
The author of the poem Mahato said: “I started to write the poem in 2012 with an aim to find a place in the India Book of Records and completed it in 2014. It was published by the Goalpara Sahitya Sabha on November 16, 2014. I then sent the poem to India Book of Records and they recognized the poem as the longest poem in the country on March 18, 2015. As the poem was written in a single page, we decided to publish it as a book.”
Mahato says he plans to create another record by translating the poem in eight different languages.
“I have completed the translation of the poem in five languages including Hindi, Bhojpuri, Bengali and the tea tribe language. I will translate it in three more languages - English, Bodo and Rabha – by August.”
Ajit Bhuyan, after releasing the poem, said: “It is a matter of pride for Assam that a poet from the State had scripted such a record. Mahato was born in Bihar. He later came to Assam with his father and completed his education in Goalpara in Assamese language. His story is an example that if anyone wants to make a difference, he can do it with sheer will power. Had he been a resident of Guwahati, he would have been more popular among public.”