Girdhari Ram Gonjhu (5 December 1949 – 15 April 2021) was a prominent scholar of the

Nagpuri language Nagpuri (also known as Sadri) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in the Indian states of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Bihar. It is primarily spoken in the west and central Chota Nagpur plateau region. It is sometimes considered a dialec ...

. He was former chairman of the Tribal-Regional Language Department at

Ranchi University Ranchi University is a public state university in Ranchi, Jharkhand, India. It was established in 1960 by an Act of the Bihar legislature. Ranchi University offers degrees in undergraduate, post-graduate, M.Phil. and doctorate programs. History ...

in state of Jharkhand. He was awarded

Padma Shri Padma Shri ( IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conf ...

for his contribution in the field of literature and education in the Jharkhand posthumously in 2022.

Life

Early life

Girdhari Ram Gonjhu was born in Belwadag in

Khunti district Khunti district is one of the twenty-four districts in South Chotanagpur division of the Indian state of Jharkhand. The district of Khunti was carved out of Ranchi district on 12 September 2007. , it is the second least populous district of Jhar ...

Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West ...

(now Jharkhand) on 5 December 1949 to Indranath Gonjhu and Lalmani Devi. He completed M.A, B.Ed., LLB and PhD. He married Saraswati Devi.

Career

Gonjhu started his teaching career as a professor at Parambir Albert Ekka Memorial College in Chainpur, Gumla in 1975. Then he was professor at Gossner College Ranchi in 1978. Then he was professor of Ranchi College and Ranchi University. He was head of the department of tribal and regional language department at Ranchi University. He had written more than 25 books including ''Jharkhand ki Sanskritik Virasat'', ''Nagpuri ke Prachin Kavi'', ''Jharkhand ke lokgeet'', ''Jharkhand ke Badhya yantra'', ''Sadani Nagpuri Vyakaran'', ''Nagpuri Sabdkosh'', ''Matrubhasha ki Bhumika'', ''Khukhda-Rugdi'', ''Ritu ke Rang Mandar ke Sang'', ''Mahabali Radhe Kar Balidan'', ''Jharkhand ka Amar Putra: Marang Gomke Jaipal Singh Munda'', ''Maharaja Madra Munda'' and ''Akhra Nindaye Gelak'' etc.

Last days and Death

He retired from Ranchi University and staying in Ranchi. He died on 15 April 2021 due to breathing problems in RIMS, Ranchi.

Awards

He was awarded

for his contribution in the field of literature and education in Jharkhand posthumously in 2022. Earlier he was awarded the "Jharkhand Ratna" award by the government of Jharkhand.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gonjhu, Girdhari Ram 1949 births 2021 deaths Indian educational theorists People from Khunti district Hindi-language writers Nagpuri-language writers Nagpuria people