Tribal litterateur and folk artist Satyaram Reang has been conferred with the Padma Shri award for his contribution in the field of literature.
He is among the 102 persons who have been conferred with the fourth highest civilian award by the Indian government.
The government announced the recipients of the Padma awards in New Delhi on Monday.
The 85-year-old Reang is an exponent of the Hajagiri dance and is credited with popularizing and promoting the dance form in India and abroad.
Hajagiri is a rhythmic traditional dance of the Reang community.
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Reang, who hails from Shantirbazar in South Tripura district, was also conferred with the Sangeet Natak Academy award in 1986
Tripura chief minister Biplab Kumar Deb took to his Facebook page to congratulate the dance exponent.
“Today is a day pride for Tripura. Another member of the state’s tribal community has been awarded the Padma Shri. Narendra Modiji’s government has nominated Shri Satyaram Reangji, the proverbial artist of the traditional Hajagiri dance, for the Padma Shri award. On behalf of 37 lakh Tripura people, I congratulate him”, Biplab Kumar Deb wrote on his Facebook page.
“The name of the Padma Award has been announced by the ministry of home affairs of the government of India today. I thank the central government and the Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modiji for bestowing this honor on Shri Satyaram Reang,” he further wrote.