The prestigious Sahitya Akademi award is considered by many as an Indian equivalent to the Nobel Prize. A cursory glance into the list of the past winners would convey the fact that most of the authors spent 5-6 years in researching, ruminating and writing their masterpieces. Hence, the monetary award of ₹1,00,000 comes across as a pittance. Though the winners get name and fame, the material benefit also matters. A government that spends millions of rupees to promote Hindi and Sanskrit should be in a good position to reward such high achievement in literature more appropriately. The prize money should be increased to ₹5,00,000, which would encourage new writers.
Anna Mary Yvonne,
Chennai
