Book Release of Dr. Phanikanta Mishra’s Felicitation Volume by His Excellency Shri Keshari Nath Tripathi, the Hon’ble Governor of West Bengal at iLEAD

Book Release of Dr. Phanikanta Mishra’s Felicitation Volume by His Excellency Shri Keshari Nath Tripathi, the Hon’ble Governor of West Bengal at iLEAD

iLEAD played host to the felicitation ceremony of Dr. Phanikanta Mishra, Regional Director, Archeological Survey of India, for the release of his book – Pratna Bharatam, by His Excellency Shri Keshari Nath Tripathi, the Hon’ble Governor of West Bengal.

The iLEAD auditorium decked up for the grand felicitation ceremony, was graced by the presence of eminent dignitaries like Dr. Jeebankumar Patnaik (Editor of Pratna Bharatam and Superintending Archaeologist, Bhubaneswar Zone), Dr. Noor Bano Sattar  (Editor of Pratna Bharatam and Assistant Professor in Ancient Indian and World  History, The Sanskrit College & University, Government of West Bengal), Professor Rupendra Kumar Chattopadhyay, Paresh Chandra Chatterjee (Professor in History, Department of History, Presidency University, Kolkata), Prof D.J. Chakraborty, Department of History, St Xavier’s College, Kolkata, Shri Ajit Singh, Advocate, Rewa, MP.     

After the lighting of the lamp by the Chief Guest, Dr Phanikanta Mishra welcomed His Excellency with a Bouquet of Flowers, Uttariya, a Mithila Paag and a shawl made of a special Madhubani print.  After every guest (members of the Editorial Board) was honoured with a bouquet of flowers by students of iLEAD, Mr Tanmay Kumar Bhattacharya, Assistant Professor in Sahitya, Department of Traditional Oriental Learning, The Sanskrit College & University, recited the Mangalacharan that set the ambience for the event.

Following this, the Chairman of iLEAD, Mr. Pradip Chopra gave his welcome address where he spoke about heritage restoration and Dr Phanikanta Mishra’s contribution to archaeology. This was followed by Dr Noor Bano Sattar’s address on excavations, about the book Pratna Bharatam and its content that deals with the conservation, preservation and heritage management. 

Shri Gautam Halder, Deputy Superintending Archaeologist, ASI, Kolkata Circle and Sri Krishnendu Bandopadhyay, Senior Correspondent, The Times Of India shared few thoughts about Dr Mishra.

This was followed by the release of the Felicitation Volume by His Excellency. He spoke about how archaeology is a tool to unfold the cultural past of our country and how Dr Mishra, a widely travelled man, follows a scientific methodology in all his works.

Dr. Phanikanta Mishra then graced the dais to share anecdotes from his career, some of his path-breaking archaeological discoveries, his life and research.  He also expressed his extreme gratitude for this launch, the felicitation by His Excellency and each and everyone who contributed to his works.

Pooja Mishra, daughter of Dr. Phanikanta Mishra, shared the wisdom of her father’s work-life balance and how it has inspired her too. Following this, Dr. Jeeban Kumar Patnaik gave his vote of thanks to the esteemed dignitaries.   

At the close of the event, all the dignitaries and the crowd stood up for the national anthem that concluded the ceremony. His Excellency and other dignitaries were escorted around the iLEAD campus before their departure.