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Sharada Prasad conferred D. Litt.

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, MARCH 3. His two-minute speech was devoid of the characteristic sharp-witted anecdotes and sense of humour that the administrator, writer, journalist and former press secretary to Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, H.Y. Sharada Prasad, is known for.

But when this octogenarian rose to deliver his acceptance speech after being presented with the D. Litt. (honoris causa) by the Mysore University at the Karnataka Bhavan here today, the sense of pride and jubilation among the audience that included Sharada Prasad's wife, their son, and grandchildren was evident.

Surrounded by his friends and comrades, Mr. Prasad received the award from the Governor of Karnataka and Chancellor of the University of Mysore, T.N. Chaturvedi. Mr. Prasad had been unable to attend the 84th Convocation of the University of Mysore held on January 22 in Karnataka.

Author of several books, including ``Selected Works Of Jawaharlal Nehru'', ``The Book I Shall Not Be Writing And Other Essays'', ``Rashtrapati Bhavan: The Story of the President's House'' and ``Indira Gandhi: Statesmen, Scholars, Scientists and Friends Remember'', Mr. Prasad said: ``I feel privileged to have been born at a time when great people including Mahatma Gandhi were still around to spread the message of compassion. Today I feel grateful to my teachers who allowed us to interact with the best of minds from our times. When they grow old, people realise that their achievements are rather small, when compared to the huge potential that they have when they are young and I have reached that stage.''

Also present were the former Maharashtra Governor, P.C. Alexander, and the senior Congress leader, Natwar Singh.

Welcoming the dignitaries, the Karnataka resident commissioner, Sudhakar Rao, said: ``We are happy to be part of the celebration to honour one of the most important people of Karnataka who has to his credit several writings and a most distinguished service record.''

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