Poet Prabha Varma has been selected for the Pattathuvila Karunakaran memorial award for the best literary personality of the decade.
Tamil writer Perumal Murugan has also been chosen for the award that carries a cash prize of Rs.25,000, a statuette, and a citation.
The jury comprised former Minister M.A. Baby, former civil servant K. Mohankumar, and M.P. Achuthan, former Member of Parliament.
Mr. Varma, who is currently media advisor to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, has been chosen for his enriching contribution to Malayalam poetry through his works, including Shyama Madhavam .
Perumal Murugan has over 35 novels to his credit, including the controversial Mathorubhagan . He gave up writing when his life was threatened and returned to the world of letters only after the High Court struck down the ban on his book.
According to the office-bearers of Pattathuvila Karunakaran Memorial Trust, which has instituted the award, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan will give away the awards at a function, the dates of which will be announced later.
