Guwahati: 'Prantik's' Pradip Baruah Laid to Rest; Absentees Notable

The last rites of veteran journalist and Founding Editor of ‘Prantik’ magazine, Pradip Baruah, were performed at the Navagraha Crematorium in Guwahati on Thursday. Baruah passed away the previous evening at a private hospital in the city. His daughter, Rashmi Baruah, performed the customs and lit the funeral pyre.

The funeral meeting was attended by a limited number of people, with the immediate family and close relatives present along with some noted personalities. Among them were Samudra Gupta Kashyap, Dilip Chandan, Ankur Deka, Kamal Kataki, Dr Narayan Sarma, Manoj Goswami, Prasanta Rajguru, Prakash Mahanta, Mrinal Talukdar and other eminent people from the journalism fraternity. 

However, the absentees were more notable as not a single representative from either of the ruling party or the opposition was seen at the cremation. In addition, despite talks of state honours, no such provisions were made. 

This has led to murmurs about the gross disrespect to one of the state’s jewels, with such a deep contribution to journalism and literature, in his final journey.

Notably, Pradip Baruah had helmed Prantik, a multi-topic Assamese language magazine published fortnightly from Guwahati in Assam since 1981, as its Founding Editor. He had been admitted to a private hospital in Guwahati for the last 12 days, where he breathed his last at the age of 87.

A veteran in the field of journalism, Pradip Baruah was a distinguished guest at Asomiya Pratidin's 'Nirbasan Nirikhan' (Election Inspection) series in the build-up to the 2024 general elections, sharing his valuable insights.

Baruah was born on September 3, 1938, in Dibrugarh. His schooling happened in Don Bosco School in Guwahati. He did his graduation from the erstwhile Cotton College.

The younger son of Radha Govinda Baruah, Pradip Baruah, is survived by his wife, daughter, son-in-law, and three granddaughters. His passing comes just days after the death of his brother, Prafulla Govinda Baruah.

Pradip Baruah was also a recipient of the Pratidin Group’s Achievers Award, along with the Sadin Literature and Journalism Award.