CHATTOGRAM, Jan 02: Ekushey Padak-winning poet and celebrated children's rhymester Sukumar Barua passed away on Friday morning at a hospital in Chattogram. He was 87.
He breathed his last at around 6:55 AM, his daughter Anjana Barua confirmed to the media.
Family members said Sukumar Barua had been undergoing treatment at the hospital since last week due to old-age complications. He had developed fluid accumulation in his lungs and died while receiving treatment.
Sukumar Barua had been suffering from multiple health issues for years. Following a brain stroke in 2006, the right side of his body became partially paralyzed. He later developed heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes, according to family sources.
Born on January 5, 1938, in Raozan Upazila's Madhyam Binajuri village, Barua began his professional life in the 1960s as a fourth-grade employee at Dhaka University.
In 1963, he rented a modest bamboo-fenced room at Topkhana Road for only Tk 06 per month and began writing independently. His rhymes soon found their way into children's literary platforms such as Kochikachar Ashor, Khelaghar and Mukuler Mahfil. He retired from Dhaka University in 1999, serving as a storekeeper.
Over nearly six decades of writing, Sukumar Barua emerged as one of the most influential figures in Bengali children's literature. Widely referred to as Chhararaj, Chharashilpi and Chharasamrat, he was known for blending satire, humour and moral lessons, while also weaving in themes of the Liberation War and political consciousness.
Some of his notable works include Pagla Ghora, Bhije Beral, Chandana Ranjanar Chhora, Elopataari, Nana Ronger Din, Sukumar Baruar 101ti Chhora, Chiching Phank, Kichu Na Kichu, Priyo Chhora Shotok, Nodir Khela, Chotoder Haat, Mojar Pora 100 Chhora, Sukumar Baruar Chhora Shombhar (two volumes), Juktoborno, Chandanar Pathshala and Jiboner Bhetore Baire.
In recognition of his contribution to literature, the government awarded him the Ekushey Padak in 2017.
Writers and cultural figures said Sukumar Barua's passing marks the end of an era in Bangla children's rhyme, leaving behind a body of work that shaped generations of young readers.
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