Guwahati: Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma said that the translation of the book will be carried out by India’s 24 Sahitya Akademi Award-winning writers in different regional languages. He said, “By the end of this financial year (April-May) we will be able to publish a book on Bir Lachit Borphukan in 24 regional languages”.
Speaking to the media on the sideline of an event in Guwahati, the CM said, “During the 400th birth anniversary of Lachit Borphukan, when we wrote letters to my counterparts of different states to include a chapter on him in the school textbooks, it was found that the chief ministers of other states had a vague idea of Lachit Barphukan who defeated Mughals in the famous battle of Saraighat.”
CM Sarma opined that the people of other states had no idea in what context Bir Lachit Borphukan defeated the Mughals in the Battle of Saraighat. How the great warrior managed to keep the Mughals out of Assam for a certain period is unknown to the people of India.
CM Sarma also mentioned that there were only four warriors in entire Bharat who fought bravely against the Mughal and defeated them, however, only a few know about Bir Lachit Borphukan. Modern day historians never wrote about Bir Lachit and not many textbooks or literature was written in other languages about him even after 75 years of Independence.
CM Sarma said Chhatrapati Shivaji, Durga Das Rathore, Guru Govind Singh and Bir Lachit Borphukan were the four bravehearts who defeated Mughals in war. But apart from Chhatrapati Shivaji and Guru Govind Singh no one knows about Durga Das Rathore or Bir Lachit Borphukan outside its respective states. “Even Assam’s closest neighbour West Bengal’s people do not know anything about Lachit Borphukan and his great valour ,” CM Sarma added.
“Even if we write a lot of books and literature in English and Hindi, till it is not available in languages like Gujarati, Bengali, Tamil or Marathi or other regional languages the purpose will not be fulfilled to educate people about the great warrior of Assam.” CM Sarma added.
