Eminent post-Rennaisance writer Annada Shankar Ray died in Kolkata today. He was 99.Ray, a former ICS officer who won the Padma Bhushan, had been ill for long. He was admitted to hospital on October 8. His condition worsened yesterday. Ray is survived by a son and two daughters.Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya visited the hospital to pay last respects to the writer. He regretted the passing away of Annada Shankar Ray and said that Bengali literature has suffered a loss with his death. Governor Viren J. Shah said: “Shri Ray was a doyen of the Bengali and Oriya literature. As a man, he was a paragon of conscientiousness and secular values.’’ Some of Ray’s acclaimed works are Pathe Probhase (travelogue), Satyasatya (novel), Putul Niye Khela (novel), Deash Kaal Patra (essay) and Rather Athithi (play).
