Veteran journalist Balraj Puri passes away

JAMMU: Veteran journalist Padma Bhushan Balraj Puri passed away after prolonged illness at a Government Medical College here today.

He was 86. He is survived by his wife, daughter and journalist son Luv Puri. His cremation will take place at Jogi Gate in Jammu tomorrow, family said.

Puri, born on August 5, 1928, began his career in journalism as an editor of an Urdu weekly in 1942 and since then, he had been regularly contributing to various local and leading national dailies.

Puri was conferred Padma Bhushan for his contribution in the fields of Literature and Education in 2005 and also the Indira Gandhi award for national integration on October 31, 2009.

He was an author and co-author of about 40 books and approximately 1,000 articles for various dailies in India and abroad.

Jammu and Kashmir Governor N N Vohra has expressed grief over the sad demise of Puri, an eminent journalist, author and political analyst. The Governor spoke to his daughter and conveyed his sympathy to the bereaved family.

In the condolence message, the Governor said that Puri was one of the very few people who had a rare knowledge about every aspect of J-K's history, from before 1947, and had dedicated his entire life to the cause of promoting peace, goodwill and communal harmony in the society.