Like last year, this year too DY365 did a program on the most influential assamese of 2014. I nominated my own list for the first round, but due to non availablity of the channel on the Italian network missed out on the other nominations. Still, I am happy that 5 of my nominees made it to the top 10. While 8 had made it to the top 40. By a goof up I sent a list of 11 names instead of 10, here I am removing one name from my list of 11 and posting it.
Here are my nominations for the most influential assamese of 2014, with a brief description of why I think they deserve to be on the list:
1. Mr. Tarun Gogoi: He has been a long time CM of the state, and we may not agree to all his policy making decisions but the truth is that he has enormous influence within the party which transcended the recent rebellion against him. His advocacy of his son resulted in him being elected as an MP too.
2. Mr. Zubeen Garg: For more than two decades he has been a crusader of Assamese culture via his songs. Many of us like me, who live abroad his songs are the only link to the state at times of joy, despair and distress.
3. Mr. Adil Hussain: A very talented actor who has shot into national and international acclaim and has ushered in a new era of cinema in the state. His name should definitely be on the list for his numerous award winning works.
4. Dr. Anupam Saikia: An Associate Professor of Mathematics at IIT Guwahati, Dr. Saikia has left many lucrative job offers from abroad after completing his PhD from Cambridge. For many students in Assam he is an example of how one can achieve the pinnacle of academic success and serve the state.
5. Mr. Satyakam Dutta: An Assistant Commisoner in the Income Tax department, he has been an inspiration and a huge help for numerous civil services aspirants of the state. He was the brain child of the very popular job website www.sakori.org which has helped thousands of job seekers in the state. He is also associated with many social and cultural activities like xomidhan.org, enajori.com, xahitya.org.
6. Dr. Buljit Buragohain: An Assistant Professor at GIMT Guwahati, he has been spearheading many activities on social media as well with interactions among thousands of students in the past few years. He was the person who spearheaded the establishment of an engineering college in Dhemaji. In spite of his many activities, he is always available to talk to students about career related matters.
7. Mr. Arnab Goswami: He is the one who has created a niche for Assamese people in the national media stage. No one can ignore him any more, people may like him or hate him but he does influence a lot of them through his news channel. Many Assamese upcoming media people look up to him as a source of inspiration.
8. Mr. Jadav Payeng: How much we say about him will always be less. He is a very good source of inspiration and a role model for everyone. His example just shows how a single person with a good idea can change the world.
9. Prof. Jitendra Nath Goswami: One of the very few Assamese scientists to win the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar award, Prof. Goswami has held many distinguished positions in his life; including heading the Chandrayan mission of ISRO. He has also been instrumental in many activities in the state related to science education and academics in general.
10. Mr. Homen Buragohain: He has been the doyen of Assamese literature for quite some time now and has carried that role with great panache. His opinions on various matters can influence people of all spheres of life. His fearless columns in newspapers makes people stand up and take a stand.