By AFP - Agence France Presse
Indian author Ghosh wins top Dutch prize
Acclaimed Indian author Amitav Ghosh has won the coveted Dutch Erasmus Prize for his writings on climate change and its impact on humanity, especially in the Indian subcontinent.
Ghosh “delved deeply into the question of how to do justice to this existential threat that challenges our imagination,” the prize committee said in a statement.
The Erasmus Prize, which will be presented by Dutch King Willem-Alexander on Tuesday, is awarded for an “outstanding contribution to the humanities, the social sciences or the arts, in Europe and beyond.”
The winner receives a cash prize of 150,000 euros ($157,000).
The Premium Erasmianum Foundation, which awards the prize, noted that Ghosh had described how the effects of climate change were “inextricably linked” to human destiny on the Indian subcontinent.
The foundation cited his work “The Hungry Tide,” which portrayed how rising sea levels were devastating life in the Sundarbans, the world's largest mangrove forest.
The 68-year-old's work is also political, with “The Great Derangement,” which places climate change in the context of war and trade.
“Through understanding and imagination, he creates space for hope, a prerequisite for change,” said the prize committee.
Born in Calcutta, Ghosh has won several literary awards, including the 2018 Jnanpith Prize, India's highest award.
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