Sorts Journalists’ Association of Odisha (OSJA) will play host to the 39th National Convention of Sports Journalist Federation of India (SJFI) here at KIIT University campus from September 14 to 18. OSJA’s proposal to stage this prestigious event for the first time in the state was approved in the just concluded SJFI Annual General Meeting (AGM at Nagpur, Maharashtra.

According to the decisions taken in the AGM, the 40th and 41st SJFI National Conventions will take place at Indore in 2017 and Bengaluru in 2018 respectively. The AGM also approved a proposal to induct six eminent sportspersons as members of SJFI, honouring them for their sports columns. The six are: Sunil Gavaskar, Ravi Shastri, Geet Sethi, Michael Ferrera, Chuni Goswamy and P T Usha. In another decision, the newly formed Telangana Sports Journalists Association was given affiliation by the SJFI.

OSJA secretary Suresh Swain and joint-secretary Sambit Mohapatra represented Odisha in the two-day AGM. The election of office-bearers of SJFI for the term 2016-2018 was conducted on the occasion. Subodh Malla Barua (Assam) and A Vinod (Kerala) were elected as the new president and secretary respectively. Sambit Mohapatra retained his post as member of the Executive Committee.

SJFI OFFICE-BEARERS FOR THE TERM 2016-2018): President: Subodh Malla Barua (Dainik Assam); Vice-presidents: Saroju Chakrovarty (Syadan Patrika, Agartala), D V Garud (Kannad Prava, Dharmendra Panth (Vasha), Kishor Bagede (Lokmat); Secretary: A Vinod (The Hindu, Thiruvananthpuram); Joint-secretary: R Koushik (Wisden India); Treasurer: Prashant Keny (Loksatta); Executive Members: R Narayanan (The Hindu), Bikash Pandey (Agniban), Avishek Sengupta (Aee Samay), Bidyut Kalita (Amamiya Pratidin), Amitav Das Sharma (The Hindu), S Ramaswamy, Sambit Mohapatra (Nirbhay), Manjiula Veerappa (Times of India) and Devendra Pandey (Indian Express).

 

TOP: OSJA secretary Suresh Swain (1st from left) and joint-secretary Sambit Mohapatra (1st from Right) felicitate SJFI president Subodh Malla Barua (2nd from right) and secretary A Vinod in Nagpur on June 26, 2016.
RIGHT: Office-bearers of SJFI at the Annual General Meeting in Nagpur on June 26, 2016.