Mangaluru : Litterateur and journalist Vi Ga Nayak conferred prestigious Padyana Gopalakrishna (Pa Go) award for rural reporting, on ‘Vijaya Karnataka’ Udupi reporter Balakrishna Shibarla, for the year 2014.

The award was handed over at a formal function organised by Dakshina Kannada District Working Journalists’ Association at Mangalore Press Club on Tuesday.

Three-member jury including ‘Udayavani’ Bureau Chief Manohar Prasad, ‘Prajavani’ Bureau Chief Balakrishna Puttige and M’lore University Department of MCJ Head Dr G P Shivaram had selected Balakrishna Shibarla for his report ‘Naxal, Police Madhye Nalugidavaru’, which was published in the daily on July 31, 2014.

The award comprises Rs 10,001 cash prize and citation. However, Balakrishna Shibarla didn’t accept the cash reward. Speaking on the occasion, he expressed concern about the attraction of journalists towards cities and stressed on recognising rural writers.

Chief guest Vi Ga Nayak said late Padyana Gopalakrishna Bhat who explored himself in many ways should be model to modern journalists. Pa Go was also a novelist, but now a days journalists don’t work for literature, he opined.

Even, Manohar Prasad said Pa Go was a self-made man who worked for English dailies just with higher primary school education. He was a brilliant journalist and creative person. Very few know that Pa Go has designed that logo of Campco and he also tried his luck in film production, he said.

Sumithra Padyana Gopalakrishna Bhat, Information Department Officer Khader Shah, Vijaya Karnataka Resident Editor U K Kumarnath, Dakshina Kannada District Working Journalists’ Association President Jagannath Shetty Bala, Press Club President Ramakrishna and others were present.