Kathmandu:

The 92nd birth anniversary of late Ganesh Man Singh was celebrated in a special way on November 10. He will always be remembered for his immeasurable contribution in bringing democracy to the country. To honour this great personality, his statue was inaugurated at the Ganesh Man Singh Jana Andolan Shahid Smriti Shanti Batika, Ratna Park by Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala.

Subas Nembang, Sushil Koirala, Prakash Man Singh, Ram Chandra Poudel, Amik Sherchan were present along with others at the function.

Speaking at the occasion, PM Koirala referred to Singh as a ‘heera’ (diamond) and he also stressed on the fact that the peaceful revolution should continue and make the constituent assembly successful.

Two photojournalists were also awarded at the function for their courageous coverage of the democratic movements — Jana Andolan I and II — at the function. Photojournalists Rajendra Manandhar of The Himalayan Times and Min Bajracharya of Himal Media each received a gold medal and citation plaque from Koirala, while Nembang draped a dosalla (shawl) around them as a mark of honour.

Photos taken by both were displayed at the venue. Bajracharya’s photos comprised those taken during the 1990 revolution, while Manandar’s were on last year’s Jana Anadolan.

“I now feel a greater responsibility towards the democratic movement. We, as photojournalists, have a responsibility to give authentic images to the people,” said Bajracharya, who is currently more focused on capturing images of social activists.

His collage on display shows a young woman standing among a midst of thousands sitting at a 1990 gathering flashing the ‘Victory’ signal. The other is this same woman, Durga Thapa, who is leading a protest rally during Jana Andolan II.

Happy at being given this special award, Manandhar expressed his joy at being one of the first to receive such an award.

About his photos, he said, “I guess it’s the compositions that clicked with the audience and the placements of the photos that made them popular.” He added, “The photos I’ve taken are for the freedom of this country.”