Chief Minister Oommen Chandy presented the Vallathol Award to poet and lyricist Yusafali Kecheri here on Tuesday. The award comprises `1,11,111 and plaque.
‘’The value of an award is judged by the person after whom it is named and by the stature of its recipient. Yusufali Kecheri is very much eligible for this award,’’ Chandy said.
Yusufali Kecheri urged the people of Kerala to protect Malayalam language which was facing neglect. Malayalam should be loved and given first preference, he said.
The Vallathol Award was instituted by the Vallathol Sahitya Samithi in 1991 to commemorate poet Vallathol Narayana Menon.
Chandy also inaugurated a ‘Sahitheeyolsavam 2012’ organised by the samithi to mark the 134th birth anniversary of Vallathol.
Public Service Commission chairman K S Radhakrishnan and IG B Sandhya were among those present.