Raj Kanwar (1930 – 31 October 2022) was an Indian journalist, writer and entrepreneur based in Dehradun.

Life

Raj Kanwar was born in Lahore, British Raj, on 8 October 1930.[1][2] In June 1947 his family shifted to Dehradun with the intention of waiting out the riots of that year. What was meant to be a short stay, turned permanent.[1][3] In college in Dehradun, Kanwar started writing, becoming a student editor of a fortnightly publication. He also became a stringer for The Tribune, The Indian Express and The Statesman in the 1950s.[1][3] In 1953 he started an English weekly called 'Vanguard'.[1] Here he started writing about government organisations such as the Ordnance Factory in Dehradun and the Survey of India.[4] His stories would go on to attract the attention of The Indian Express and was hired by the paper as a reporter in Delhi.[5]

Kanwar left his job in New Delhi and in 1959 he joined the government of Himachal Pradesh as an editor in its public relations department.[1] He went on to become the first public relations officer for the state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Commission (ONGC).[3] Kanwar recalled that about a hundred Russians had come to Dehradun to set up ONGC, and as such the city was influenced by their presence; vegetable sellers would learn Russian words; "desi vodka was invented".[3] Kanwar was then sent to Gujarat to help with ONGC operations followed by a posting in Sibsagar in Assam.[5]

After three years he resigned from his post in ONGC and went to Calcutta for an advertising job. He left in a year and returned to Dehradun.[1] In Dehradun he started "Witness - Newsweekly with a Difference".[1] Inspired by American author Erle Stanley Gardner's titles such as "The case of the defective registers", he would choose similar titles for his investigative exposes.[1]

In 1970 he founded SK Oilfield Equipment Co which is now run by his son.[1] As a freelancer he has written columns for numerous newspapers. As of 2020, Kanwar was 90; as he was not able to write himself he took the assistance of a secretary.[6] He was a regular writer of obituaries for Doonites.[7] He initiated Writers' Combine, a group focusing on young writers and readers in the valley.[8][9]

Kanwar died on 31 October 2022, at the age of 92.[10] He had been working on his fourth book titled "Writer of Obituaries".[7]

Publications

  • Upstream India: Fifty Golden Years of ONGC (2006). ISBN 9788190390309
  • ONGC: The Untold Story (2018). Bloomsbury. ISBN 978-9388271394[11]
  • Dateline Dehradun (2020) Self published/ Saraswati Press.[12] Foreword by Navtej Sarna.[13] ISBN 978-9353968793

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Vijay, Sunita (7 October 2020). "Mr Raj Kanwar: Doyen of the Literary World". Garhwal Post. Retrieved 19 February 2021.
  2. ↑ Roy, Suparna (6 October 2020). Saxena, Sparshita (ed.). "'90 and going strong': Author Raj Kanwar from Dehradun all set to release his 4th book". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 19 February 2021.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Gupta, Surbhi (12 November 2020). "Why the Doon Valley is home to veteran journalist Raj Kanwar". The Indian Express. Retrieved 19 February 2021.
  4. ↑ "Veteran journalist & author Raj Kanwar passes away". Pioneer Edge. 31 October 2022. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
  5. 1 2 Kanwar, Raj (17 November 2020). "A trip down memory lane with Nehru and Indira". Tehelka. Retrieved 19 February 2021.
  6. ↑ Vij, Sanjana (7 October 2020). "90-Year-Old Author Raj Kanwar All Set To Release His 4th Book". The Notorious Reader. Retrieved 19 February 2021.
  7. 1 2 "Veteran journalist Raj Kanwar is no more". Garhwal Post. 1 November 2022. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
  8. ↑ Chopra, Jaskiran (15 July 2019). "Nayantara: Each writer has his or her own voice and must discover it". The Pioneer. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
  9. ↑ "'The Writers' Combine' constituted to encourage young talent". Garhwal Post. 15 July 2019. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
  10. ↑ "'Chronicler of Dehradun', veteran author Raj Kanwar dies at 92". The Times of India. 1 November 2022. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
  11. ↑ "ONGC – The Untold Story' launched". Pioneer Edge. 7 January 2019. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
  12. ↑ Saili, Ganesh (2 August 2020). "'Dateline Dehra Dun' book review: A quiet visit to the past". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 19 February 2021.
  13. ↑ Chopran, Jaskiran (14 May 2020). "A book that evokes nostalgia for the Doon Valley". The Pioneer. Retrieved 19 February 2021.

Further reading

Primary sources

As a book reviewer
As an obituary and tribute writer
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