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Hundreds of Dhanbad residents on Monday paid their tributes to Nibha Dutta, an academic, scholar, social activist and administrator, who passed away at Bokaro General Hospital on Sunday. She was 89.
The body of Dutta, a postgraduate from Calcutta University who was conferred the Jharkhand Ratan Award on March 28, 2010, was brought to the coal capital in an ambulance around 7.15am.
It was first taken to her Luby Circular Road-based house where hundreds thronged to pay respect, before being taken to the Abhoy Sundari School where she taught for a couple of years before joining SSLNT Women’s College.
After being kept at the school for an hour or so, Dutta’s body was shifted to the Hindu Mission Orphanage with which she had an association since 1960.
Later, Dutta’s body was brought to SSLNT Women’s College where hundreds bid her a tearful adieu. Dutta had joined the college as its founder teacher in 1955 and steadily rose through the ranks to become the institution’s principal in April 1981.
General secretary of Bengali Welfare Association Gopal Bhattacharya said Dutta’s body was donated to Calcutta’s RG Kar Medical College .
“She was a great woman. I came in touch with her around 10 years ago when she inducted me as a member of the orphanage. She was a mother-like figure to all the inmates here,” said joint secretary of the institution B.S. Gupta, who was one of the many to pay tribute.
He added that Dutta often took it on herself to arrange various articles like clothes and food for the inmates.
“She was an excellent administrator also. Her skills in documentation and letter drafting were beyond compare. Even at the ripe age of 80, she used to impart tips to us on ways to write effectively,” Gupta recalled.
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