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Orissa scribe collects newspapers to create world record

By Jatindra Dash, IANS

Baripada (Orissa) : Here is a journalist with a different ambition. He collects newspapers from various parts of the globe with an aim to create a world record.

Shashanka Shekhar Dash, 30, a resident of Deulsahi village in Orissa’s Mayurbhanj district, some 250 km from here, works as a journalist for some local television channels.

But his real passion is collecting newspapers from all corners of the world. Dash already has a collection of more then 610 newspapers in 20 different languages from 16 countries.

“I initially collected Oriya newspapers 12 years ago. Later I decided to collect newspapers from other states and countries,” Dash told IANS.

“I have enriched my knowledge by nurturing a hobby like this and now I want to create a world record in newspaper collection,” he said.

Dash’s collection comprises newspapers from Britain, the US, Sri Lanka, Italy, Tanzania, Laos, Malaysia, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Kenya, Israel, Uganda and Bangladesh besides the other states of India.

“I love to read different books and newspapers, even their older editions. When they get collected in large numbers, I decide not to dispose them of because they too have some value and one can enjoy reading them any time,” he said.

The dailies that Dash collected in his home are in different languages like English, Hindi, Urdu, Oriya, Bengali, Sanskrit, Marathi, Gujarati, Malayalam, Japanese, Nepali, Konkani, Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, Punjabi, bilinguals in English and Oriya, Assamese, and tribal languages like Ol-Chiki and Karbi.

When asked how he manages to get these copies, Dash said: “I take the help of the editors of different newspapers by sending them mail. Sometimes, I collect their telephone numbers from the directory and speak to them”.

“I request them to send me a copy of their paper. Many of them