Thiruvananthapuram, Nov 1 (PTI) Noted Malayalam writerPaul Zacharia has been selected for this year's Ezhuthachan Puraskaram, the Kerala government's highest literary honour.

The award, named after Ezhuthachan, the father of the Malayalam language, carries a cash prize of Rs five lakh and a citation.

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Zacharia was chosen for his contribution to Malayalam literature during the past five decades, Culture Affairs ministerA K Balan said in a release on Sunday.

A five-member jury, headed by Kerala Sahitya Akademi President Vyshakhan, selected him for the award.

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The award will be presented to the writerat a function in the Secretariat here at a later date.

Born in 1945 at Kottayam, Zacharia had worked as a journalist with various national media organisations, a state government release said.

'Salam America', 'Oridath, 'Aarkkariyam', 'Bhaskara patelarum ente jeevithavum' are among his various literary works.

Zacharia won the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award in 1979 and the Kendra Sahitya Akademi Award in 2004.

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