Mystic Land of Half Moon, Ladakh

Born at Jammu, Dr. Ashok Jerath is a prolific writer, an author of twenty-three books in addition to hundreds of articles and research papers published in reputed magazines on the subjects of art, architecture and social anthropology. He is an acclaimed art critic and an expert in the field of Himalayan art and culture. His book Folk Art of Duggar is a landmark in the field of Dogra folk culture of this region. His book on Ripples in the Himalayas is a treatise on sociological anthropology of the people inhabiting the western Himalaya. Another book Rajat Shikhron ke Rupehle Swar opens new horizons in the field of folk culture of this region. The book was awarded by Central Hindi Directorate. Dr. Jerath is an authority on comparative study of literature; his work, Stream of Consciousness and Hindi Fiction, has been acknowledged as one of the best works in this field.Dr. Jerath has been awarded twice by Central Hindi Directorate and once by J&K Academy of Art, Culture and Languages. He was honoured by almost three scores of literary and cultural organisations for his services rendered in the field of folk culture and literature. He is a laureate of national scholarship bestowed upon him by National cademy of Letters, Sahitya Academy, New Delhi. He was honoured to be member of several prestigious institutions like Jammu University’s Oriental Faculty and Research Studies and a jury member of Sahitya Academy.Dr. Jerath is a broadcaster by profession and he has done some pioneering work in the field of production of documentaries both for Radio and Doordarshan which has been acclaimed at national level. At present he is serving as Station Director in All India Radio, Jammu.