He was 79.
Rath was the recipient of many prestigious awards, including the Orissa Sahitya Academy Award, Vishuba Award, Gokarnika Award and the Shudramuni Sahitya Award.
He was also honoured by global cooperation society international, Seoul, Republic of Korea for contribution to world peace and welfare, cooperation and services.
Rath was conferred the highest honours from the Orissa Sahitya Academy Award for 'Manara Manachitra'. He was also awarded the Tagore Literature Award (2010) for his poetry collection 'Samanya Asamanya'.