He spent much of his career working for the Foreign Languages Press in Beijing, and was recognised with a Peace and Friendship Award by Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai for his contributions to cultural exchange between China and India.
Ballabh was the first Indian to be granted long-term residency in China, and continued to translate works into Hindi even in his retirement.
Janaki Ballabh was born in the village of Dalakot in Almora, in the present-day Indian state of Uttarakhand, in 1928.
[1][3] In 1961, Ballabh was recognised with the Peace and Friendship Award by Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai for his contributions to cultural exchange between China and India.
He worked for the Foreign Languages Press and Radio China before returning to India after suffering a heart attack.