All set for Ekushey book fair

After a break of three years, the month-long “Amar Ekushey Grantha Mela”, the country’s largest and longest book fair, is set to begin on its traditional date of the first day of February.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is scheduled to inaugurate the book fair in person. Publishers, authors, and readers are already in a festive mood as only a few days are left before the upcoming book fair.

Meanwhile, rows of bookstalls have been set up inside Bangla Academy and Suhrawardy Udyan where the fair is going to be organised this year dividing the fairgrounds into four sections.

The fairground on Bangla Academy premises has been named after Chittaranjan Saha, the proprietor of the renowned publishing house Muktadhara, who pioneered the book fair. The Suhrawardy Udyan, on the other hand, features Sheikh Russell Shishu corner, Bangmata Sheikh Fazilatun Nesa corner, and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman corner.

Due to the increase in paper prices, publishing houses have been compelled to raise book prices this year. As a result, authors and publishers are worried about how the increased book prices are going to influence the book fair.

Moin Morsalin, general secretary of the Ramna Thana unit of the Bangladesh Publishers and Book-Sellers Association, said, “The country’s citizens are affluent and expect high-quality literature. Even if the increase in book prices affects sales, hopefully, it will not be a big hindrance. This year the industry will partially recover from the losses incurred in the previous two years due to the Covid pandemic.”

“A 31-member committee, led by Bangla Academy Director General Muhammad Nurul Huda, has been formed to oversee the fair’s smooth operation,” said KM Mujahidul Islam, member secretary of the Amar Ekushey Grantha Mela and director of administration for the human resource development and planning division of the Bangla Academy.

Bangla Academy sources said the fair will have a prayer area and restrooms in addition to the food court. To strengthen the security system, CCTV cameras have been installed at various points of the fairground in addition to the security booths of various law enforcement agencies.