The philosophy behind the name Amar Ekushey Book Fair after February 21, 1952, was to help future generations remember the Language Movement, its history and its martyrs.
However, interestingly, during a visit to this year’s Book Fair on Tuesday, when the country paid tribute to the 1952 martyrs, this correspondent found that hardly any readers were browsing books on the essence and history of the Language Movement.
There are very few books on display at the fair on the movement. The handful of readers who were looking for such books expressed unhappiness because they were unable to find the books they like.
Publishers and booksellers say that most readers have lost their love and devotion for knowing the history of the movement and martyrs while there are not enough writers or researchers. The books that are coming out, their content is also not rich enough to inspire readers to buy these books.
On the other hand, readers claim that despite having interest, they are failing to find books on the movement as most of the stalls do not have enough of them. Many said the publishers must keep books written on the movement.
However, academicians and writers said that the country has failed to introduce the young generation to the history of Bangladesh, where the Language Movement is the second most important historic event after the 1971 Liberation War.
They said the government must take the issue seriously into account and introduce the students to history at the primary and secondary education levels so that they can become responsible citizens.
“I have been involved with the Ekushey Book Fair for a long time. The interest of readers in knowing the history of the Language Movement has been reducing gradually,” said Mahzuza Biswas Happy, proprietor of Uttaran Prakashan.
“Our stall has these books. But I did not see a single reader searching for them or even the history of the Liberation War this year. This is very unfortunate for us as a nation,” she said.
“Most from the young generation come to the fair only to pass time but not for the love of books. This trend increases every year,” she added.
From time to time, only a handful of middle-aged people or senior citizens were seen searching for such history books on Tuesday, said Shuvra Barua, senior cataloguer at Bangla Academy.
But the young generation hardly looks at these books. They are not that interested to know the history of the heroes of 1952, she added.
Not enough books
Talking to The Business Post, visitor Rakib Hossain said he was looking for books on Language Movement but he hardly found any, especially anything new. “If this keeps happening, future generations will forget the 1952 heroes. The authorities concerned must take initiative to publish more books on this.”
Another visitor, service holder Md Rafiqul Islam said, “Teachers do not teach about Language Movement at the secondary or higher secondary level. This is why children have very poor knowledge of our history. We need more books in the curriculum and research on the movement.”
He also expressed frustration over the lack of books on the 1952 movement at the fair. “This is depressing.”
In this regard, writer Bilu Kabir said, “This happens when writers write from a commercial mentality instead of their responsibility for the country. If this continues in the next five years, the young generation will forget the history of the Language Movement. The government should take necessary steps to inspire publishers to release more books on this.”
Prominent academic Professor Dr AAMS Arefin Siddique, also former vice-chancellor of Dhaka University (DU), told The Business Post that this could be happening since the young generation reads books online and those on Language Movement are not always available on the internet.
“On the other hand, over the years, we as a nation have failed to introduce history to the young generation. Learning about our country’s history in detail should be made mandatory at the school and college levels,” he said.
On Tuesday, the book fair at Suhrawardy Udyan and Bangla Academy premises witnessed a record number of visitors, as many went after paying tribute to the 1952 martyrs at Central Shaheed Minar on the DU campus. The day was a public holiday.
However, publishers and traders said the overall turnover was higher than on other days but it did not reflect the huge number of visitors. While some said they were happy with their sale, many expressed dissatisfaction.
Mustafa Salim, CEO and proprietor of Utso Prokashan, said, “The number of visitors was so huge that there was hardly any space to stand. But most of them did not buy books. It was like not even two out of 100 people bought any book. Most of the people came just to pass time and take photos.”
He also said, “The way writers are writing books on Language Movement is not enough. We need more basic research on the movement and better content. If we can ensure that, more books on the movement will be published and the number of their readers will increase.”
