Last minute preparations for scaled-down Ekushey Book Fair 

Last minute preparations for this year's Amar Ekushey Book Fair, slated to begin on 15 February, are moving at a fast pace as the Bangla Academy, the fair organiser and stall owners are gearing up for the much awaited event that was delayed due to the recent surge in Covid-19 cases.

On Saturday, workers were busy cleaning surrounding areas of stalls that are already set up at the Bangla Academy premises and the Suhrawardy Udyan, while remaining stalls were being constructed. Decorations of the centre stage of the event are almost finished.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is scheduled to virtually inaugurate the fair, the theme of which this year is "We want a Covid-free Bangladesh."

Prince Shil, an official at the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, said that their stall is almost ready and the last minute rush is due to the uncertainty over holding the fair.

Bangla Academy usually starts preparations for the Book Fair from December and the allotment of stalls from January. Due to the worsening pandemic situation, the schedule was disrupted and as a result many authors and publications houses failed to take proper preparation for the fair.

Bangla Academy Director General Mohammad Nurul Huda told The Business Standard that they will know the total number of participating publishers, which was 466 last year, by tomorrow.

"Some publishers have already withdrawn their deposit amid the uncertainty over the fair," he said.

According to the initial schedule, the fair will be held from 15 February to 28 February and will remain open from 2pm to 9pm for visitors. On weekends and public holidays, the fair will open at 11am and the only exception will be on 21 February, when it will open at 8am  

Earlier on Friday the State Minister for Cultural Affairs, KM Khalid, urged booklovers to carry their Covid-19 vaccination cards and follow health guidelines when visiting the Amar Ekushey Boi Mela.

He also assured publishers that the authorities will cut stall fares 50% to minimise losses to publishers.

"We will also extend the fair if the Covid-19 infection rate declines," he said, visiting the preparations for the Amar Ekushey Boi Mela at Suhrawardy Udyan on Friday afternoon.

This time the fair will be held in an area of 7.5 lakh square feet with a separate stage for children. They will be able to play sports following hygiene rules. There is also a separate stage for unveiling new books.

Meanwhile, book publishers and sellers' associations have written to the Bangla Academy demanding the book fair be extended till March 17, the birthday of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

They urged the Academy to consider their demand, pointing out that publishers suffered losses at the last fair and overall business in the sector has been down during the long phase of the pandemic.

If the fair is held only for two weeks, they will suffer further losses, said the publishers.