The 10-day fair is organised by Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Kolkata, Bangladesh Ruptani Unnayan Bureau and Bangladesh Gyan o Srijonshil Prakashok Sammilani.

 

The inauguration ceremony of the book fair was attended by Bengali poet and Padma Bhushan award winner Sankha Ghosh, noted academician and Padma Bhushan award winner Prof Anisujjaman, the Director General of Bangla Academy, Shamsuzzaman Khan, special assistant to Bangladesh Prime Minister and poet, Mahbubul Alam Shakil, and a representative from Bangladesh Gyan o Srijonshil  Prkashok Committee, Osman Gani.

 

Speaking at the inauguration, Sankha Ghosh said, “It is indeed heartwarming to see that we are so concerned about books. Instead of fighting and regretting on our losses, let us just find out what’s there around us and try to get the best out of it.”

 

“Standing in the heart of Kolkata, I am proud to say that Bangladesh has inherited one of the richest treasures of books. Reading those books will help us to gather knowledge on various aspects.”

 

Talking to IBNS, Prof Anisujjaman said,”We except that such cultural fairs will initiate a good bonding between India and Bangladesh, because academics and knowledge-sharing are essential for any kind of proper development.”

 

One of organisers said, “The books that are available in the fair are mainly on subjects like linguistics, literature, history, science and anthropology, written by Bangladeshi authors and published in Bangladesh too.”

 

The fair will also host cultural events, including programmes highlighting Bangladeshi folk traditions.

 

Reporting by Aninnya Sarkar, Images by Souvik Das