WEB DESK
The month-long ‘Ekushey Boi Mela’ concluded on Tuesday with colourful firework and laser show at the historic Suhrawardy Udyan in Dhaka.
During the book fair, visitors thronged the stalls spread across the grounds of Bangla Academy and Suhrawardy Udyan to buy books and also to bond over and socialise with friends and family. More than 63 lakh people visited the book fair this year, said Bangla Academy, the organiser of the festival.
According to Bangla Academy, till 27th February, roughly Taka 47 crore worth of books were sold at the book fair which is slightly lower compared to last year. More than 3,700 books were released over the four weeks of the Boi-mela, the majority of them being poetry books, novels and children’s literature.
State Minister for Cultural Affairs K M Khalid was the Chief Guest during the closing ceremony organised at the Bangla Academy premises. Bangla Academy Director General Nurul Huda gave the welcome speech at the closing ceremony. State Minister for Culture K M Khalid also gave away prizes during the closing ceremony under various categories.
‘Poro Boi, Goro Desh, Bangabandhu Bangladesh’ meaning ‘Read books to make the country of Bangabandhu’s Dream’ was the theme for this year’s book fair.
Ekushey Book Fair started in 1972 to commemorate the sacrifices of people killed by Pakistani forces on 21 February 1952 demanding Bangla as the mother language in the then East Pakistan. It has been organised every year by the Bangla Academy since 1978.