The 14th edition of Rajadhani Book Fair has begun at the Exhibition Ground here on December 4.
Around 600 stalls have been allocated to publishers and book sellers of the State and outside like Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata and Uttar Pradesh, etc. Reputed publishers in the State like AK Mishra Agency, Kalyani, Friends Publications, Vidyapuri, etc, apart from National Book Trust (NBT) and Kendriya Sahitya Akademi from outside, have participated.
Odia books are in high demand this time as a large number of books in literature are being sold right from the day one, said convener of Rajadhani book fair, Ramesh Chandra Swain. As usual, a pretty good number of Odia literary books published this year have been displayed for sale, he added. He also said book fair provides a platform for writers, publishers and readers to get united and interact with each other.
If parents encourage their children to read Odia books, it will give a further boost to the demand for Odia literature and enrich Odia language, he opined. On the New Year day, instead of giving flowers and sweets, books should be gifted, so that people’s interest in literature will grow, Swain suggested. Marketing Executive of NBT Shantanu Bhhatacharya said the demand for children’s books is more in Bhubaneswar.
He said that the book fair makes available lots of books at a place thus giving the book lovers a wide range of options to choose from. “Though a good collection of both Odia and English books are available here, I prefer to buy Odia books as we can always purchase English books online through internet at a good discount,” said Amrita Kundu, a reader.
On the inaugural day, as many as12 writers from different sections of Odia literature were awarded with Rajadhani Pushtak Mela Puraskar for their contribution to language and literature. The exhibition, inaugurated by Energy, I&PR Minister Arun Sahu, will continue up to December 15. In every evening, seminar on Odia literature and poetry recitation programmes are being organised, said sources.