MM Jasim :The month-long Amar Ekushey Book Fair 2014 began yesterday on the Bangla Academy premises and at Suhrawardy Udyan in the city. Prime Minister Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the book fair at 4.20pm.This year, the fair has been dedicated to the language veteran, writer, researcher and Bangla Academy Fellow Justice Habibur Rahman, who passed away recently.Meanwhile, Bangla Academy (BA) has completed all preparations to hold the fair smoothly. One of the special features of this year’s book fair is the extension of its venue to the adjacent Suhrawardy Udyan in view of the insufficient space at its traditional site, the Bangla Academy premises. Government institutions and organisations have set up their stalls on the Bangla Academy premises this year while all the publishing houses have set up stalls at Suhrawardy Udyan.Authorities of BA and publishers are eying record sales from the month-long fair that as the event will be the largest ever gathering of booklovers and there will be increased number of participating publishers as the venue of the fair has been extended up to Suhrawardy Udyan.On the first day of Ekushey Boi Mela 2014 some new books were seen like the previous years. Bangla Academy, however, could not furnish the data. According to different book stalls it is gathered that some one hundred new books were published. Among them, Anya Prokash published five books of Humayun Ahmed as Kakaru, Jagar and Jerry, Bang Kanna Eleng, Kani Daini and Boka Razar Sonar Horin. Agami Prokash published ‘Nishiddha’ of Taslima Nasrin, Shahbagh-2013 of Shahaduzzaman, Joynab of Abul Hasnat Abdul Hai, Maya Britta of Jogen Chowdhury, Socrates of Abul Hasnat Abdullah, Desh Bibhag Firay Dekha of Ahmed Rafique and Tanaporen of Salina Hayat. The Book Fair authorities will arrange a discussion title “Jonmosotobarshikir Alokchhaai Joynul Abedin. Quayyum Chowdhury will preside over the programme while Abul Hasnat will present keynote paper. Abul Mansur, Syed Azizul Haque, Sajjad Sharif and Barrister Sadia Arman will discuss the programme.The entire book fair has been arranged with different squares named after language martyrs, such as Salam, Rafique, Jabbar, Barkat and Shafiur squares, as well as after the prominent personalities who advocated recognition of International Mother Language Day, such as Rabindra, Nazrul, Abdul Karim Shahitya Bisharat, Dr Muhammad Shahidullah, Shomen Chanda, Rokeya, Sufia Kamal, Dherendranath and Rafiqul Islam squares.A total of 299 stalls of 534 units are allotted among the publishing houses and the participating agencies: Of which 432 units allotted for 232 mainstream publishers, 33 units for 24 children’s book corner and 69 units for the 43 institutions including media centre and 55 units for the open stalls of little magazines.There will also be a little magazine corner, which has been named after the eminent personality of the ‘Littlemag Movement’, the late poet Khandaker Ashraf Hossain. A total of 460 units had been allocated last year to 274 organisations.The books published from the Bangla Academy will be sold at a commission of 30 per cent while books published by other publication houses would be sold at 25 per cent commission.As in previous years, there will be arrangements for releasing new books. The information centre has been set up on the western altar of the Bardwan Bhaban and the Media Centre for the journalists has been set up to the north side of the information centre.A number of bulletins will be published every day, with updated news of the fair and different kinds of information being published on the website every day.The authorities have made arrangements for tight security measures in and around the Bangla Academy premises and Suhrawardy Udyan to avert any untoward incident.Close Circuit TV (CCTV) cameras have been installed at different points of the book fair. A temporary police camp has been set up in the fair while police, Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and plainclothes law enforcement personnel have been deployed at the fair venue. Polythene bags and smoking are not allowed at the fair.On the main stage, seminars, discussions and cultural programmes would be held every day. Over 50 new books, published by the Bangla Academy, would be available in the fair. The book fair will remain open from 3pm to 9pm every day except holidays. On holidays, it would be open from 11am to 9pm; while on February 21, it would remain open from 8pm to 9pm. The book fair was held for the first time in 1972 in an informal manner at the Bangla Academy premises. Later, it was institutionalised in 1978. In 1984, the fair was named as the Amar Ekushey Book Fair.
