28th edition of World Book Fair to begin from Jan 4

'Gandhi: The Writers' Writer' is the theme of this year's World Book Fair scheduled to begin here in the national capital from January 4 with the nation celebrating the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.

Over 15 countries including Abu Dhabi, China, Denmark, Egypt, France, Germany, Iran, Nepal, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Sharjah, Spain, Sri Lanka, UK, US will participate in the nine-day annual book fair which will conclude on January 12.

Over 600 exhibitors in different languages including Bangla, English, Gujarati, Hindi, Maithili, Malayalam, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu will exhibit their books in over 1300 stalls to be put up at the Fair.

In a specially designed pavilion, inspired by Sabarmati Ashram, with handspun materials as wall cladding, there will be an exclusive exhibition of 500 books of 100 publishers on Gandhi including those authored by the Father of Nation in different Indian languages.

The theme of this year's Fair, to be organised under the joint aegis of the National Book Trust (NBT) and India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO), would highlight the various facets of Mahatma Gandhi’s life and his influence on the writers of all ages.

“It is is an attempt to give book lovers a glimpse of how Mahatma Gandhi, a great strategic communicator, inspired and influenced generations of writers and how the writers understood and emulated Gandhiji in words,” NBT chairman Govind Prasad Sharma said while announcing the dates of the mega event.

The 28th edition of the Fair, however, will not be hosting any guest country this year.

"We did not invite a guest country this time due to the ongoing constructions and the subsequent lack of space in Pragati Maidan," the NBT chairman told reporters.

During the Fair, various literary events, discussions, conversations with authors and scholars, book release functions, children's activities film screenings won the theme of the fair, cultural programmes will be organised.

A special exhibition of over 200 Braille books, published by the NBT in Hindi English and other Indian languages in collaboration with the All India Confederation of Blind, will also be put up.

Sudha Murthy, Sumit Dutt Majumdar, Bhawana Sommay, Kevin Missal, Madhulika Dutta are among those eminent and critically acclaimed writers who would engage in a lively banters with the visitors at the Author's corner in the fair.

A national conclave on readership and book promotion will be organised on January 8 and a business meet with trade partners on January 9.

Human Resource Development (HRD) minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank will inaugurate the Fair on January 4.