Guwahati: The “Assam book fair,” which ended on Monday recorded a sale of over Rs 5 crore and nearly 6 lakh footfall.
Numerous bibliophiles were drawn to the booksellers and publishers from West Bengal, New Delhi and the neighbouring country of Bangladesh. The writings of renowned authors Arundhati Roy, Jhumpa Lahiri, and Assamese authors like renowned novelist and poet Nabakanta Barua and Jnanpith Award winner Mamoni Raisom Goswami were in high demand.
The Assam Publication Board and All Assam Publishers & Book Sellers Association organised the fair’s second edition, which ran from December 29 to January 9 of last year. The north east book fair, which was conducted by the association and was formerly organised by the board, and the Guwahati book fair were combined into the “Assam Book Fair” last year.
Assam Publication Board secretary Pramod Kalita said, “The book fair could not be organised in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Though we had hosted the fair in 2021, there was still fear of Covid, which resulted in poor footfall and business. Around 6 lakh footfall have been recorded this time as there was no Covid scare among people. Book lovers, particularly from the new generation, were seen visiting the fair premises every day.”
He added that there was an unprecedented, record sale of books, which points to the increasing interest in printed books, despite the availability of gadgets with advanced technology. “Print will never die. Book lovers always get attracted to printed copies. One will not get the taste of printed books in electronic gadgets,” he said.