NEW DELHI– As the naional capital hosts the 2016 edition of the World Book Fair from Saturday, it will be showcasing India’s cultural heritage of India as its main theme. China will be the Guest of Honour of the nine-day fair, touted as Asia’s largest such and to be held at the Pragati Maidan here.
Kumar Samresh, Deputy Director, Publicity, National Book Trust (NBT) said that this is the first time that the book fair is showcasing India’s cultural heritage as its theme.
“The theme is called Vividh Bharat. There are going to be series of discussions and various cultural programmes on the various aspects of Indian culture,” Samresh told IANS.
More than 1,000 books will be on display on philosophy, knowledge, language and literature tracing the Indian journey from Bhojpatra sheets to e-books.
With China as the Guest of Honour this year, rich volumes of Chinese books, seminars, cultural exhibitions, and literature salons will be organized at the NDWBF to promote literary and cultural ties between both countries as well as the bilateral people-to-people exchanges.
Apart from China, more than 30 countries and 1,000 exhibitors are expected to participate in the fair. Britain, Egypt, Germany, Mauritius, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Turkey the UAE and US will be among the country’s represented.
The National Book Trust (NBT), which organises the World Book Fair in association with the Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO) every year, has more surprises in store for book lovers, among them a ‘navlekhan’ programme to promote young writers in the country.
“To encourage young writers, we have invited manuscripts from writers of Indian languages, who are below 40 years. The 10 best selected manuscripts will be published by the NBT every year,” said Samresh.
To woo selfie-obsessed youngsters, the organisers are also introducing a corner for this.
“The selfie corner will have a backdrop of the World Book Fair where one can click pictures and upload them on social media,” Samresh added.
Tickets for the event, priced at Rs.20 will be available from Metro stations.
“Entry for schoolchildren and the disabled will be free,” said the official.
The fair, which will conclude on January 17, is expected to
attract more than 10,000 visitors this time.
