South Dinajpur Book Fair sees sales worth Rs 18L

Balurghat: The South Dinajpur District Book Fair, which concluded on Saturday, brought a spotlight to local authors, surpassing even renowned writers in reader engagement.

Over the 6-day event, books worth Rs 18 lakh were sold, with a significant share attributed to local writers. Readers enthusiastically embraced the offerings, particularly gravitating towards poetry and informational books.

Mrinal Chakraborty, a prominent veteran writer from Balurghat, commented: “Many people came, explored the books, and made purchases. Unfortunately, district libraries aren’t procuring books from local authors, despite public interest. Nevertheless, readers continue to enjoy the books.”

Tanumay Sarkar, District Library Officer, noted, “Readers made substantial book purchases, and we plan to relay the district writers’ demands to higher authorities.”

Krishnapada Mandal, a local writer, mentioned: ‘Books from 40 writers in the district were featured in the stalls, and all of them were selling well. Informative books by district writers were particularly in high demand among readers.”

The book fair featured stalls for local magazines and a dedicated section for district writers. Works by notable figures like Amal Bose, Mrinal Chakraborty, and Himanshu Sarkar were popular, alongside contributions from historians Samit Ghosh, Krishnapada Mandal, Abhijit Chowdhury, Dhiman Das, and emerging authors, indicating a thriving literary scene.