National Book Fair’s 20th edition opens for public in Lucknow
The 20th National Book Fair opened in Balrampur Gardens with 65 publishers showcasing their titles. A visitor fell sick and was sent to the hospital.
The 20th National Book Fair opened for city bibliophiles at the Balrampur Gardens on Friday.
The fair has 65 publishers from across the country, showcasing their titles in 120 stalls. Dozens of new books are available for children, youth and elderly to read such as ‘Do epic shit’, ‘India that is Bharat’, and books even on Sita, Ram, and Ravan.
On the first day, even before the inauguration, book lovers started gathering at the stalls. Poetry anthologies like that of former Prime Minister and Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s collection ‘Kya Khoya Kya Paya, along with those of Surdas, Tulsidas, along with Ahmed Faraz’s ghazals, Sahir Ludhianvi’s creations, were sold on the first day. Along with this, English bestseller Jeffrey Archer’s novel Cane and Able’s Hindi translation was a big draw at the fair.
“Books are like gurus that show good paths and give knowledge, help concentrate the mind, and lead from negative thoughts to positive ones. With channelled thoughts, we can achieve our goals,” said Brajesh Pathak, deputy chief minister, while inaugurating the 11-day fair. The fair will open from 11 am to 9 pm for the public.
“Learning from last year’s experience of rain, this year, we have built a waterproof 15,000 square-feet German hangar in which the books are displayed, and measures will be taken to ensure safe and comfortable access to book lovers,” said Aakarsh Chandel, the director of the fair.
Visitor falls sick
At around 4 pm in the book fair, a visitor, AJ Khan, fell while buying books.
The middle aged man fell and started bleeding from his nose. Organisers poured water on his face, removed his shoes and called an ambulance. After some time he was sent to the civil hospital for treatment. According to other visitors, the man remained on the ground for about fifteen minutes. During this time, he was asking to call from his phone but due to the pattern lock, he could not call his house or anyone he knew.
