Chennai Book Fair to begin from December 27 at YMCA Grounds in Nandanam
The entry fees will be Rs 10 and for students with ID cards entry is free.
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CHENNAI: The 48th Chennai Book Fair, organised by the Booksellers’ and Publishers’ Association of South India (BAPASI), will be held from December 27 (Friday) to January 12 at the YMCA Grounds, Nandanam. The event will be inaugurated by the Deputy CM Udhayanidhi Stalin, and Minister of School Education Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi at 4:30 pm.
Talking to media persons here in Chennai, the organisers said that 900 book stalls will be set up this year at the fair. In the inaugural function, the Deputy CM will present the Muthamizharingar Kalyanar Porkizhi Awards and the awards given by BAPASI.
The Book Fair will be held on holidays too – from 11 am to 8.30 pm, and on weekdays from 2 pm to 8.30 pm. “It will be conducted continuously for 17 days and a 10% discount on all books would be given in all the stalls,” said the organisers. Entry fees will be Rs 10; for students with ID cards, entry is free.
This year, a separate hall has been set up for the books published by the HR&CE and Tamil Nadu Textbook Institute and Educational Services Corporation, World Tamil Research Centre, Sahitya Akademi, Dr Ambedkar Foundation, National Book Trust, Publications Division, Thanjavur Tamil University, and Department of Archaeology. Speech and painting competitions will be held for students.
Each evening, speeches by some of Tamil Nadu’s most renowned scholars and writers, providing intellectual engagement for attendees will take place.
The event will conclude on January 12 with a valedictory address by Justice R Mahadevan of the Supreme Court.
“Last year, around 20 lakh people visited the fair, and books worth Rs 20 crore were sold. It’s expected that more people will visit the stalls this year. Like last year, there would be stalls set up by foreigners at the fair,” said SK Murugan, secretary of BAPASI.
The Book Fair, which is usually conducted during the Pongal holidays, is organised this year before Pongal. “Since many Chennaiites leave for their native places for Pongal, it would affect footfall and sales at the fair. So this year, we decided to conduct it before the holidays begin. We’ve increased the number of days of the book fair,” pointed out WJ Surresh, treasurer, BAPASI. “The State government is considering our proposal to acquire the land for the book fair”
Last year, the Book Fair had to be closed for a day due to monsoon-induced waterlogging. So, this year, precautions have been taken to prevent such issues, said the organisers.
