Kolkata Book Fair ends with Rs 32 crore in sales over 12 days

Kolkata: The 49th International Kolkata Book Fair came to an end on Monday, recording book sales worth around Rs 32 crore during its 12 day run, organisers said.

The fair, which began on January 22, was held at Central Park in Salt Lake and featured more than 1,000 stalls set up by publishers and booksellers from India and abroad.

According to Tridib Chatterjee, general secretary of the Publishers and Booksellers Guild, nearly 32 lakh people visited the fair this year. The event is considered Asia’s largest book fair in terms of footfall.

Guild president Sudhangshu Shekhar Dey said this year’s sales marked a 15 per cent rise compared to last year, when books worth Rs 23 crore were sold. The previous edition had drawn about 27 lakh visitors.

Argentina was the theme country for this year’s fair. Apart from Argentina, countries such as Russia, Ukraine and China took part, along with the United Kingdom, Spain and France.

The fair concluded with the customary striking of a hammer 49 times at 9.05 pm, marking the end of its 49th edition. Senior members of the guild and other dignitaries were present at the closing ceremony.

(with inputs from agencies)