Patna Book Fair 1992: Bridging the Gap Between Book Demand and Availability in Bihar’s Growing Educational Landscape

REMEMBRANCE: PATNA BOOK 📚 FAIR 1992
[Friday 13 November to Wednesday 25 November]

There are many factors contributing to the success of a book 📚 fair in Patna. Firstly, not withstanding its status of being a educationally backward state as far as the literacy is concerned, there is no dearth of book-lovers in the state or demand for books for that matter. Rather there is a gap between the demand and the availability and this book 📚 fair fills up the gap. Secondly, Bihar is the best market for books 📚 having 7 universities, 9 medical colleges, 23 polytechnics and engineering colleges, hundreds of degree colleges, 65 thousand schools and two agricultural universities. Through this book 📚 fair, publishers who come from all parts of the country to take part, get an opportunity to assess the potential of the market and more and more after the success of the book 📚 fair have started opening their branches in Patna.

The 1990 Patna Book 📚 Fair which included participants from abroad also like the Embassy of Bulgaria, Maxwell Macmillan Singapore and top Indian Companies, was a spectacular success. The public response and enthusiasm is always something to be seen to be believed. And why it should not be so. Bihar might lag behind other Indian states in the rate of literacy, it was Bihar which was once the centre of progressive thinking and enterprise and people from far off places would come here to get education. Not only the commercial participants took interest in this book 📚 fair but other big business houses 🏠 also helped the Organisers by sponsoring different items and also using this event as the best medium for promotion of their name and product. So much so that the Media which propogtes the cause of others, realised the importance of participating in this event and many of them did participate and were able to interest with a large section of readers, the advertisers and the people at large. People still recall the delicious dishes provided by Namita Caterers.

The credit goes to Mr Tapas Mukherjee & Mr Ashok Mukherjee.
Besides books 📚, there was everything for entertainment at this fair. A variety of cultural programmes — young and new artists got an opportunity for the exposure. They entertained and enthrilled the audience. A lucky draw on the sale of tickets, a book 📚 lovers draw, Debate, Quiz Contests, Seminars, Sit & Draw Painting Competition organised by Souvenir Publishers, New New Delhi and what not. This fair was organised independently. Mr Yogendra Pal Ranade (Scholar Publishing House, 85 Model Basti, New Delhi – 110 005) and Mr Om Prakash Sharma ‘Shastri’ (Sovenir Publishers, 10452, East Park Road, Model Basti, New Delhi – 110 005) who had extended wholeheartedly support in the first fair 📚, were invited as the Special Invitees. For the first time Mr Sanjib Bose (Bharati Bhawan) emerged on the scene shouldering a good part of the responsibility as earlier this responsibility was shouldered by his uncle Mr Tarit Kumar Bose.

The success of this book 📚 fair was widely highlighted by the Media. They carried long articles on the fair. So much so that the Embassy of Bulgaria in their country’s magazine gave a lengthy write up on the Patna Book 📚 Fair which indeed was a big achievement for the Organisers and they had every reason to feel proud of.
The new faces who emerged on the scene included Mr Satyanarain Prasad (Kiran Prakashan, Patna) who had every ambition to nurture this fair to grow as a big tree 🌲. On the one hand everybody was happy over the success, on the other hand some worries were visible at the faces of the Organisers. Admitting this, Mr Sanjib Bose who was handling the financial matters revealed that they had suffered quite a heavy loss which seemed impossible to make up from the next book 📚 fair. As such it was resolved to hold a Trade Fair alongwith the book 📚 fair in 1991 in order to make up the deficit.

Thus the 1991 Patna Book 📚 Fair included the Trade Fair in the same periphery. This was a new experiment which turned out to be a spectacular success on the one hand, on the other hand it invited complaints from the participants of the book 📚 fair as they felt that a major part of the amount has been spent by the visitors in the Trade Fair which affected their sales which was true to some extent. But the 1991 Patna Book 📚 Fair as well as Trade Fair which was treated as a part of the former welcomed a good number of dignitaries which included the British Deputy High Commissioner Mr Ian McCluney, the famous Cartoonist Mr R.K. Laxman, Dilip Padgaonkaar and many others. For almost twelve days the venue remained the hub of activities in capital.

To be able to organise such a fine show of high magnitude, the Organising Committee is ably guided by members of the Advisory Committee who hold meetings periodically to chalk out the plan. The Advisory Committee includes amongst others Dr D. D. Guru (Head, Economics Division, AN Sinha Institute of Social Studies) as Patron, Prof Chetakar Jha (Ex-VC, Mithila University, Darbhanga), Prof Pradhan Harishankar Prasad (Ex-Director, AN Sinha Institute of Social Studies), Prof Shaileshwar Sati Prasad (Head, Dept of English, Science College), Prof U.C. Jha (Ex-Member, Hindi Pragati Samiti, Ex-head, Dept of Philosophy, Ranchi University), Prof L.M. Roy (Ex-head, Dept of Economics, Magadh University), Dr Lala Surajnandan Prasad (Emeritus Professor of Paediatrics, PMCH), Dr Jitendra Sahay (Surgeon ), Sister Liceria (Principal, Patna Women’s College), Sister Benedicta, F.Pinto A.C. (Head, Dept of Economics), Father Norbert Menezza (Principal, St Michael’s School), Shri S.K. Srivastava (IAS), Shri Vidyanand Mishra (IAS), Shri A.U. Sharma (IAS), Shri R.N. Dash (IAS), Shri S. Bhatnagar (IAS), Shri Ziya Lal Arya (IAS), Shri R.U. Singh (IAS), Shri Y.V. Bakshi, Shri B.D. Tekriwal (Indian Postal Service), Shri B.N. Prasad (IPS), Shri Santosh Kumar (IPS), Shri Ashok Choudhary, Hindustan Times Chief Executive Shri Y.C. Agrawal, Smt. Shruti Shukla, Editor Times of India Shri Uttam Sengupta, Correspondent TOI Miss Anushree Sarkar, Dr A.K. Verma (AIR, Patna), Shri Bijaynandan Prasad Singh (Ex-Member, PRDA), Shri BNP Singh, Director AN Sinha Institute various departmental Heads of Bihar Government are also included in the Advisory Committee as Ex-officio nembers.