NBT Office to Shift to City; Pune Book Festival Expected to Attract 7.5 Lakh Visitors

Former minister Chandrakant Patil on Thursday said that the office of the National Book Trust (NBT) will now be permanently shifted from Mumbai to Pune, and a building space from the Pune Municipal Corporation has been leased to them immediately.

This year’s book festival, organized by the National Book Trust, will take place from December 14 to 22 at the grounds of Fergusson College. On Thursday, the office of the book festival was inaugurated, and the foundation stone for the pandal was laid by former minister Chandrakant Patil.

On this occasion, the festival organizers, including Rajesh Pande, MP Medha Kulkarni, Savitribai Phule Pune University Vice Chancellor Suresh Gosavi, Pro-Vice Chancellor Parag Kalkar, NBT Director Yuvraj Malik, President Milind Marathe, Entrepreneur Krishnakumar Goyal, DCC President Milind Kamble, DES President Pramod Rawat and others were present.

NBT to carry out work whole year

“As a result, not only will the Pune Book Festival be held, but NBT’s work will be carried out throughout the year. With the Marathi language now given classical status, a film should be made and shown at the festival to help the general public understand its significance. Additionally, a book-based play should be staged alongside the film festival for children to foster a love of books. Pune city has emerged as a leader in various fields, and thus, the Pune Book Festival is expected to be a success,” expressed Chandrakant Patil on Thursday.

Medha Kulkarni stated, “Pune is the home of knowledge, with many educational institutions. The Pune Book Festival will be held on a large scale this year. Along with the film festival, storytelling and book reading classes should be organised for children. I am proud that this historical festival is being held in Pune.”

Rajesh Pande said in his introduction, “This festival is not about one person but about the people of Pune. Public participation is essential. This year, four world records will be set, and China’s record will be broken. It is expected that 7.5 lakh people will visit the festival. Many people are involved in organizing this festival. This year, there will be 598 stalls at the Pune Book Festival, and this capacity will be filled in three days, with 80 more people waiting to get stalls. Book sales from last year, which totaled 11.5 crore, are expected to double this year. Writers from abroad will also participate. Additionally, one lakh books will be distributed free of cost. On November 11, between 12 pm and 1 pm, the ‘Shanti Punekar is reading a book’ initiative will be launched.”