KIBF concludes, NLA shines

 By Abdul Qadir Qureshi

(Pakistan News & Features Services)

After creating buzz and excitement in the metropolis for the past five days on a trot, the 16th Karachi International Book Fair (KIBF) came to an end at the Karachi Expo Centre late on the evening of January 3. 

It was quite extraordinary to watch the large turnout every day and evening despite the extremely cold weather from the Karachi standards. 

Some quarters were skeptical about the success of the event because of the phenomenal rise in the positivity rate of the latest wave of COVID-19 but the bookworms appeared least bothered by the fears of pandemic and they went about their business of visiting the fair with tremendous enthusiasm. 

Since the KIBF was being held after a gap of two years, following the cancellation of the event last year due to COVID-19 related issues, there also were some concerns about people having distanced themselves from physical books but, by turning up in huge numbers, all such apprehensions remained just fiction, not facts. 

Long queues of people of all age groups, wearing face masks, as it was compulsory to get in, and the packed parking lots and the packed service roads around the Expo Centre dispelled the impression of the people having lost their love for books. 

As witnessed in the past, it was a very well attended exhibition with maintenance of all possible protocols. The people of Karachi proved the point once more that they remain passionate about education and reading.

While every stakeholder, stallholder and participant had a reason or two to celebrate the successful KIBF, the one body which stood out was the National Library Association (NLA) which not only set up their stall but managed it exceptionally well for five days to catch the imagination of library professionals and many others.

16th KIBF gets underway with a bang

 By Abdul Qadir Qureshi 

(Pakistan News & Features Services)

The long-awaited 16th edition of the Karachi International Book Fair (KIBF) finally got underway on December 30 and it was off to a sensational start. Hours before the five-day annual was formally inaugurated in afternoon, there were long queues of school students, mostly dressed in tidy uniforms, who swarmed to access the three halls of the Karachi Expo Centre since 10 am when the gates were opened. 

The KIBF 2021 was already in motion, and in full swing, when the Sindh Education Minister, Syed Sardar Ali Shah, declared it open after presiding over a largely attended inauguration ceremony in which Anwar Maqsood, the famous playwright, was the keynote speaker. 

The National Library Association (NLA) was represented in the KIBF opening ceremony by its President, Syed Muzaffar Ali Shah, Advisor, Syed Khalid Mahmood, and Secretary General, Anwar Hussain, besides a few other senior members. 

Aziz Khalid, President, Pakistan Publishers and Booksellers Association (PPBA), Southern Zone, in his welcome address, recalled the history of the KIBF as to how it was conceived after watching a book fair take place at New Delhi, India, in 2004. He touched upon the modest beginning of the KIBF and its evolution in the following years, incorporating the templates of success stories from book fairs at Frankfurt and London. 

Pir Mazhar-ul-Haq, a former provincial senior minister, in his speech on the occasion, described the KIBF as one of the most significant events of the national calendar and he complimented the local publishers and booksellers for ensuring the availability of books at reasonable prices despite the inflation and other uncontrollable factors. 

Anwar Maqsood lived upto his huge reputation of entertaining and simultaneously enlightening the audience with his witty remarks which were generously applauded. As always, he enlivened the proceedings and charmed everyone on the occasion, including the dignitaries occupying the stage. 

Fatema Hassan, a prominent poet, didn’t mince words in stating that the book culture was here to stay despite the arrival of digital gadgets and other sources of recreation. She was of the opinion that the success of the KIBF was a testimonial of the people’s belief in books which were still doing good business. 

Lastly the chief guest, Syed Sardar Ali Shah, committed to take up the matter of slashing taxes on import of paper for the purpose of educational books to the federal government while he also agreed to take action for activating libraries in the schools and colleges, as requested by the PPBA Southern Zone Chairman. 

The vote of thanks was proposed by the KIBF Convener, Waqar Mateen Khan, in which he acknowledged the support of his team members in making the event successful. In the end awards were presented to some of the publishers and booksellers in recognition of their services to the trade.

NLA’s participation adds value to KIBF

 By Abdul Qadir Qureshi 

(Pakistan News & Features Services)

The active participation of the National Library Association (NLA) will add value to the 15th edition of the Karachi International Book Fair (KIBF) which is set to be inaugurated at the Karachi Expo Centre on December 30. 

The five-day annual event will conclude on January 3. The office-bearers of the NLA, the leading representative body of working librarians of the country, have been proactively promoting the KIBF, reaching out the masses through their members at various institutions and persuading them to visit the event in order to get hold of the latest books at heavily discounted prices. 

The NLA President, Syed Muzaffar Ali Shah, remained upbeat about the success of the KIBF, which is being organized after a gap of two years because of the pandemic of COVID-19 which rocked the entire world from the early months of last year. 

“The people of Karachi, particularly bookworms, eagerly await the KIBF every year. More visitors than ever before in the 15-year-old history of the KIBF could be expected this time round because this event could not take place last year to COVID-19,” the NLA President remarked in a brief chat with PNFS on December 28. 

He thanked the functionaries of the Pakistan Publishers & Booksellers Association (PPBA) for having renewed their understanding with the NLA for the promotion of the KIBF. The NLA delegation had also included its Advisor, Syed Khalid Mahmood, and Secretary General, Anwar Hussain, which recently met the PPBA Chairman, Southern Zone, Aziz Khalid and the KIBF Convenor, Waqar Mateen Khan.

Murad Ali Shah inaugurates KIBF 2019

By Abdul Qadir Qureshi
(Pakistan News & Features Services) 

The 15th Karachi International Book Fair 2019 got underway at the Karachi Expo Centre on a hazy morning of December 5 but there was plenty of action inside the three gigantic halls, attracting a large number of people. The event will continue until December 9.

It’s the 15th edition of the international book fair in Karachi, being organized by the local chapter of the Publishers & Booksellers Association (PPBSA) with the collaboration of the National Book Foundation (NBF). 

Having been launched in 2005, it has gone on to become an important cultural event of the city. The 15th KIBF 2019 was inaugurated by the Sindh Chief Minister, Syed Murad Ali Shah, whose speech on the occasion was telecast live by the various television channels. 

His assurance that the provincial government would take every possible step to enhance reading habits across the province was viewed with skepticism because of the dubious record of the various governmental organizations working under his command. 

The Chief Minister, however, was spot on while having observed the gradual decline in reading the habit among younger generations which indeed was reflected, as pointed out by him, that there was hardly any youngster attending the ceremony itself which he was addressing. 

He reckoned that efforts be made to revive our old culture of finding best books in the shelves of libraries, in the corners of bookstores, on the push-carts and footpaths. 

Murad Ali Shah recalled his student days at the iconic NED University of Engineering & Technology, Karachi, where he and his classmates used to visit the library on a regular basis. 

He even correctly recalled the name of the then librarian (Habib Saheb) of the 1980s at the NED University who worked very efficiently with his team to facilitate the students. 

The Chief Minister didn't mince words in declaring that he still derived more pleasure and satisfaction by reading a hard copy rather than its soft copy despite the availability of all kinds of modern gadgets like Ipads, laptops and tablets.