Amar Ekushey Boil Mela will conclude on April 12 due to the worsening Covid-19 situation in the country.
State Minister for Cultural Affairs KM Khalid on Saturday made the announcement through a press release.
The decision of closure comes as the government is going to enforce a week-long strict lockdown across the country starting from April 14, aimed to curb the Covid-19 transmission.
The book fair that started on March 18 amid the resurgence of Covid-19, was scheduled to end on April 14, failed to get the usual momentum with publishers and sellers fearing to incur huge losses in their businesses.
This year, 834 units were allocated to 540 publishing houses and organizations to facilitate the sale of books and other publications.
The authorities allotted 154 units on the Bangla Academy premises and 680 units in the Suhrawardy Udyan to different organizations.
Considering the Covid-19 social-distancing requirements, the land earmarked for this year’s fair was expanded to 1,500,000 square feet.
