DHAKA: As in the previous years, the Ekushey Book Fair will begin on February 1. But unlike the previous years, this year’s fair will be expanded from the Bangla Academy premises to Suhrawardi Udyan.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will inaugurate the fair at 4:05pm on the day.

This year’s book fair will be dedicated to the late Habibur Rahman, former chief justice and also a noted litterateur.

The fair, which hold the spirit of the historic language movement in 1952, needs more space to accommodate the growing numbers of publishers. Space inside the Bangla Academy has been shrunk due to new building structures, the fair authorities said.

The fair area inside Suhrawardi Udyan has already been fenced and the stall-owners are seen busy to install the structures.

The works for stalls and the stage ‘Ekusher Mancha’ inside Bangla Academy have almost done. But the decorative interior and exteriors will take some days, the stall-owners inform banglanews.

Though the lottery for stall allocation was dated on January 23, it was delayed to last Tuesday.

This delay has hampered the structural preparation for the stalls, commented some of the stall-owners.

Fair management committee member secretary Shahida Khatun told banglanews that the preparation is on the final stage. She also said, a three-tier security measures have been taken.

Four archways will be setup on the entrance of the fair premises while 65 close circuit TV cameras for security inside the fair areas, she added.

BDST: 1416 HRS, JAN 29, 2014