The 2022 edition of the traditional Amar Ekushey Book Fair, which usually begins on the very first day of February, will be held from 15-28 February, subject to certain conditions regarding the ongoing Omicron situation of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The new date was stated in a letter issued by the Bangla Academy and signed by the secretary of the academy AHM Lokman on Sunday.

"Considering the current situation of coronavirus, the government has decided to hold 'Amar Ekushey Book Fair 2022' from 15 February to 28 February 2022 subject to certain conditions.

"Therefore, all the staff involved in the fair have been requested to take vaccines and booster doses," the letter stated.

The letter also stated that the academy has already sent a letter to the director general of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) to set up a vaccination booth at the academy premises as per the instructions of the ministry.

Earlier on January 16, the Ministry of Cultural Affairs postponed this year's Amar Ekushey Book Fair for two weeks due to the recent surge in Covid-19 cases and deaths across the country.

Last year, the traditional month-long fair was also postponed to avoid the spread of the deadly virus. The fair finally began on 18 March at the Bangla Academy premises and the adjacent venue in the capital's Suhrawardy Udyan.

The fair concluded on 12 April, two days before the country went into a hard lockdown from 14 April to curb down the surge of the Delta variant of the virus, and the overall fair failed to get its usual momentum with publishers and sellers who suffered a significant amount of losses in their businesses. -UNB