Book Fair and Halving Budget

As an all-time avid reader and bibliophile, I am very thankful for organizing the book fair in Mongar and Punakha. To promote readers, to promote reading habits, to promote knowledge, and make a knowledge-based society; there is a need for exhibitions frequently in different places in the country. I feel books should be made available everywhere; in every small town, on the highways, hotels, home, and in the classroom. It should be made easily accessible. If Bhutan is to weigh against other countries, then the books are our weapons; the main windows in the walls. We must therefore read books and value books to understand, evaluate and foster knowledge and information. Our people must read and access changing ideas and expressions.

I feel this book fair is not only a good chance to make money by book enterprises but also provides different choices of a book to our readers at a concession rate. The government of Bhutan is kind enough to give a certain budget to purchase books for school libraries to all schools in the country. The books are bought from the book fair by the respective school. But this year, the budget has been slashed more than half in the case of Chukha Dzongkhag. This slashing of the budget is not a good decision. It’s good to save for the future, which Bhutan does, but things like saving for the books is not a good idea. This year the budget to buy books has been more than halved. For example, a school previously got nu.100, 000/, now got less than nu. 40,000/ or less. The reason why the Dzongkhag has chopped the budget is not very clear. It must be tax deduction or saving for the years to come.

In addition, this year being the reading year, the deduction of budget to buy more new books and read more new books are contradictory. I would be grateful, if, schools could spend as much as money to buy books than hoarding money in the closet.

Google Guru