Dear Editor
Books are man’s best friend. Good books enhance knowledge as well as develop language skills and vocabulary and are a great way to reduce stress. Due to the closure of schools due to corona epidemic, the education of children has been adversely affected. In order to re-engage children with the process of reading, writing and learning, a book fair named ‘Book Yatra’ is being organized at different places in different cities. So far, the journey has completed 15 days and has reached more than 400 children. In this book journey, we constantly carry organization’s box of books and books from the youth series, Eklavya, etc in our bag. Using space available in community like trees, cots, cots, tables, walls, fruit-racks, etc, they put up an exhibition of books. Children’s love and enthusiasm for books is made in these book exhibitions. All the scenes like running here and there to read more, bringing your fellow mates as well, insisting on taking books along with your family members to see and collect them, taking them home and showing books to your elder brother and sister, highlighting children’s love and enthusiasm for books. Apart from children, elders also come to this fair to see and read books. Children also take books of their choice along with reading so that they can read them later. This book journey develops interest of reading, writing and learning in children is planting. This book fair is like a dream come true for children of poor and backward sections of the society, who are most affected due to pandemic. The popularity and acceptance of the book fair among children can be seen from sweet words uttered by them out of curiosity, that, when will you come again with new books? Next time bring a new book of jokes, maths and English! That children’s literature is not reaching children at all. Children and young people have same books as they are only familiar with the course books. In such a situation, the children’s and youth literature which exists on such a large scale is not reaching them easily. It is not that where there is a lack of resources, children’s literature is not reaching there. Rather, where there are resources, there is hardly any access to children’s literature. Despite having resources, no interest is visible even within the teacher class regarding the understanding and availability of children’s literature. If better literature among children and youth If available, the children themselves are coming forward to study on their own. If studies are for interest or for their own sake, then children or anyone does not feel burdened. Once the interest in reading is awakened, then Sanskrit can be developed among the children to read the course and see it connected with their life. Therefore, availability of better children’s and youth literature from community to school, college is essential. Working in this direction, it will be a necessary step for the current education system.
Vijay.
