Pakistani youth have retained their interest in books, even in the cyber age. It was proved at the three-day Grand Book Fair, organised by the Government University Lahore under the auspices of its Library Society. The students purchased over 21,101 books from the Fair more than 250,000 books on various subjects were available.
GCU Vice Chancellor Professor Muhammad Khaleeq-ur-Rahman also purchased a large of books on literature, physics and religion from his pocket, saying that reading and writing is a Muslim tradition. "Read" is the first commandment of Allah for Muslims.
Addressing the closing ceremony, GCU Chief Librarian Abdul Waheed said that the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) monitors both the number and type of books published per country per year as an important index of standard of living and education, and of a country's self-awareness.
However, he expressed dejection that no such record is available to Unesco in connection with Pakistan. GCU Library Society President Syed Atif Hsusain claimed that the Book Fair implied as if the fountain of knowledge itself had walked up to them to quench their thirst. He said that he had bough seven books of literature.
He said he would have needed two weeks to find these if he buys them from Urdu Bazaar. He said that it is a blessing to have all the books one needs available on concession under one roof. Later, the thanked the publishers for providing discounts to students on books. He also appreciated the role of GCU Library Society's office bearers and gave away certificates and shields to the management team.