Reading India Samvaad and Army Day Tributes Take Centre Stage at New Delhi World Book Fair 2026 | नई दिल्ली विश्व पुस्तक मेला दिवस 6 में रीडिंग इंडिया संवाद 2026 की मुख्य बातें

नई दिल्ली विश्व पुस्तक मेला 2026 में छठे दिन रीडिंग इंडिया संवाद 2026 आयोजित किया गया, जिसमें पढ़ने की संस्कृति, पुस्तकालय विकास और राष्ट्रीय विरासत पर ध्यान केंद्रित किया गया। नेताओं ने शिक्षा नीति में पढ़ना शामिल करने, बहुभाषी पहुंच का विस्तार करने और पुस्तकालयों को गतिशील शिक्षण केंद्रों में बदलने के साथ-साथ सैन्य सेवा और भारत-ईरानी साहित्यिक संबंधों के स्मरणोत्सव पर चर्चा की।

India

-Oneindia Staff

Published: Thursday, January 15, 2026, 21:32 [IST]

*New
Delhi,
January
15,
2026:*
Day
6
of
the
New
Delhi
World
Book
Fair
2026
witnessed
a
compelling
blend
ofintellectual
dialogue,
cultural
exchange
and
national
remembrance,
asinitiatives
promoting
reading
culture
ran
parallel
with
solemn
tributes
toIndia’s
military
legacy
at
Bharat
Mandapam.

The
*Reading
India
Samvaad
2026*,
a
two-day
National
Leadership
Dialogue
onReading
and
Libraries,
commenced
on
Thursday
alongside
the
book
fair.Organised
by
the
National
Book
Trust
(NBT),
India,
under
the
Ministry
ofEducation,
the
dialogue
aims
to
strengthen
India’s
reading,
library
andknowledge-access
ecosystem
in
alignment
with
the
National
Education
Policy(NEP)
2020
and
the
vision
of
*Viksit
Bharat@2047*.

The
Samvaad
was
inaugurated
by
Sanjay
Kumar,
Secretary,
Department
ofSchool
Education
and
Literacy,
Ministry
of
Education,
in
the
presence
ofRajshekhar
Joshi,
Vice
Chairman,
Setu
Aayog,
Government
of
Uttarakhand;Archana
Sharma
Awasthi,
Additional
Secretary,
DoSE&L;
Yuvraj
Malik,Director,
NBT;
and
Kumar
Vikram,
Chief
Editor
and
Joint
Director,
NBT.

Emphasising
the
foundational
role
of
reading
in
societal
progress,
YuvrajMalik
recalled
how
historical
leaders
such
as
Alexander
the
Great,Chandragupta
Maurya
and
Napoleon
Bonaparte
remained
avid
readers
evenduring
battles.
Sanjay
Kumar
described
reading
as
“the
power
to
enteranother
mind,” calling
for
wider
publication
and
readership
in
multipleIndian
languages
while
urging
citizens
to
envision
India
two
decades
intothe
future.
Archana
Sharma
Awasthi
reflected
on
her
childhood
experiencesat
the
book
fair
and
highlighted
the
role
of
parents
in
nurturing
readinghabits.
Rajshekhar
Joshi
advocated
transforming
libraries
into
dynamiclearning
ecosystems
supported
by
technology
and
personalised
readingpathways.

The
first
day
of
the
Samvaad
featured
two
panel
discussions—*Reimaginingthe
Classroom:
From
Textbooks
to
Reading
Culture*
and
*Libraries
asLearning
Hubs
–
Reclaiming
Reading
Spaces*.
Speakers
included
Nikhil
Tiwari(Director,
Education,
MCD),
Danish
Aziz
(UNICEF
India),
Maulshree
Kalothia(Tata
Trusts),
Shweta
Bhutada
(ASER
Centre,
Pratham),
Pradeep
Rai
(IndianLibrary
Association),
Sunita
Rattan
(Amity
University,
Noida)
and
NeerajJain
(Scholastic
India).

At
the
Theme
Pavilion,
*Army
Day*
was
commemorated
throughthought-provoking
sessions
honouring
courage,
leadership
and
sacrifice.
Aspecial
panel
paid
tribute
to
Major
Rama
Raghoba
Rane,
the
first
livingrecipient
of
the
Param
Vir
Chakra.
Dr.
D.
V.
Guruprasad
traced
Major
Rane’sjourney
from
Karwar
in
Karnataka
to
becoming
a
decorated
officer,highlighting
values
of
discipline
and
perseverance.
Lt.
Col.
AnnappaNarayan
Shet
recounted
Major
Rane’s
extraordinary
bravery
during
the1947–48
conflict,
particularly
his
mine-clearing
operations
under
heavyenemy
fire
that
enabled
Indian
troops
to
advance.

Another
panel
on
*Operation
Vijay
(Kargil
War,
1999)*
featured
Lt.
Gen.Mohindra
Puri
and
Brig.
Om
Prakash
Yadav
in
conversation
with
Colonel
S.
C.Tyagi.
Lt.
Gen.
Puri
shared
experiences
of
taking
command
in
theSrinagar–Shershahabad
sector
at
short
notice
amid
harsh
terrain
and
weatherconditions,
while
Brig.
Yadav
discussed
tactical
planning,
execution
andmaintaining
secure
supply
lines
during
the
conflict.

The
book
*Mantra
Viplav*
by
author
Tarun
Vijay
was
also
launched
during
theday.
Speaking
at
the
event,
Dattatreya
Hosabale
reflected
on
MaharshiAurobindo’s
ideas,
stressing
the
importance
of
preserving
ancientknowledge,
making
it
relevant
to
contemporary
life,
and
continuouslygenerating
new
knowledge.

In
the
International
Pavilion,
a
panel
discussion
on
*ContemporaryLiterature
and
Shared
Cultural
Aspects
of
Iran
and
India*
explored
the
deepintellectual
and
literary
ties
between
the
two
civilizations.
ScholarsMohammad
Fatehali,
Ghahreman
Soleimani
and
Sayed
Akhtar
Husain
Kazmidiscussed
Persian’s
historic
role
as
a
bridge
between
India
and
Iran,serving
as
a
language
of
literature,
administration
and
science.
Therecognition
of
Persian
as
a
classical
language
by
the
Government
of
Indiawas
welcomed
as
a
significant
step
towards
preserving
shared
heritage.
Thepanel
also
traced
Indo-Iranian
literary
ties
to
the
translation
of
the*Panchatantra*
into
Persian
as
*Kalila
wa
Dimna*
in
517
AD.

Among
the
dignitaries
who
visited
the
fair
on
Thursday
were
Satya
PalSingh,
former
Union
Minister
of
State
for
Human
Resource
Development;
MajGen
(Dr)
Bipin
Bakshi;
and
Sudhanshu
Trivedi,
Rajya
Sabha
MP.

The
*Children’s
Pavilion*
remained
vibrant
with
storytelling
sessions,Vedic
Maths
and
science
classes,
a
puppet
show,
a
Child
Authors’
Meet
andscreenings
of
children’s
films.
At
the
Amphitheatre,
audiences
were
treatedto
Russian
folk
performances
and
an
energetic
set
by
folk-fusion
band
*Rahasya:The
Project*,
blending
Indian
folk,
Sufi,
devotional,
ghazal
and
Bollywoodmusic.

With
its
mix
of
ideas,
heritage
and
creative
expression,
Day
6
of
the
NewDelhi
World
Book
Fair
2026
reaffirmed
the
event’s
role
as
a
nationalplatform
celebrating
knowledge,
culture
and
collective
memory.

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