Dr Amarjyoti Choudhury begins campaign to popularise book reading habit among youth
MANGALDAI, Sept 15 - In this present age of outburst of Information Technology, the book reading habit among the younger generation has almost dried up. This situation has led to eminent academician and the former VC of Tezpur University, Dr Amarjyoti Choudhury, to begin a statewide campaign to make people, especially the children and youth, aware about the importance of book reading and make the habit of book reading a part of everyone�s life.
As a part of this initiative, Dr Choudhury in collaboration with a local socio-cultural organisation Zebra Force organised a meeting on Saturday afternoon here at the district library campus. Addressing an august gathering of book lovers, academicians, writers, members of different literary organisations, youths, children, parents and guardians etc., Dr Choudhury said. �A book is a sum of thoughts. We all need to read books because today we need such a society where we can come to the truth of an information with correct justification based on our wisdom and we may achieve this only through reading books.� He further said,� Presently, we all are under a state of uncertainty. It looks we are searching for the right direction and this direction we can only get only through studying books.�
Appealing to parents and guardians to cultivate the reading habit, he said, � If you tell your children to avoid mobile phones and read books, it will never work if you themselves set example of reading books.� Speaking on the occasion, veteran litterateur and academician Idris Ali narrated how a book may be chosen by a reader according to his taste and interest.� All kinds of literature are books but all books are not literature. A dictionary is a book but it is not literature. We must develop the interest of buying books. Just like a betelnut shop draws us when we pass near it, a book shop also must draw us to it.� Barada Saikia, a prominent local writer and book lover also shared her childhood experiences of developing the reading habit.
The brief session also witnessed administering a community pledge on reading books initiated by eminent playwright and lyricist Hemanta Dutta. Noted academician and writer of Guwahati Dr Basanta Deka also attended it. At the end of the function, Dr Choudhury led a group of children to the library and guided them on how to feel delighted through reading books and after some time when they came out , the children were greeted with a big round of applause. Earlier, office bearers of the Zebra Force Diganta Mani Bora, Hemanta Kumar Barua, Bhupen Krishna Goswami and Himanjan Sarma greeted the guests in a traditional manner.
