Amar Ekushey Book Fair to begin on 26 February

The Amar Ekushey Book Fair 2026 has been postponed by one day and will now begin on 26 February instead of the earlier scheduled 25 February.

The date has been revised for the second time. The fair was initially scheduled to begin on 20 February.

The inauguration ceremony will be held at 2pm at Rabindra Chattar on the Bangla Academy premises. Prime Minister Tarique Rahman is set to formally inaugurate the fair.

Selim Reza, secretary of Bangla Academy and member secretary of the Amar Ekushey Book Fair 2026 Organising Committee, said the postponement was due to special circumstances.

He confirmed that the prime minister will inaugurate the fair at 2pm following the distribution of 21 awards earlier in the day.

Earlier, a meeting was held on 18 February at Shaheed Munir Chowdhury Auditorium at Bangla Academy, attended by the cultural affairs minister, state minister, the director general and secretary of Bangla Academy, and representatives of publishers.

At that meeting, it was decided that the fair would begin on 25 February and preparations had started accordingly. However, on 21 February, the cultural affairs minister announced that the prime minister would inaugurate the fair on 26 February after the morning award ceremony.

Concerns had emerged over the participation of more than 300 publishing houses affiliated with Prakashak Oikya (Publishers' Unity), which had earlier announced a boycott citing lack of transparency in stall and pavilion allocation and limited preparation time.

Leaders of the group, including Mazharul Islam, chief executive officer of Onnoprakash, and Monirul Haque of Onnona, told UNB that the absence of a fair lottery and unclear pavilion assignments prevented their participation.

Disputes over stall allocation surfaced on Saturday night, prompting Prakashak Oikya to withhold participation. The issue was discussed at a Ministry of Cultural Affairs meeting on Sunday, but no resolution was reached at that time. Publishers alleged that unequal pavilion allocation had forced major publishers into smaller stalls.

However, the publishers later decided to participate after the government accepted their conditions.

Mahrukh Mohiuddin, managing director of University Press Limited (UPL), announced at a press conference at Jatiya Press Club in Dhaka on Sunday noon that Prakashak Oikya would take part in the fair.

"Initially, Publishers' Unity demanded that no pavilion be allocated to anyone, including themselves, to ensure equality. When that demand was not met, they announced non-participation. But last night, an agreement was reached between the Ministry of Cultural Affairs, Bangla Academy and the Bangladesh Book Publishers and Sellers Association (BAPS). With government approval of their conditions, the publishers are now participating," she said.

She added that more than 200 publishers submitted applications on 19 February following the agreement.