Restless, disappointed, I needed answers immediately. When would the book fair take place? Where would it happen? The court had passed an order, informed the petitioner's lawyer, Kalyan Bandyopadhaya, that until requisite permissions were granted by the Calcutta Police, Municipal Corporation and the Pollution Control Board, the guild could not do anything with regard to the book fair.

The fair is one of the biggest in the world in its category. It is held over an area of about 12.5 lakh square feet and hosts about 900 bookstalls. About two-and-a-half million people visit the fair every year where participants sell books worth about Rs. 20 crore. The Kolkata Book Fair is often compared to the Frankfurt Book Fair. This is unfair. The Frankfurt bash is a trade fair where book rights, rather than books, are negotiated. The Kolkata shindig is a retail fair where, under the auspices of the Publishers and Booksellers Guild, bookshops and publishing houses sell their books at substantially subsidized prices. The book fair adorns Kolkata's winter social calendar and it does have the support of the chief minister. However, the High Court on the 30th of January refused permission to the guild to hold the book fair at the designated place by citing environmental considerations as the reason for the refusal.

At a point like this, I am certain that I wasn't the only one looking for directions and answers on the 31st of January 2007.

Before I could resort to the electronic media for further clarification, my next-door neighbor, an avid lover of books, dropped by on a visit and related that he had just come from the symbolic inauguration of the fair at the Maidan. This is what's best about Kolkata. At least one member of every household is a part of some movement. This gentleman also was no exception. He was part of the chaotic streets of Kolkata, yet he was also a citizen of a friendly metropolis that houses innumerable political activists, poets and artists. In spite of its blessings, the city is also overburdened with its share of problems. Environmental degradation now tops the list.

So the Maidan last night, the 31st of January 2007, became a protest ground, attended by the likes of film director Mrinal Sen, litterateur Sunil Gangopaddhaya and artist Haimanti Shukla. The mayor of Kolkata, Bikash Bhattacharya, delivered his piece. State minister Subhash Chakravarty played with the balloons instead of making an official statement. Even our very own Taslima Nasreen came, yet decided against a stage appearance. Going Green, after all, has become an essential issue in West Bengal.

Right after the High Court gave its ruling on Friday, 26th January, the book fair organizers met with the chief minister. But to no avail. The minister had meatier things on his platter to attend to, and the Guild members were unable to push home their point.

They had no point in reality, anyway…

Dust pollution resulting in dust allergy and depreciation of exhibited books due to shop-soiling are the major concerns of the Green 'Save Maidan' activists. The grass quickly disappears, the top soil becomes dry and that eventually leads to erosion. Watering controls the dust, but makes the grounds muddy. In order to protect Maharani Victoria's Memorial and her marbles, the fair grounds had shifted to the other end of Park Street a couple of years back. This location had remained a public favorite owing to its location being in the heart of Calcutta, and being very well-serviced by public transport. It was only the court's special permission that allowed the fair to be held in 2005, which also gave permission for "one last time" in 2006. The Kolkata Book Fair was the only fair to be granted special permission in 2006. Yet, despite these two 'final notices' given to the fair organizers to find alternative venues, nothing happened. The 2007 fair venue issue drew protests from various independent groups like the Save the Maidan campaign. The noted Indian publishing and bookselling house Seagull Books, under pressure, announced its intention of withdrawing from the fair. Starting from the 1990s, the book fair has been themed annually, typically on a country. Last year the theme country was Spain. Dr. Maria Fernanda Santiago Bolanos, one of the most celebrated of contemporary Spanish authors, had chanted 'slokas' from the Rig-Veda and Mahabharata. The last book fair, held on 25th January 2006, had also coincided with the 183rd birth anniversary of Michael Madhusudan Dutt. This year it is focusing on Australia. Sadly enough, the Australian team's scheduled to leave Kolkata on the 3rd of February without even having been part of the book fair. Things might change in the next hour or so. Currency of news, after all, is a huge challenge in South Asia.

The fair typically overlaps with Saraswati Puja when most Hindu households worship books on that day and do not touch them for any other purpose. This practice, however, causes lower sales in the book fair. That's the one day when books and divinity enjoy a bond, and even if there's no Goddess of Wealth blessing the wedlock, publishing houses like Oxford, Seagull, Rupa, et al, look the other way and count their blessings. Amongst others who add color to the fair every year are the Bengali language book shops: The famous Santiniketan-based used-books seller Subarnarekha, Ananda Publishers, Deb Sahitya Kutir, and Mitra Ghosh Publishers, while amongst the English language book shops, the names of Timely Books and Rupa and Co are mentionable. Virtually all major European scientific publishers or their Indian franchises participate, including Oxford and Cambridge University Press, Kluwer and Springer Verlag. The book fair, held on the last Wednesday of January of every year, traditionally boasts of a large presence of litterateurs and commoners who discuss Kafka while sipping tea in a matir khora, right by the pavement, blissfully unaware of the digestive problems that we Dhaka-bashis often end up with. Such is the culture in this part of India, a country which has the highest number of readers in the world, and which is a home to the third largest publishing scene in the globe.

Yet the Maidan cannot be used for the fair this year. The reasons have to do with the RPM level.

The term sounds somewhat like a speed indicator and applicable for vehicles and dashboards. But it stands for Respirable Particulate Matter, which is the fine dust that is inhaled and damages the lungs. High levels of it are a major health hazard. For instance, a careful survey of the Maidan book fair RPM level would reveal the following:

People suffer from various ailments due to increased RPM levels in the air. The rise in RPM during Maidan book fairs, therefore, was a serious issue. The West Bengal Pollution Control Board, which had previously not paid much attention to RPM levels, was asked by the High Court to come up with final findings of the damage done to the environment due to book fairs at the Maidan. In year 2001, a PCB study revealed an almost lethal count of 1136 micrograms per cubic metre at the fair venue. Anything above 100 is a threat to our health. The guild sprinkled water on the ground to bring the level of RPM down. 2002 had a decreased level of 372, January 2004 had 257 micrograms, January 2006 had 288 microgams. These stats (courtesy of The Telegraph) can drive any environmentally conscious, aspiring yogi insane.

Should we read, and suffocate to death? Or should we go Green?

The High Court had the sharpest answer to this. NO, it said in all caps. "This is the victory of environment over politics," said Subhas Dutta, environmental activist, adding that a rally causes huge environmental damage, with poles being dug, makeshift toilets and kitchens being carved out, plastic and garbage being dumped, thousands of feet trampling the greens and loudspeakers blaring.

The Green lobby is strong today in Kolkata. The Calcutta Green Network is working hard to close ranks against rallies on the Maidan.

People disagreeing with the Court's tight slap also held on to their views. Author Samaresh Majumdar spoke against the cricket match at Eden Gardens being held as that too was "hazardous to the society at large." However, he added: "The court only cannot be blamed for the verdict, as the Guild too has been callous so far as its work is concerned."

What now matters is whether the book air would find its way out of the foul weather and finally be organized by the Guild. In a world where Al Gore is a vocal proponent of carbon neutrality, buying a carbon offset each time he travels by aircraft, and has his family driving hybrid vehicles, in a world where a previously anti-environmental American president can find room in his State of the Union address to raise the issue of ethanol, why, indeed should Bengal lag behind?

Last update:

Feb 01, 2007: We have been marginally lucky this time. The organizers have decided to hold the fair at the Salt Lake Stadium, starting from the 10th of Feb and stretching till the 21st. The inauguration will be on the 9th of Feb, the timings will be noon to 8:00 pm on weekdays and noon to 9pm over the weekend and on holidays. The 32nd Book Fair will not bother the players' pitch or the viewing galleries.

Amen!

Rubana is a poet currently doing Phd work at Jadavpur University.