Neyveli Book Fair, a platform for writers

PUDUCHERRY: M Ramanathan, vice chancellor, Annamalai University, said that the reading habit was slowly disappearing due to the impact of the electronic media, which took up a major share of our leisure time.Addressing the valedictory function of the 14th Neyveli Book Fair at Neyveli on Sunday evening, he said young and aspiring writers should write in a simple way, in order to elicit a good response from readers.He said that the electronic media created an intellectual society, while books helped to build a valuable society conserving our rich cultural heritage and powerful history. “Hence, we should make an effort to get people to read. This type of fair will go a long way in developing the reading habit of the public,” he added.The VC said electronic media gave importance to the visual effect, animation and sound effect, making news content pale in comparison.A R Ansari, chairman and managing director of the Neyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC), presided over the function, in which directors, executive directors and other senior officials of the company were present.Soma Valliappan, an eminent writer, was honoured and Bharathan Publication (Kalki) (P) Ltd. was felicitated as the best publisher. A new Tamil book titled ‘200 Diseases and 200 Medicines’ written by Dr Ratna Shanmuganar was released during the final day function.According to the organisers, the 14th Neyveli Book Fair received tremendous response from book lovers.