Kathmandu, September 22

Education Minister Chitra Lekha Yadav today stressed on inculcating reading habit among the general public for the development of country.

Inaugurating the ‘Great Book Exhibition-2015’ at the Nepal Academy, Kathmandu, she said, “Knowledge is the greatest strength of an individual and reading is one of the ways to gain knowledge. Thus, we should inculcate reading habit for our own empowerment and development of the country.”

She said children should not be made dependent only on textbooks. “Motivating children to read books apart from their textbooks will help them develop a reading habit and broaden their horizons,” she added.

The two-week exhibition organised by Sajha Prakashan, a government publication house, in association with the Nepal Academy, is part of ‘Save the Sajha Campaign.’ She also stated that it is our responsibility to save Sajha Prakashan that has been promoting Nepali art, culture, language and literature.

Former education minister Dinanath Sharma, who is also a member of the Sajha Prakashan Management Committee, stressed on the need for a book policy in the country.“During my tenure as the education minister, a committee had been formed under the chairmanship of Modnath Prashrit.The government should activate the committee and draft a book policy soon.”

Dolindra Prasad Sharma, president and general manager of Sajha Prakashan, said, “As the book exhibition is part of the Save the Sajha Campaign, we urge all to buy the books and contribute to saving the publication house from the verge of collapse.”