Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday inaugurated the Amar Ekushey Book Fair-2022, the annual event of booklovers and publishers, in the capital. She opened the country’s biggest book fair, joining its inaugural ceremony at the Bangla Academy virtually from her official residence Ganobhaban in the afternoon. This year’s fair is being held on the Bangla Academy premises and its adjoining Suhrawardy Udyan in the city on February 15-28. But its duration might be extended if the Covid situation improves. Speaking on the occasion, the Prime Minister said the duration of the fair should be extended to one month. “As we started the fair behind the schedule this time,  February 15, I think we can continue it for a full month,” she said. Read: Amar Ekushey Book Fair 2022 begins Tuesday Besides, there is also a demand from publishers to extend its duration, Hasina said. Noting that she alone should not take the decision, she directed the authorities concerned to consider how much they can do in this regard. At the opening ceremony, the Prime Minister distributed the Bangla Academy Sahitya Puroshkar-2021 (Bangla Academy Literary Award 2021) among its recipients. On her behalf, State Minister for Cultural Affairs KM Khalid handed over the award to the 15 recipients under 11 categories. Each awardee received a cheque for Tk 3 lakh, a crest and a certificate. Asad Mannan and Bimal Guha received the award for poetry, while Jharna Rahman and Bishwajit Choudhury for novels, Hossenuddin Hossen for essays/research and Aminur Rahman and Rafique-um-Munir Chowdhury for translation. The other awardees are Shadhona Ahmed for drama, Rafiqur Rashid for juvenile literature, Panna Kaiser for her work on the Liberation War, Professor Harun-or-Rashid for research on Bangabandhu, Shuvagoto Chowdhury for science/science fiction/environmental science, Sufia Khatun and Haider Akbar Khan Rono for biography and travelogue and Aminur Rahman Sultan for folklore. The Bangla Academy Sahitya Puroshkar is given in recognition of creativity and talents in advancement and overall contributions to the field of Bengali language and literature.