Punjab University celebrates World Book Day in befitting manner

Jumbo Editorial Team

The University of the Punjab, also known as the Punjab University, celebrated the World Book and Copyright Day in befitting manner by holding a couple of high profile events to raise awareness about books.

The department of Library and Information Sciences (DLIS), with the collaboration of the PU Library and Information Sciences Alumni Association, organized a seminar, which was also attended by eminent columnist, Hassan Nisar.

Earlier in the day a walk was held from the DLIS to the Institute of Education and Research and the Undergraduate Study Centre. A large number of teachers, librarians and students, holding placards and banners, participated in the walk.

Such efforts are going a long way in motivating the students in particular and the community in general to read books. The success was reflected in the Punjab University’s three-day book fair last month in which a record number of 100,616 books were reported to have been sold.

The DLIS Chairperson, Prof Dr Kanwal Amin, revealed that according to statistics, increase in electronic and printed book trade had been witnessed as compared to the previous year in the United States. She pointed out that it rebutted a misconception that the invention of internet had reduced book reading habit.

She questioned that if books were not necessary, then why Google was digitizing hundreds of thousands of books? She reckoned that the only matter was promotion of reading habits.

Later ‘Book Lover Award’ was presented to the top ten book users of the Punjab University and Raza Hameed of University Law College, Rashid Ali of College of Engineering and Emerging Technologies and Faizan Ali of Institute of Chemical Engineering and Technology stood 1st, 2nd and 3rd respectively.

The PU Vice Chancellor, Prof Dr Mujahid Kamran, remarked that only those nations are powerful and rule the world that are knowledgeable and love books, adding it’s the law of nature and the United States became super power only because they followed the rule of the nature.

“Many good things were associated with books and it urged human beings to think. The books polished qualities of human beings and reading habits enhanced vocabulary,” he emphasized.

Hassan Nisar, whose presence was a source of inspiration to the hosts, observed that books were not all about the words printed on paper but they were from earth to the whole universe and we should not limit it to hand written words.