1k books penned by Goans during pandemic relaunched

Panaji: Writers from Goa who had written and published their works during the Covid-19 pandemic got together at the Goa state central library on Wednesday to relaunch their works as part of World Book Day. As many as 1,061 books were written and published from 2019 till date.
Governor P S Sreedharan Pillai said there is a need for writers to write in vernacular languages to encourage readership.
He said that Mahatma Gandhi was one of the best writers, having command of the English language, but he wrote most books in Gujarati, as well. “He always used simple language in his literature,” the governor said at the World Book Day festivities at the library,
Citing the examples of some of the great writers and their literature, the governor maintained that only mother tongue helps to know the essence of literature. Freedom fighter Ram Manohar Lohia was a powerful speaker whose books are available at Raj Bhavan library, he said.
Pillai appealed to the writer community to “educate and enlighten the masses” on various issues, assuring them that satisfaction of which is enough to continue their good work of writing.
“Writing has the ability to showcase the unity of people and unity of our country to others. Give more opportunities to writers to create a bright future of our country,” he said.
The exhibition of these books will remain open till April 30 at the Krishnadas Shama Goa State Central Library, Sanskruti Bhavan, Patto, Panaji.
“This event allowed all the writers to speak about how they overcame the difficulties of the pandemic and wrote their books or went about its publication,” Goa state central library curator Sushant Tandel told TOI.
He further said that there is a need to increase the reading culture among Goans.