The Amar Ekushey Book Fair 2026 begins today, Thursday, under the theme “Multidimensional Bangladesh,” with Prime Minister Tareque Rahman inaugurating the month-long event at 2:00 pm as the chief guest. A total of 549 publishing houses are participating this year, including 81 stalls at the Bangla Academy premises and 468 at the Suhrawardy Udyan section, bringing the total number of units to 1,018; last year 708 institutions took part with 1,084 units. The Little Magazine Corner has been set up under the trees near the open stage at Suhrawardy Udyan, where 87 little magazines have been allocated stalls, while the Children’s Corner features 63 institutions with 107 units. Although the overall layout remains similar to previous years, the exit gate has been shifted closer to the Temple Gate due to the position of the metro rail station, and four entry and exit points have been arranged at TSC, Doel Chattar, MRT Basing Plant and the Engineering Institution areas. Food stalls have been organized neatly along the boundary of the Engineering Institution, and essential services including prayer spaces and washrooms will remain available; special arrangements for Tarawih prayers have also been made at the Suhrawardy Udyan section in observance of the holy month of Ramadan. Bangla Academy and participating publishers will sell books at a 25 percent commission, while government institutions will follow their fixed commission rates, and Bangla Academy publications will be available in both sections of the fair. Every day from 3:00 pm to 4:00 pm thematic seminars will be held at the main stage, followed by cultural programs from 4:00 pm to 5:00 pm; on Fridays and Saturdays, a special “Children’s Hour” will run from 11:00 am to 6:00 pm featuring drawing, recitation and music competitions for children and teenagers, along with arrangements for new book unveilings at Suhrawardy Udyan. Stringent security measures have been taken, including adequate archways at entry and exit points, deployment of police, RAB, Ansar and intelligence agencies, installation of around 300 CCTV cameras and plainclothes police teams for constant surveillance; separate security measures have been arranged for women and children, and a SWAT team will remain ready to respond to emergencies, especially during weekends when visitor numbers are expected to rise. The fair will remain polythene-free and smoke-free, with adequate lighting, regular cleaning, water spraying to control dust and mosquito control measures in place across the venue and surrounding areas. The fair will continue from February 26 to March 15, remaining open from 2:00 pm to 9:00 pm on regular days, with no new entry allowed after 8:30 pm, while on holidays it will operate from 11:00 am to 9:00 pm; although traditionally the book fair begins on the first day of the Language Month, this year the schedule was revised due to the Thirteenth Parliamentary Election and Ramadan, finally setting February 26 as the opening date.