Lucknow: Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday inaugurated the Gomti Book Festival at Gomti Riverfront Park.
Organised in collaboration with the National Book Trust and the Lucknow Development Authority (LDA), the festival will run from November 9 to 17.
During the inauguration, the CM encouraged children to expand their reading beyond textbooks, urging them to explore creative and informative books to gain broader insights. He also appealed to children to buy at least one book from the fair to foster a lifelong reading habit.
Expressing concern over the influence of the digital age, Yogi said, “Today’s youth are spending nearly six hours of their day on smartphones or other digital devices. If this time were redirected toward meaningful pursuits, it could benefit both society and the young generation. We should use technology as a tool, not become enslaved by it,” he said.
Drawing attention to India’s ancient tradition of knowledge, he emphasised the profound significance of the country’s Shruti tradition. He said that sacred sites like Naimisharanya became pilgrimage centres as sages documented knowledge there.
The CM said that listening, reflecting, and practicing learned principles have long been a valued tradition in India, which now needs to be revived.
He highlighted the rich cultural legacy of UP and said its privilege as the birthplace of revered poets like Maharishi Valmiki and Tulsidas. He referenced the ‘Ramcharitmanas’, which is cherished and sung in homes throughout India, as well as the ‘Bhagavad Gita’.
Yogi underscored the importance of taking pride in this invaluable heritage and emphasised the need to preserve it for future generations.
He praised the National Book Trust’s initiative and suggested that similar book fairs should be organised across all 18 divisions of UP. He said that such fairs would benefit all sections of society and increase people’s interest in reading.
He emphasized the need to reduce time spent on digital devices and focus more on reading books. “Books broaden our perspectives and make us more aware of society,” he said, stressing the need to inspire the younger generation in this direction.
Yogi visited the book stalls at the fair, reviewed the books, and extended his best wishes to the organizers for this commendable initiative.
On this occasion, National Book Trust Chairman Professor Milind Sudhakar Marathe, Director Colonel Yuvraj Malik, State Government Advisor Avnish Awasthi, Divisional Commissioner Roshan Jacob, and other dignitaries were present among others.
