This Fair this year was important not only for the wares it peddled; the craze for books, anyway, is nothing to be grossly surprised about in Calcutta. But there were other facets which require remembrance; the visit of Sheikh Hasina Wazed, Bangladesh Premier, for one. She came to Calcutta for her ``love for books'' and turned it into a memorable goodwill visit. If books had ever been a bridge to foster friendly ties between two neighbouring nations with needling problems, then they could not have been more successful.

Significantly, the Book Fair ended on Sunday with the shadow of a statewide paralysing strike against rising prices on Monday. This time, the strike organisers, left trade unions and INTUC have kept the Book Fair outside the purview of the strike. The stall owners and publishers were up through the night on Sunday, clearing the fair grounds of books and were allowed on Monday to ferry their goods back to the safe confines of their shelves back home despite the absence of ordinary transport on the streets. Books have become part of the essential commodities in Calcutta. That should be heartening as much as for the common people of the city as much as it should be an education for the other parties who indulge in activities going by the name of politics in this country.