LAHORE, Nov 26: Two-day Children’s Literature Festival concluded at Children’s Library Complex on Saturday, offering children fun activities coupled with learning that they will cherish for the years to come.

Narration of story on flute by Valerie Kaul was one of the most entertaining segments that prompted hundreds of students to sing along at the closing session.

Saturday being the weekend, hundreds of children thronged the festival with their parents and remained engaged in different activities, while younger kids kept glued to storytelling and puppet shows.

The second day started with a session “Reading is Fun” that educated parents and children on how they could enjoy books together. There was also a session on “Textbooks: Promoting reading or closing minds”. Fauzia Minallah educated children on promoting tolerance through children’s books. Children were also imparted training about writing a book review, creativity at its best. Children also loved Children’s play by Lal Theatre. “Jungle Jungle Zindabad”, a play by Sheema Kermani and team based on a poem by Vikram Seth and translated into Urdu by Fahmida Riaz, was also well received by the audience. However, children and their parents faced hassle owing to start of the play about one hour behind the schedule. Many parents left without watching the play.

Young author Maikan Gichki, a Class-VII student from Turbat, narrated a story about three sisters at a session from her own book “Balochi Literature” for children. She told Dawn that she wrote the book in the three-month summer vacation and it had four stories, three poems, Balochi proverbs and riddles. She said her grandfather Dr Niamatullah Gichki got the book published.

Another Balochi girl, Bandadi, who accompanied Maikan, recited Balochi poetry at a session and won applause from the audience. Both girls said they were happy to visit Lahore.

Talking to Dawn, former federal education minister Zubeida Jalal said unfortunately there was no concept of book reading in government schools because of a lack of libraries and availability of supplementary readings. However, she said, the festival by Idara-e-Taleem-o-Aagahi and Oxford University Press proved that children were inquisitive and excited to read books.

National Urdu programme head Parveen Saleem Syed and PRATHAM books assistant editor Rajesh Khar said it was a great sight to see hundreds of students visiting bookstalls, buying books and learning from different sessions.

At the concluding ceremony, senior advisor to chief minister Zulfiqar Khosa said he was pleasantly surprised to see that children were so fond of books and stories. He committed that the Punjab government would ensure that every child in the province is able to read books.

Foundation Open Society Institute, Pakistan, education wing head Nargis announced that the next Children’s Literature Festival would be organised in Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa in November next year.

Later, Khosa along with educationist Dr Arifa Syeda Zehra and ITA director (programmes) Baela Raza Jamil presented Khaliqia awards for outstanding literature for children in local languages. The award winners were: Nida Shams for literature in Sindhi, Farjad Nabi for Punjabi and Maikan Gichki for Balochi.

Syeda Basarat Kazim of Alif Laila Book Bus was awarded with Khaliqia Green Earth Book Award.