Dhami Inaugurates Doon Book Festival: Promoting Reading Culture

Uttarakhand CM Dhami Inaugurates Doon Book Festival in Dehradun

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami inaugurated the nine-day Doon Book Festival in Dehradun, a literary event aimed at fostering a robust reading culture and promoting regional languages. The festival features over 300 stalls, a Children's Festival, and the launch of new books in Garhwali and Kumaoni.

Claire Donovan

April 4, 2026 · 6 min read

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Saturday inaugurated the Doon Book Festival in Dehradun, a nine-day literary event organized by the National Book Trust in collaboration with the state government, which will run from April 4 to 12.

The inauguration of this festival, situated within the city’s expansive Parade Ground, represents more than a simple ribbon-cutting; it signals a deliberate and state-sanctioned effort to cultivate a robust literary ecosystem in a region whose cultural identity is as profound and varied as its topography. In a landscape where oral traditions have long held sway, the concerted push to foreground the printed word, particularly through the promotion of regional languages and a dedicated focus on engaging the youngest generation of potential readers, marks a significant moment. The collaboration between the National Book Trust, an arm of the central Ministry of Education, and the Uttarakhand government suggests a strategic alignment, a recognition that the future of a place is written not only in its policies and infrastructure but in the stories it chooses to tell, to preserve, and to pass on. The immediate consequence is the transformation of a public space into a sprawling marketplace of ideas, a temporary city of books whose true impact will be measured long after the stalls are dismantled.

What We Know So Far

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, accompanied by Acharya Balkrishna, officially inaugurated the Doon Book Festival on Saturday, April 4, at the Parade Ground in Dehradun, according to a report from aninews.in.
The festival is scheduled to run for nine days, from April 4 to April 12, offering a sustained period for public engagement with literature and publishing.
The event is a joint initiative organized by the National Book Trust (NBT), which operates under the aegis of the Ministry of Education, and the Government of Uttarakhand, as confirmed by oneindia.com.
The festival grounds host over 300 stalls, showcasing a vast collection of books, and entry is free for all visitors to encourage widespread participation.
A significant component of the event is a special Children’s Festival, which, according to garhwalpost.in, will feature daily activities such as storytelling sessions, creative workshops, and interactive learning experiences.
A key highlight of the inauguration was the launch of 26 new books in the Garhwali and Kumaoni languages, published by the National Book Trust.

This initiative appears to be part of a broader, consistent pattern of policy from the Chief Minister's office, which has previously promoted the practice of presenting books instead of bouquets at official functions and introduced a new book on local heritage into the school curriculum. The festival, therefore, feels like a culmination, a public-facing spectacle that institutionalizes this pro-literature stance. The most tangible evidence of this commitment lies in the significant platform given to regional languages. The release of 26 titles in Garhwali and Kumaoni by the National Book Trust is a powerful statement. It moves these languages from the periphery to the center, validating them as mediums for contemporary literary expression and ensuring their preservation in print. It is one thing to speak a language, and quite another to see its words, its unique cadences and concerns, bound in a book, placed on a stall, and offered to the world—an act that confers a distinct and enduring legitimacy.