The Kolkata Book Fair 2027 will introduce a fully digital process for allocating stalls, allowing publishers and booksellers to apply and submit documents through an online portal for the event’s 50th edition.
The International Kolkata Book Fair will be held from January 22 to February 3, 2027. Applications from publishers and booksellers in India and abroad must be submitted by October 15, according to information reported by Sanmarg – Kolkata.
The new system will allow applicants to complete the process from their homes instead of submitting documents in person or sending them by email. Application forms and the required supporting documents will be uploaded digitally through the new portal.
Prasenjit Bakshi, convenor of the IKBF advisory board, said the online process was being introduced to increase transparency in stall allocation. The list of successful applicants and details of the final stall allotment will also be made available on the portal, according to the report.
The change affects an administrative process that has traditionally required publishers and booksellers to interact with organisers through physical document submissions or email correspondence. By moving applications, document collection and allocation information to one digital platform, the organisers are seeking to make the process more accessible and easier to track.
Tridib Chatterjee, general secretary of the Publishers and Booksellers Guild, said applicants previously had to submit documents personally or send them by email. He said the digital arrangement would make the process more convenient and allow publishers to apply according to their own schedules.
For publishers from outside Kolkata and international participants, the online application system is expected to remove the need for an initial physical visit solely to submit documents. However, the information available in the report does not specify the portal address, the documents required, the technical support available to applicants, or how disputes over allotments will be handled.
The decision also places greater importance on the portal’s ability to publish accurate applicant and allocation information. Making the successful applicants and final stall details available online will provide a public record of the allotment process, while the application deadline gives prospective participants a defined date for completing submissions.
The 50th edition will therefore be the first International Kolkata Book Fair to use a fully online stall-allocation process. Publishers and booksellers intending to participate must submit their applications and documents through the new system by October 15, ahead of the fair’s scheduled opening on January 22, 2027.