The News Minute | September 7, 2014 | 08:27 am ISTThe ten-day Madurai Book Fair which ropes in a number of speakers for its event attracts scores of readers ; however its exclusion of women speakers from its entire list has irked activists. The festival held in Tamukkam Grounds does not have even a single woman speaker; all ten days of the events have only male speakers, said Deccan Chronicle. Women are only used for compering, said the report. However, secretary, K.S. Pugazhenthi of the organising Booksellers’ and Publishers’ Association of South India, , said that there weren’t many eminent women speakers who can inspire the audience to listen and buy their books, said DC. He admitted that women speakers were not given the required space and importance over the years, said the report. Tamil writer and poet A. Vennila, who was a guest speaker at the Madurai fair previously, negates this idea saying that there a number of women who can manage to keep the audience interested.