Export Seminar on 'International Marketing of Books, Publications & Printing - Emerging Trends'
  A Seminar on "International Marketing of Books, Publications & Printing - Emerging Trends" was held on 28th March 2008 at Chelmsford Clubs, New Delhi organised by Capexil's Books, Publications & Printing Panel. There were approximately 60 participants.
  The export of books and publications, even though a comparatively low foreign exchange earner, acts as a catalyst in the development of other exports in as much as they constitute vital sources of information, education and culture, thereby accelerating the overall development process. The efforts of the Indian book industry as well as those of the printing industry have been the basis of our growing exports to around 120 countries of the world. The galloping prices of paper and the increasing cost of postal and freight rates have impeded the smooth distribution of books and other publications and the free flow of knowledge. Concentration of knowledge gives rise to power and, for its equitable distribution, smooth flow of books and other publications has to be ensured. As books are not standardised products, they essentially require continuous and distinct marketing efforts, which involve an altogether separate consideration and attention.
  In the Seminar, the first presentation was made by Mr. Bastiaan Bijl on Market Analysis & Training Consultant, International Trade Centre, UNCTAD/WTO. His main theme was how a data base can play an important role in understanding the different markets and its trends. The second speaker was Mr. Ramesh Kumar Mittal of D K Agencies, who presented his paper on how ISBN and CIP DATA can play an important role in promotion of books internationally, specially to the institutions.
  The third speaker was Mr Saumya Gupta of New Age International, who explained the Emergence of E-books and the importance in the future.
  The next speaker was Ms. Charu Bhatnagar of M/s Rave India, New Delhi, who talked mostly about Print Export from India.
  Mr. Satish Malhotra of Swan Press also emphasized the importance of printing from India and how it could help to earn foreign exchange. According to him India has great potential and also resources to become one of the major printing players, in the international market.
  Last speaker was Mr. Sukumar Das of UBS Publishers' Distributors Pvt. Ltd., whose presentation was basically to educate the participants to understand each and every market in detail along with the data base and the measures that they should be taking to improve their exports.
(April 2008, Sukumar Das, APPREB correspondent)

The National Translation Mission
  The National Translation Mission of Human Resource Development, Department of Higher Education, Language Division, New Delhi, held a meeting on 16th April 2008 in the Conference Hall of the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Shastri Bhavan, New Delhi to discuss the idea of the National Translation Mission which had originally come from the Prime Minister of India, at the first meeting of the National Knowledge Commission (NKC), when he suggested how vital translated material was for increasing access to knowledge in many critical areas and broadening and strengthening people's participation in education and continuous learning.
  The National Knowledge Commission chaired by Sri Sam Pitroda took serious note of this suggestion and felt the immediate need to have a separate institution or mission to promote the cause of translation for education in India.
  It was agreed that the National Translation Mission should concentrate on facilitating research and teaching of different disciplines at the colleges and universities which would like to use both printed and on-line texts and reference materials in all languages in the 8th Schedule of the Indian Constitution. In addition, the teaching aids such as maps, charts, diagrams, reports (such as the Economic Survey, or the Educational Survey or even the Budget Document, etc.) should also be rendered into Indian languages. The ultimate goal should be to come to a stage where the e-journals are translated within a reasonably short period into major Indian languages and put on the web with appropriate search tools to help the non-urban and non-elite who find it difficult to cope with the knowledge explosion most of which is happening in English.
  There is no doubt that coordination and cooperation with a variety of organisations like the Commission for Scientific and Technical Terminology (CSTT), National Council for Educational and Research Training (NCERT), National Book Trust (NBT), University Grants Commission (UGC), Sahitya Akademy, Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL), Mysore, Granth Academies, Public Library Networks, etc. would be needed for avoiding overlapping and duplication.
  However, one of the most important links would be needed with publishers, newspaper/media, and booksellers. The point is to engage in strategic interventions building on and developing synergies with existing public institutions and private agencies in the true spirit of public-private partnership.
(April 2008, Sukumar Das, APPREB correspondent)

Training Course in Book Publishing (Imphal)
  National Book Trust, India, an autonomous organisation under the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India, organised a short-term Training Course in Book Publishing from 24-29 March 2008 at Imphal in collaboration with the Writers' Forum, Imphal.
  The course was inaugurated by P Saratchandra, Principal Secretary, Education, Revenue and Sericulture, Government of Manipur on 24 March 2008 at Hotel Imphal. In his inaugural address, Saratchandra laid stress on Human Resource Development and appreciated the efforts of NBT in this regard for conducting the Book Publishing Course at Imphal.
  This week-long course was an eye-opener for the participants which dealt with all the aspects of Book Publishing, starting from the History of Publishing, Planning, Structure of a Publishing House, Editorial Processes, Copy-Editing, House-Style, Author-Editor Relationship, Production, Costing and Estimating, Marketing, Scope of Export Market, Copyright and other related issues, Publishers' contracts, Sale of Rights etc. and Financial Management and Inventory Control.
  The course provided an alternative career option to participation in the field of publishing.
  The faculty members were drawn from the leading publishing houses of the country. They included, Sridhar Balan from Ratna Sagar, G S Jolly from Delhi University, Dept. of Publishing, Sukumar Das from UBSPD, S K Mohanty, a practicing lawyer, copyright issues, Kalyan Banerjee from NCERT, Sumit Bhattacharjee and Subir Dutta from NBT, N K Bhattacharjee from K K Birla Foundation, Aparajita Basu from Parragon Publishers, and Sharmila Abraham from Pearson Education. The local needs were also taken care of. B S Rajkumar dealt with editorial techniques in Manipuri Language as well.
  There were 26 participants from Manipur who participated in this week-long course which was quite interactive.
  The course ended with the Valedictory Function on 29 March 2008 where R K Jhalajit Singh, a scholar, historian and poet gave the certificates to the participants.
(April 2008, Sukumar Das, APPREB Correspondent)

A Little Book on Men, a new book on masculinity
  As the varied discourses within gender studies grew increasingly complex, the study of masculinities continues to remain an area of darkness within the South Asian reality. The obvious is familiar to all - the visible masculinity within bristles on the slightest provocation and proudly displays its wares. But what about various other masculinities, those which remain silent and unrecognised, pushed under and behind their "hyper-masculine" brethren? One might ask, are the two kinds of masculinities locked in an eternal conflict? And are these masculinities permanent, unchangeable, or do they evolve and transform with time? An unprecedented and timely effort, "A Little Book on Men", a graphic book, attempts to address many of these questions in a creative and reader-friendly manner through drawings, text and video frames.
  Author Rahul Roy is an independent documentary film-maker. Besides directing a number of internationally acclaimed films on the themes of masculinities, he has also written widely on men and gender issues.
  One of the two illustrators Anupama Chatterjee studied animation at the National Institute of Design, and is a broadcast animator by profession.
  The other illustrator Sherna Dastur specialized in video at the National Institute of Design. She works as a freelance designer and makes documentary films once in a while. Her film Manjuben Truck Driver (2002) won international acclaim.
(April 2008, Sukumar Das, APPREB correspondent)