A word wide web………Anubhuti Vishnoi
Centre learns from Tamil Nadu’s example, to involve private sector for a national book promotion policy
The country is set to get its first National Book Promotion Policy with an ambitious draft getting the go ahead from the Union Human Resource Development Ministry. On the anvil is a large scale library movement, a national centre for childrens literature to churn out books for children, special cells to produce books in accessible formats for visually impaired and physically disadvantaged students, an institute to offer a range of courses in the field of publishing and a nationwide survey to assess the nature of reading habits.
Minister Kapil Sibal, who chaired a meeting of the Round Table on the issue last week, has called for replicating Tamil Nadus library model and involvement of the private sector.
Aimed at motivating and facilitating good writing and publishing of a range of books accessible to readers across the country, the National Book Policy drafted by a task force, headed by Dinesh Mishra, the president of Indian Society of Authors, has been approved in principle by the ministry and promises to make India a knowledge society.
Keen to take books to those who are visually and mentally disadvantaged, it has been recommended that a special cell be created in specialised institutions to produce books specific to their requirements. While one such special cell is being planned at Dehradun for the visually impaired children, another is proposed in Delhi for spastic children. All government schools, aided schools, universities and institutions of higher learning must have similar special cells in their libraries to enable physically disadvantaged students to use books in accessible formats as should public libraries at state and district level, it has been recommended.
The policy also calls for setting up an autonomous national council/ centre of childrens literature to promote and propagate childrens literature in the country. Keen to assess the reading habits of the people across the country, the policy calls for conducting national book sector surveys on the lines of the National Youth Readership survey undertaken by the NCAER on behalf of the National Book Trust.
The library movement is key to the ministrys scheme of things. Activating the current set of libraries further, assessing their conditions and guiding them towards e-books and digital libraries is a key aspect of the policy. It is also suggested that provisions in the Delivery of Books and Newspaper (public libraries) Act 1954 be revised to reduce the number of free copies of each new title to be deposited by publishers and that the University Grants Commissions Information Library Network (INFLIBNET) be also involved in the movement. Engaging schools, local book clubs, NGOs, resident organisations, Panchayati Raj Institutions, post offices, railways, authors organisations, publishers and booksellers organisations for book promotion is also desired.
Aimed at giving a boost to the publishing industry in the country, it is proposed that the possibility of granting the status of industry to book publishing be examined and that the Indian Council for Cultural Resources be roped in to promote books by Indian publishers and authors abroad. Rationalisation of the cost of paper to enable affordability of books, assessment of the FDI policy on book publishing and bringing down postal rates for book dispatch by mail order are other measures suggested to bring down prices of books.
Setting up state-level Book Promotion Councils, National Book Exhibition and Book Fairs Authority, compulsory space allocation for bookshops at all shopping malls, new residential colonies and apartments are steps suggested to encourage book distribution mechanisms. It is proposed that subsidies be introduced for export and import of books and an Indian Institute of Publishing Management & Technology be set up to offer courses in publishing science, childrens literature, editorial studies, book designing, e-publishing and research on the publishing sector.
URL: http://www.indianexpress.com/news/A-word-wide-web/699849
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