Foreign publisher's participation doubles in Delhi Book Fair

New Delhi, Aug 31 (UNI) Around 235 companies from the publishing sector, including 13 from overseas, will put on display over 50,000 new books at the 13th Delhi Book Fair 2007 which kicks off at Pragati Maidan tomorrow.

The 9-day-long fair will be inaugurated by Lt Governor of NCT of Delhi Tejendra Khanna and Prof Gopi Chand Narang, President, Sahitya Academy will be the Guest of Honour at the inaugural ceremony.

As an expanded showcase of Indian publishing industry, the fair being joinly organised by the India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO) with Federation of Indian Publishers, is aimed at inculcating and encouraging reading habits especially among children and youths.

Briefing mediapersons, Dr Sheela Bhide, Chairman and Managing Director, ITPO, said more than 200,000 visitors are expected to throng the fair surpassing the last year's number and publishers from China, Pakistan, Iran, UAE, the US and Vietnam will also display best of their books.

Dr Bhide said Indian book industry has globalised as more than 40 Indian publishers are participating in the world's largest book fair to be held at Frankfurt in the October fair.

Thirteen seminars will be held covering all aspects of the book industry during the fair. Besides, there will be a number of book release functions, book quiz programmes, awards ceremony and painting competition.

The Book Fair is getting commercially viable year on year and the preparation for the 14th Delhi Book Fair next year will be held from August 13 to September 7, 2008, Mr Shakti Malik, President of FIP, said and added that the preparation for the same will begin soon after the conclusion of the current fair.

The fair simultaneously offers a platform for transacting business with publishers from India and abroad, building new contacts, entering into co-publishing arrangements, translation and copyright arrangements and reprinting of old and rare books as well as major international works.

The display profile will include books (educational, academic, fiction, non-fiction, literature, children's books, dictionaries and encyclopedias) periodicals, magazines, journals, teaching aids and computer software.

Added attractions will be the two concurrent fairs Stationary Fair and Sajavat 2007 which would display a wide range of stationery items, including writing instruments , home and office stationery, computer accessories like floppies, paper, ribbons, printing cartridges and educational aids while Sajavat will cover a comprehensive range of items, including furniture, household products and appliances, kitchenware, entertainment electronics, handicraft items, furnishings, cosmetics and toiletteries.

UNI