--By Pinaki Roy

The several book fairs being organised in the country have provided impetus to the publishing industry and the books selling business, observed trade analysts. “The book fairs expose people to a variety of products available in the market and teach them values on the knowledge industry,” said Nawaraj Bajgain, Chairman of Buddha Prakashan. 

 

From a customers’ point of view, there are a lot of publishers on a single platform at these book fairs. It also allows publishers to understand the psyche and gauge the demand of the customers and act accordingly. Take for example, the international book fairs where besides the variety of books available, Nepali publishers get an opportunity to learn from interacting with fellow publishers from other countries. 

 

The17th Nepal Education and Book Fair 2013 held earlier this year had 87 stalls and was visited by 100,000 visitors. Global Exposition and Management Services (GEMS) organised the nine-day fair at Bhrikutimandap with a theme ‘Education is the right of every child’ in collaboration with National Booksellers and Publishers Association of Nepal (NBPAN). The fair gratified the diverse interests of the readers by showcasing books on various topics like literature, fiction, non-fiction, banking, IT and entertainment among others. 

 

The main objective for organising the event was to create a common platform for school, college and university students, educational professionals, parents, educational and training institutions from home and abroad, consultants, authors, printers, publishers, booksellers, readers, distributors and the general enthusiastic public. The book fair looked at publishing, selling and exchanging books among the book lovers. 

 

Likhat Prasad Pandey, Secretary General of NBPAN said that NBPAN plans to take the event to an international level from next year. Meanwhile, it is also going to organise ‘Nepal Rastriya Pustak Mela’ for the first time from 20 Mangsir this year for 10 days at City Hall on Exhibition Road. With this, NBPAN will have two book fairs of its own during the year. Pandey urged that the government must recognise the industry and also participate in its book fairs to the give the industry its due exposure. 

 

The association has been regularly participating in an international book fair in Delhi in February titled ‘Bishwa Pustak Mela’. It also took part in a book festival in Abu Dhabi in April this year for the first time. 

 

The Publishing Industry 

There are 8,000 booksellers of different scale in Nepal while the book trade and publishing industry employs over 100,000 people today. Textbooks’ selling takes place from Baishakh (mid April – mid May) to the middle of Jestha (end of May), also dubbed as the ‘school season’, Pandey informed. 

 

He added that the publishers ready themselves for this season beforehand by completing the printing work of textbooks. “For the rest of the year, we have to largely depend on academic, fiction and non-fiction books which sell round the year, however, their business volume is much smaller compared to the textbooks,” he said. 

 

The 8,000 odd booksellers of Nepal deal in academic, professional, general and reference books along with the usual textbooks meant for schools, colleges and universities. Textbooks of all standards from school to university form the biggest chunk of the business. Quite naturally, all booksellers and publishers in Nepal focus on this segment. “As much as 90 per cent of the business revolves around selling text books for different levels,” said Pandey. 

 

Nepal's book publishing industry is growing at a sound rate every year. The dependence on Indian books for schools and colleges has reduced considerably over the years. While government textbooks are published by state-owned Janak Shikshya Samagri Kendra, the course books used in private schools are published by private booksellers locally. Publishers claim to also have the capacity of supplying books for the 10+2 level. 

 

There is also a great demand for reference and general books. Competition in the education sector has resulted in better teaching and learning requirements. The fact that reference and general books are additional sources of knowledge has helped the book market to expand. Booksellers attribute the surge in business to increasing literacy rate that has given rise to a growing number of readers and publishers alike. 

 

Bhrikuti Pustak Tatha Masalanda Bhandar at Exhibition Road mostly imports and sells foreign books. “Knowledge must not be confined in boundaries,” Pandey, who owns the enterprise said, “As per UNESCO, there must be free flow of books with no taxes and barriers whatsoever.” 

 

He informed that a number of local universities in Nepal prescribe 90 per cent of the books in the curriculum that are foreign-originated. Most books come from the UK, the USA and India. Most British and American publishers have their offices in India. The British and American books prescribed by the schools and colleges are reprinted in India and thus cost less. 

 

 

Nepal as Publishing Hub 

The decade-long conflict in Nepal compelled booksellers to diversify their trade, as it was difficult for them to sustain solely on tourist and general books. As new universities came into being one after another and better learning opportunities were created in schools and colleges, they quickly diverted their focus to academic books of general interest. 

 

The import of new printing technologies in Nepal has created better prospects for the industry. Madhab Lal Maharjan, Chief Executive Officer of Mandala Book Point, said, “If the government gives the right kind of support, we have already built a groundwork whereby Nepal can become a book publishing hub in the SAARC region after India.” He adds, “The quality of printing in Nepal is as good as anywhere in the world.” 

 

Bajgain asserted that the book fairs ultimately help Nepal’s publishing industry by increasing curiosity quotient among the book lovers and readers. However, he wished that there was an established culture for reading books like in other countries. 

 

Publishers agree that while the book fairs and exhibitions lay the foundation by creating awareness among the readers, it is for the publishing enterprises to take it from there and create niche for themselves. 

 

The governments in various countries organise different book fairs in their respective locales. Like in India, where a government entity India Book Trust oversees the various book fairs in the country as well as coordinating with the international book fairs abroad. “The publishers in Nepal too hopes that a government body will help us in organising book fairs and provide a boost to the industry,” said Bajgain.