Publishers unite; now, BAPASI to sell books online in Tamil Nadu – Times of India

CHENNAI: In a first in the country, publishers in Tamil Nadu have come together to set up an online book selling platform, which is expected to be up and running in a few months. The Book Sellers and Publishers Associaton of South India (BAPASI) begun works on the project after last year’s book fair.
“We are planning to bring more than 20,000 titles of around 300 publishers. It is one of a kind in the country, as it is an association of publishers coming together,” said G Olivannan of Emerald publishers who heads the steering committee of the project.
Publishers told TOI that except for major publishing houses which have listed their titles in sites such as Amazon, Flipkart etc, several Tamil publishers have still not adapted to the digital age.
Noting that several new publishers have entered the market, Olivannan said that in the past two years alone, they had inducted 80 new members into BAPASI.
Publishers like Olivannan feel that this would be an extension of the permanent book exhibition at the Connemara library premises in Egmore.
According to S Subramanian, additional joint secretary of BAPASI, the permanent book fair has been in place for more than five years now and they have refurbished the place now to attract general public.
BAPASI has also planned to conduct workshops for publishers to create awareness about digital presence too. “It seems there is a reluctance among publishers and many are not technologically ready and some of them do not even have ISBN (International Standard Book Number) to help them get listed in online stores,” a BAPASI office bearer said.
The 45th edition of the Chennai book fair was inaugurated by Chief Minister M K Stalin on Wednesday and will be held at the YMCA grounds in Nandanam until March 20.