Support to writers
We are developing a project around the Jaipur and Kolkata Literature festivals. Responding to market research that young audiences want articulate, highly intelligent and accessible writers to whose success they can aspire, we have developed a programme that aims to inspire and challenge. We are introducing new writers and writing (note our support to the new bookzine publication ‘Atlas’ of new and established writing in the English language), working with highly respected writers such as Robin Robertson and Ian McEwan (in Jaipur) and developing an Indian version of the highly successful Book Pitch project run out of the London Book Fair.

We are working with the Jaipur International Literature Festival, The Literary Consultancy (based in London), New Writing Partnership (based in Norwich, UK) and Oxford Bookstore to offer a national competition “Is Your Writing Rubbish?” that will give everyone who is excited by the idea of finding out a chance to submit short excerpts of writing for TLC and NWP to edit and judge, and for the Council to publish online for audiences to download.

Collaboration with publishers
We continue to work closely with publishers to present new work to the Indian public. Our launch of William Dalrymple’s ‘The last Mughal’ was one of the events of the year in Delhi in 2006 and we organise events around new publications wherever there is a strong link with the UK and with UK – India relations and common interests. We are seeking in particular to work with publishers to showcase writing which will be of interest to young Indians.

We aim to bring a mini Edinburgh International Book Festival to Kolkata in 2009 and in preparation for this organised a sell-out event for four Bangla writers at the Edinburgh International Book Fair in August 2007. We are developing a focus on Scottish writing and publishing for that but will also include programming around our work for creative entrepreneurship, now in its fourth year in India. The winner of the 2007 publishing entrepreneurship award (S Anand) went on to win the British Council International Young Publisher of the Year prize. We will use this as an opportunity to take stock of where independent publishing is in India and where the UK can engage to support and learn from this growing number of talented young people, where the ultimate goal is to encourage more creative writing and more creative reading of the literature of both nations. We are developing a session with Anand which will include UKIYPEY winner Claire Christian, UKIYPEY shortlister Emma Hayley and the 06 Argentine winner Octavio Kulesz as well as previous winners and shortlisted candidates for the award. The session will run again at the World Book Fair in New Delhi, where we also intend to support the London Book Fair's work around IPR and publishing.

Book stock
Literature/fiction continues to be the biggest single component of the stock of the British Council’s libraries in India, representing at least 20% of the stock. We will increase this to 25 – 30% of stock as part of our plans to develop the libraries to be more relevant to modern young Indians, introducing new contemporary writers to young Indian publics.

Automated systems for checking books in and out of libraries, being introduced from 2008, aim to free up our staff time to work more on animation of our book stock and on activities related to the stock and to writers