Textbook corporation to translate literary works

Chennai: The Tamil Nadu Text Books and Educational Services Corporation, which until now was restricted to printing textbooks alone, is set to reinvent itself with the translation of finest literary works in other languages and plans to bring out Tamil version of top books in fields like medicine and engineering.

The entity annually prints 8.2 crore textbooks for students of class 1 to 12, apart from procuring various things including crayons and school bags.  "We have created a new section for translating the literary works from Malayalam, Kannada and Bengali and foreign languages.  After going through the literary works, the experts will recommend the books that are suitable for translation," said D. Jagannathan, Managing Director, Tamil Nadu Text Books and Educational Services Corporation.

An advisory committee consisting of experts will approve the translation after going through the proposals. The corporation wants to publish the literary works which have not been translated into Tamil so far.

It also wants to make available the quality books in Tamil for various fields. "There are no quality books available in Tamil for various fields including engineering, medicine, agriculture and veterinary science. We have asked the concerned universities to suggest the best books available in English in each field for translation," Mr Jagannathan said.

"These works will take little longer to complete as it involves the copyright issues. But the publishers and authors are very co-operative," he said. These books, if translated, will go a long way in helping the college students to understand the subjects in their own mother tongue.

From its inception, the textbook corporation had published 1,100 books on various topics including oceanography and adolescent psychology. But in the middle years, it restricted itself for publishing the textbooks alone.

Imagine publishing a book on adolescent psychology in 1970s. But, after the initial years, the textbook corporation did not even have the copies of 1,100 titles it had published. After months of the hunt, it secured the original copies of the books.

75% of textbooks are ready

Chennai: Despite the short supply of paper, the Tamil Nadu Text Book and Educational Services Corporation is ready to deliver over 4 crore books before the end of this month to schools.

"Over 75% of the books for classes from 1 to 12 are reaching their destinations. The remaining 25% are in the process of packing and transportation," said D.Jagannathan, managing director of the corporation.

Due to water shortage, the TNPL has shut down two of its three units in Karur. But, the textbook corporation had already got the papers from the TNPL to print books and notebooks.

"This year over 11,000 private schools have given their requirements of books for the next academic year. Students and individuals also can place the orders for books online. The books will be delivered within 48 hours," he said.