PubliCon 2024: Technology reshaping the future of publishing

FICCI organized “PubliCon 2023” with the theme“Technology Reshaping the Future of Publishing” on July 25, 2024 at FICCI, New Delhi.

Addressing FICCI’s annual conference, Dr. Akhilesh Gupta, Former Secretary – SERB & Senior Advisor, DST, Govt. of India, said that, “India is moving towards adopting Open Science Policy in its entirety in terms of sharing of learning, research resources and data.”

He further highlighted that, “Technology is a powerful enabler in the publishing industry in driving advancements and democratizing access to knowledge. By leveraging new tools and platforms, we can enhance the dissemination of information and support educational and research initiatives across the country.”

While, Shubha Gupta, Additional Director General, Publications Division, Ministry of I&B, Govt. of India, said, “The new generation is connected with technology, so reading materials should meet their expectations.”

Dr. Anirban Dash, Director, National Mission on Manuscripts, Ministry of Culture, Government of India, emphasized, “Across India, we face four major challenges with handwritten manuscripts. First, there is the sheer volume of manuscripts, which makes it difficult to manage and preserve them all. Second, there is a lack of a clear trajectory for protagonists, making it hard to follow and maintain the narrative flow. Third, only a few people possess the necessary skills to edit these texts properly. Finally, the work is incredibly time-consuming, and as a result, many valuable manuscripts have already been lost over time due to these delays.”

Prof. (Dr.) Ramesh C Gaur, Dean, Director, said, “Since the inception of computers, the first library came into existence in 1965. The internet revolution changed the landscape dramatically, but the real impact of technology has been felt in the 21st century with digitization. Today, libraries are composed of 80% technology and 20% traditional methods.”

Monica Malhotra Kandhari, Co-Chair, FICCI Publishing Committee & Managing Director, MBD Group highlighted the event’s significance, stating,”It’s remarkable how technology has expanded our global reach.”

The panelists for the session on Role of Publishing Technology in Advancing Open Access were Ritesh Kumar, Senior Director, Global Core Sales & Country Lead, India, Wiley; Vikrant Rana, Managing Partner, S S Rana & Co; Shweta Bhagat, Marketing & Communications-India Lead, Royal Society of Chemistry and Dr. Manoj Prasad, Professor, Delhi University. This session was moderated by Prof K. C. Tiwari, Professor, Delhi Technological University.

The session on Creativity Vs Technology – Can Gen AI replace Authors was moderated by Ajay Jain, Founder, Kunzum Travel Cafe. The panelists for the session were Himanshu Sharma, Co-founder & CEO, Devnagri AI; Kulpreet Yadav, Renowned Author & Screenwriter; Piyush Prasad, Head- Education and Training, IHFC, Technology Innovation Hub, IIT Delhi and Kartik Sharma, Founder & CEO, Agnitio AI. Special Address on Role of Technology in Reviving Indian Manuscripts was given by Dr. Anirban Dash, Director, National Mission on Manuscripts, Ministry of Culture, Govt. of India.

There were addresses by Prof. Sanjay Das, Associate Professor – Printing Technology, Delhi Skill and Entrepreneurship University and Ajay Madan, Business Head – Print Sales, HT Media

While, a Talk on “Technology as Enabler for Publishing in Regional Languages” was given by Priya Verma, Manager, Digital India Bhashini Division, MeitY, Govt. of India.

Talk on “The Evolution & Impact of Self-Publishing Platforms in Digital Age” was given by Ranjeet Pratap Singh, Co-Founder & CEO, Pratilipi.

There were address by Prof. (Dr.) Ramesh C. Gaur, Dean, Director (Library & Information) & Head-Kalanidhi Division, IGNCA, Ministry of Culture, Govt. of India on Role of Technology in Library Management and Kailash Balani, Managing Director, IGROUP Infotech India Pvt Ltd. on Library Management & Learning Web Tools.

The event was attended by delegates from various Government agencies, regional associations, libraries, and publishing professionals. FICCI Publishing Awards were also conferred.