Eklavya Foundation Bags Publisher of the Year 2024 Award

The renowned not-for-profit working in the field of children’s education and learning, Bhopal-based Eklavya Foundation, received the coveted ‘Publisher of the Year’ award at the Publishing Next Industry Awards 2024..

Praising the 42-year-old organisation that revolutionised children’s publishing in India with its emphasis on accessibility and diversity, the judges said, “Eklavya’s dedication to language accessibility and to keeping books affordably priced underscores their mission to ensure knowledge and storytelling are within reach for a broader audience. Their collaborations with organisations and experimentation with various formats reflect an understanding of the power of publishing as a tool for social impact.”

Vani Prakashan, well-known legacy publisher of Hindi books, emerged runner-up in the Publisher of the Year category of the 2024 awards.

Awards in ten other categories were also presented at the ceremony: Editor of the Year, Illustrator of the Year, Book Cover of the Year (three subcategories), and Printed Book of the Year (five subcategories).

In a first, a Mising language book, Rinjang Jang, has made it to the award list. Runner-up in the Printed Book of the Year (Indian Languages) category, the book has been illustrated by the children of Hummingbird School in Assam’s Majuli island and published by Eklavya Foundation.

Congratulating the winners and runners-up of the 2024 and 2023 awards, Leonard Fernandes, co-founder of Publishing Next, said, “The shortlisted books are themselves a testament to the diversity of Indian publishing and we commend the publishers of these books for constantly pushing the boundaries of what printed books can achieve. The editors and illustrators have brought to the fore new ideas and voices, and ways in which those ideas are presented. Congratulations to all the winners for a tremendous all-round performance.”