Publishing stalwart Vishwanath passes away

Vishwanath Malhotra, the stalwart of the publishing industry and chairman of popular Hindi publishers Rajpal & Sons, passed away recently. He was instrumental in bringing out Hindi translations of world literary classics and award winning books from Indian regional languages. He ushered in the paperback revolution in the country with the launch of low-priced quality paperbacks. To reach the vast multitudes of readers spread across the length and breadth of the country, he introduced the concept of mail-order business where the readers could receive the books of their choice at the doorsteps. He has been the president of Federation of Indian Publishers and led several official delegations to other countries.