(From an editorial)
Fifty three of the 72 universities of India are now offering degree courses in the regional language, according to a statement made by the Union Minister for Education, Dr. V. K. R. V. Rao during the debate in the Lok Sabha on the University Grants Commission (Amendment) Bill. What the Minister says may be correct, but it is at the same time misleading in one sense. For the vast majority of university students opt for the English medium and in some cases, as in Bombay University, the regional languages do not come into the picture at all. There is nothing surprising about this preference of college students for English, since it gives them freedom of movement and opportunity not only in India but in other countries as well, and opens to them the gates of science and technology in all fields. The Government of India has been trying to arrange for translations of English books into all the regional languages but it will be a long time before up to date sets of books are available. However, there is a striking contrast between the place of English in higher education and its role at the primary and secondary school level. While the majority of the 2 1/2 million college students use the English medium even when the regional tongue is available, it is the mother-tongue that is mostly the medium of instruction in schools; out of nearly 50 million school pupils, only one million go to English-medium schools. But English is the second language in the schools and the 7 1/2 million children who receive a secondary education spend four or five years learning this language.
A delegation of the British Development Council which visited India last year has noted in its report that one result of the long tradition of English education in India is the fact that, next to the United States and Britain, India has the largest number of persons who can read English. The delegation also found India to be the biggest growth market for books in the world and, of course, a big export market for British books. The aims of the delegation were to work out arrangements with the Government of India for translation rights into the various regional languages and examine ,the scope for co-operation with Indian publishers for the preparation of local editions (of British books) for the Indian, market. It was also concerned to increase the availability of cheaper text-books for students, who are unlikely to pay more than Rs. 15 per book. Hitherto, British text-books were not printed in India, whereas American book publishers had made arrangements for local printing. The delegation, has suggested that, since there had been rapid progress in printing and publishing in India, Britain might follow the American example, and also try to introduce more Indian authors to Western readers. There was the exciting possibility that, if the necessary effort was made, Indian books could find large export markets with British collaboration.
It is interesting to observe that the visiting delegation did not share the alarm of Indian publishers, over the entry of State Governments into the publication of school books. It was felt that, although publishers rely heavily on the sale of educational books, the trade would not be seriously affected. A more serious weakness in this field is the tardy development of the distribution and marketing system in which the small private bookseller tended to be bypassed by the big firms although it was he who could display books most effectively in the smaller towns. The delegation was of the opinion that British publishers should take greater interest in the Indian market which was expanding rapidly with the growth of literacy.
