Triple bonanza

Editor – S K KhuranaOctober 2010 was the milestone month for India, studded with three special achievements for our country as a whole and two for our printing industry.  The month 10-10 was special in three ways – first, India hosted a very successful Commonwealth Games 2010 despite all odds; second, the first double-width web press was launched by Manugraph and third, a well-known Indian printer Pragati Offset won the coveted Sappi International Printer of the Year Award.

Talking about the Commonwealth Games, India proved that they are capable enough to handle and successfully execute an event of such a magnitude. Besides, winning a prestigious number of 100+ medals in the games added a cherry on the pie.

Coming to the achievements of the printing industry, it is a milestone for not only Manugraph, but the Indian printing industry to launch the first indigenously manufactured double-width web press with a speed of 70k cph, under the able guidance of its all-time young chairman SM Shah. Indian newspaper industry which is on its growth path, will indeed find an acceleration with the availability of indigenously produced, affordably-priced press with proven quality. Besides, other developing countries can also benefit from this new offering coming from the stable of Manugraph.

Last but not the least, another feather in the cap of the Indian graphic arts industry was the ‘International Printer of the Year’ award (cast-bronze elephant trophy) from Sappi to all time progressive printer from Hyderabad – Pragati Offset. This is the third time that they have won this prestigious award, competing with top printers around the world. At a felicitation ceremony held on October 28, Geeta Reddy, minister of information and PR, cinematography, FDC and tourism, Govt of Andhara Pradesh termed this award as bringing pride not only to the state of Andhra Pradesh but also for the Indian printing industry at large. It would be interesting to note that Andhra Pradesh won 22 awards in the recent Commonwealth Games as well.

All in all, the month of October was a landmark month for the Indian printing industry and soon many more players may follow the suit. It is just the beginning of another era of technological advancements and felicitations for the Indian graphic arts industry.