Pune celebrates hundred years of print on 21 September

The Poona Press Owners Association (PPOA), which is perhaps the oldest association of printers in India, is celebrating the completion of 100 years in a special programme organised on September 21 in Pune.

17 Sep 2019 | By Charmiane Alexander

On this day, PPOA will honour the newly elected chairman of the Press Trust of India (PTI) Vijay Kumar Chopra who is also the chief editor of the Punjab Kesari Group with a Lifetime Achievement Award. This was conveyed to PrintWeek India by Raveendra Joshi, president of PPOA and also the president of the All India Federation of Master Printers.

The 100th anniversary celebration programme is organised will be hosted on 21 September at the Hyatt Regency at 5.30 pm. Dr S B Mujumdar, chancellor, Symbiosis University, Haruhiko Akustu San, chairman and managing director, Toyo Ink India, Pranav Parikh, chairman, TechNova Imaging Systems, SFH Rizvi, Post Master General, Pune Region, Dr Rajendrakumar Anayath, vice chancellor, Deenbandhu Chhotu Ram University of Science and Technology, Haryana will grace the event with their presence.

Along with the Lifetime Achievement Award to Vijay Kumar Chopra, eight print firms across India, who have excelled in their area of specialisation, will be felicitated with awards by PPOA. This includes a veteran lady printer. A docubook titled Shatamudra which showcases the 100 years journey of the association, a documentary film and a special issue of the association’s 80 year old magazine Mudran Prakash will be unveiled. PPOA will also present the special postal stamp and postal cover marking this occasion.

Apart from the 100th anniversary celebrations of PPOA, the annual general meeting and governing council meeting of All India Federation of Master Printers will be conducted from 20 September and 22 September. According to Raveendra Joshi, "Over 600 to 700 press owners and printers are expected to be present for this three-day gathering." Joshi added, "The print industry is the second largest industry in the world. India has over three lakh printers creating employment for 35 to 40 lakh citizens in the country.

The PPOA press conference

Joshi added, "We feel that it’s a matter of pride for the city of Pune that the oldest print association in India and in the world was established 100 years ago in 1919." Joshi mentioned, "Looking ahead, we plan to make 1.4 billion people in India aware of the rich and proud printing legacy. We plan to establish a big printing museum in Pune which will present the oldest as well as the newest printing techniques along with the journey of the printing press. The overall cost of the project is estimated to be Rs 10 crore."

In addition, the association will start a ‘one stop mall’ for printers in Navi Peth area of Pune. Joshi said, "This project will be set up on the area of 10,000 sq/ft and will ensure one can source all types of printing press related material under one roof."