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Books, bureaucracy and international shipping. print storyApril 25, 2011 Omprakash, United States
80 000 books arrived in Hyderabad, India, a week ago. Donated by the World-Wide Book drive they are destined to various schools and educational institutions all over India . Owing to bureaucracy, including payment of minor accessory fees, obtaining and filing a few random documents, and an internal dispute between a shipping company and its contractor, we haven’t seen hide nor hair of the books yet despite spending almost every day on the phone with folks in Houston, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Pakistan, California, Udaipur, Bangalore and Chennai. Piece by piece, we are prising the books loose from sticky bureaucratic hands. They should be released on Wednesday, which means they will be on their merry way to partners all over India by the end of the week. (Touch wood, cross your fingers, go outside twirl three times and spit, etc.) From my conversations with past, future and non-recipients over the past few weeks, the books are greatly anticipated. Many people who aren’t currently partners, or are not receiving books this year have expressed interest in participating in future. It seems that English books are a hot commodity here, an essential tool for anyone trying to teach English. English children’s books are rich in visual aids and are often the only way to learn idiom without native speakers to imitate. It is the oddest thing, however, to watch an Indian boy read Disney’s Aladdin aloud to his class. Comments |
