Professor of English Sues Publisher For Infringing Copyright

A former reader of Goa University, who is settled in the city, has filed lawsuits against two publishers and claimed Rs 25 lakh each in damages over copyright infringement after he allegedly found books written by him being sold without his permission at high prices.


Prof Anand Patil, former head of the English Department, Goa University, claims that he has not received the royalty amount for his books Western Influence on Marathi Drama published by Rajhauns Vitaran, 1993 and The Whirligig of Taste: Essays in Comparative Literature published by Creative Books, New Delhi.

He said that the academic books are also available online. Patil has also filed cases against Google Books and Amazon.com.

Patil, a resident of Dahanukar Colony, learnt about the piracy last month from his US-based daughter who told him that his books were available on Amazon.com.

“Western Influence on Marathi Drama was based on my thesis on which I had worked for 12 years. When I found that it was sold online for about Rs 4,000, I was shocked,” Patil said adding that after browsing further he found The Whirligig of Taste: Essays in Comparative Literature was also on sale.

“Both of these publishers did not pay a single penny. When I demanded an explanation, one of them denied having published the book. Rajhauns Vitaran has offered me a cheque of Rs 10,000 but my counsel advised me against encashing it,” he said.

“Since there is no authoritative work available in English on Maharashtra’s language, culture and traditions, my books are sought by researchers. My essay is included in Cambridge Sourcebook of Comparative Literary into Comparative Literature,” he added.

Patil said that he was not worried about recovering damages from Google Books or Amazon.com because they have a better Intellectual Property Rights policy and will settle the dues. “It is these two publishers that I want to teach a lesson,” he said.

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Maharashtra Day Without Fervour

The usual fervour which accompanies Maharashtra Day on May 1 was absent this time. The state has been mired in problems ranging from lawlessness to drought and there is no remedy in sight. The ruling politicians have put up a brave face being a developed state but that does not take away the limelight away from the serious problems the public is facing here.

Just a couple of days before the celebrations for the 52^nd foundation day for the state began, the local media reported about the demand or wish by villagers in Jat division of the Sangli district. The villagers had collectively demanded that they wanted to go in the Karnataka state because the farmers in the neighbouring state are getting much better treatment. Their argument is that even though farmers in Maharashtra are suffering from drought, they are not given adequate waivers. In the contrast, the farmers in Karnataka are getting loans with zero interest and power without charge.

This news item was an eye opener for those who prided on the strides made by the state in social welfare, justice, economic equality and industrialisation. All the claims made by government stood dwarfed in the light of this development.

Not only the villagers of Jat, many parts of the state resent the downgrade of Maharashtra in recent years. Just August last year, Vairagadh village in Buldhana district made a similar demand through the gram sabha. They had even written a letter to Narendra Modi, chief minister of Gujarat for inclusion of their village in that state.

The state has taken a beating on each and every front. It stands at top in the list of debt ridden states and is followed by Uttar Pradesh with a total debt burden of Rs 1.36 lakh crore. The state is paying Rs 20,000 crore towards interest on loans alone.

The state also is ranked first in the number of farmer suicides with more than three thousand farmers taking their lives each year. According to Economic Survey 2011-12, the economic growth of the state has falled to 8.5 % from 11.3 % last year.

These hard realities have confined the Maharashtra Day to rituals. This has been second time in a row that the state is missing the usual celebratory mood. Hope it is improved next year.

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Trekkers Paradise Under Development Threat

The trekking community in Pune and Mumbai are enraged over the possible destruction of one their favourite destination. The trekkers and fort lovers are worried over a plan by Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) to build a resort at Harishchandragad, a fort on the south-east of Pune at about 160 kms.

Harishchandragad is a hill fort in south east of Pune. It has played a major role in guarding and controlling the surrounding region. Konkan Kada, the cliff is the most fascinating point for those who go up the fort because besides being vertical, it is spread like a cobra's hood.

However, all this will be relegated to past because the MTDC wants to build a rest house near the cliff and is to start excavation work there, claim the trekkers. The fort is among 25 forts which MTDC has chosen initially to develop tourist facilities on the forts. The company already has a rest house at Malshej sanctuary. To facilitate the tourists, a road is to be built also in the hill. Railings are to be built on the cliff for which, it is feared, a part of the cliff has to be cut.

Now, the decision is being opposed by trekkers. Giriventures, a Facebook group of trekkers from both the cities, has launched online campaign to oppose the development work. Anurag Vaidya, a trekker from city, said, “Some villagers at the fort told the trekkers from Mumbai about this proposal. When we got to know about the proposal, we contacted the officials at the fort. But we were told that there is no such proposal. I posted about it on my FB account so that people should know how the government is creating chaos.”

Jagdish Pati, managing director of MTDC, said that the Harishchandragad figures among the forts to be developed for tourists but the job will be done without harming the environment. “We have planned a base camp, toilets and other amenities at the fort. The plan is to connect the fort with Bhandardara and other tourist destinations in the area. However, we will not do anything which will harm the environment. It is our endeavour to promote a healthy and environment friendly tourism in the state,” he said.

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