National Booksellers and Publishers Association of Nepal

National Booksellers and Publishers Association of Nepal (NBPAN) is an umbrella organisation of Book Sellers, Distributors and Publishers in Nepal. It works for the efficient management of Books and Publishing Industry in Nepal and makes recommendations to the government to develop related policies. It was established in 1990 as Book Publisher Association and the founder members included Ratna Pustak Bhandar, Educational Enterprises, Mandala Book Point, Himalaya Book Centre, National Book Centre, Ekta Books Distributors, Himal Association and Himalaya Book Seller among others. NBPAN organises National Book Fair every year and also participates in several international book fairs abroad.


Ratna Pustak Bhandar

The history of Nepal’s oldest book shop dates back to 1939 when Ram Das Shrestha started selling books, mostly religious, in a cart in Bhotahity near Ratna Park, Kathmandu. It was called Ram Das and Sons and renamed Ratna Pustak Bhandar in 1946 after his eldest son, Ratna Prasad Shrestha.

Ratna Prasad Shrestha published the first book Bhagawat Strota, followed by Varnamala (alphabet book) in Nepali and Pancha Strota and made a historical foray by laying the foundation stone of Ratna Pustak Bhandar. The shop has since been providing a wide range of books to the people by publishing, importing and distributing throughout the country. Ratna Pustak Bhandar has also provided a platform for many aspiring writers, who are the literary figures of the nation now. Many prominent figures of the Nepali literary world were and are associated with this publishing enterprise. Ratna Pustak Bhandar was honoured with the prestigious Madan Puraskar Award on its Diamond Jubilee Anniversary.


Mandala Book Point

Mandala Book Point is a central meeting point among scholars, researchers, academicians, historians, anthropologists, and tourists visiting Nepal. The shop has more than 16,000 titles of different subjects ranging from children’s books to academic books. This book shop has a wide range of books on Anthropology & Sociology, History & Culture, Gender & Politics, Art & Architecture, Police & Military Science, Carpets & Textiles, Mountaineering, Trekking books & maps, Wildlife & Environment Science, Language & Literature, Yoga & Ayurvedic, Sports & Health, Fiction & Non-fiction Paperbacks, Lonely Planet and others guide books. The objective of Mandala Book Point is to acquaint its readers with the culture and religion of the entire Himalayan belt extending in the west from Karakoram to Bhutan in the east including Nepal and to protect and preserve the Himalayan heritage through the medium of books.


Ekta Books Distributors

Ekta Books has a 30 year long experience in the book publishing industry. It is one among the line of a few book publishers that have successfully completed a long journey. From its humble roots in Patan, Ekta Books has come a long way to being the best in the publishing sector. Its quality in both material and content in textbooks is unrivalled. Ekta Books was established in 1982 under the leadership of Ramchandra Timothy. This organisation was named Ekta Books and Stationers at the outset. Initially, the organization focused on distributing educational and sports materials. Gradually, it entered a new phase of publishing and in accordance to the laws of the then government; it was named Ekta Books Distributors Pvt Ltd. This was later meant to become a landmark in the history of publishing in Nepal. In 1990, a sister concern Ekta Educational Palace at Man Bhawan, Lalitpur was established to cater to the rising necessity of books in Nepal. The company also has a sister organisation called Ekta Book House at Pradhan Nagar, Siliguri as well as a branch in Lamachaur, Pokhara.