Sun Shoushan, Vice-Minister of the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (2nd, L), India's Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani (M), Chinese Ambassador to India Le Yucheng (1st, L) and Indian author S. L. Bhyrappa (1st, R) jointly launch China’s Guest of Honor events during the 24th New Delhi World Book Fair at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi, India on January 9, 2016. [Photo /Xinhua]

Sun Shoushan, Vice-Minister of the State General Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television, says the broader goal is to expand ties with India through communication.

"We believe as the guest of honor, we can promote the cultural and publishing exchanges between the two countries. This will help create more translations and publications of books, as well as provide richer mental nourishment and cultural understanding for readers in both countries."

Some of the highlights at this year's event include books published and printed in ancient China, as well as a daily show of Chinese tea culture and a photo exhibition of China-India cultural connections.

Members of the visiting Chinese delegation will be giving a demonstration of on-the-spot of printing techniques, which date back to 868 A.D. of the Tang Dynasty. By watching how the images of Buddha are printed by using red ink, xuan paper and sandal woodblocks, Indian visitors can get to know ancient printing techniques and publishing culture. Some of the inquisitive visitors even tried their hands at making their own prints.