Company Information

History of i-osmosis

To understand the story behind i-osmosis, it is essential to know more about Editage, a division of Cactus Communications Pvt. Ltd. that provides English editing services to researchers in Japan, Korea, and other Southeast Asian countries (www.editage.com)

In March 2003, the Director of Editage, Cactus Communications Pvt. Ltd. presented a paper at a conference on the Cultural, Personal, and Practical Perspective of Research Writing in Japan, organized by the National Museum of Ethnology, Osaka. The paper discussed the history of Editage as well as the value-adds that Editage offered its editing clients, which went beyond mere editing. One value-add in particular stood out from the rest and had the most far-reaching consequences for the company. With every document they edited, the company's editors sent out short tips explaining the errors they saw recurring throughout each document. These tips were related to grammar, vocabulary, academic writing styles, etc. The overwhelmingly positive response to these tips showed that clients were not just looking for a finished, edited product but also wished to understand how they could write better. In other words, clients were as interested in English educational services as editing services.

The paper presented at the conference concluded by mentioning the importance of such educational initiatives. Where that discussion ended, this one begins. Cactus decided to branch out into a new division that would be dedicated to providing such English educational services. The clients were to not just be Editage's existing editing clients but also other researchers, teachers, translators, students, business persons, or housewives in Japan interested in improving their English. Cactus took the original idea of editing tips and developed them into a full-service offering, resulting in a new division that came to be known as i-osmosis.

The English Revolution in India

India was a British colony for over 200 years. Therefore, the English education system introduced by Lord Macaulay expected all subjects to be taught in English. Even today, English being the principal language of instruction in most Indian schools and higher educational institutes, all coursework starting from primary school to university is undertaken in English. The government exams and other entrance exams for universities are also conducted in English. With a large English-speaking population, India has over 30, 000 English Daily newspapers.

The fluency in English has given India a natural advantage in the global outsourcing arena. With over 30 million Indians speaking English, India ranks among the top three English-speaking countries in the world. India has a pool of 1.8 million engineers, 1.3 million medical professionals, and over 4.1 million other professionals who have been trained in English right from the primary school level. English is so engrained in the Indian psyche that many Indian authors prefer to write in English. Indian authors who write in English have seen much fame and appreciation in the global literary scene. A fine example is V.S. Naipaul, who won the Nobel Prize for Literature, Jhumpa Lahiri, who won the Pulitzer, Arundhati Roy and Salman Rushdie, who have both won the Booker prize, and so on. Indian literature in English is now acknowledged the world over and even taught in foreign universities.

To read more from the paper "Coming Full Circle-India's English Revolution," click here (You will need Adobe Acrobat to view this file.)