One of India's most prominent regional newspapers, Dainik Jagran, concluded India's largest-ever deal for platesetters, placing separate orders with Screen and Krause for a total of 40 machines.

The Screen deal comprises 22 PlateRite News 2000 thermal machines, while the Krause deal covers 18 LS Performance violet platesetters.

Dainik Jagran's 11 production locations will move from hand-planning and film production to the platesetters, and will produce plates for India's largest Hindi daily and other regional titles a daily combined circulation of 2.5m.

The deal marks Screen's entry into the newspaper sector.

Installation will begin in August, with each site being commissioned at a rate of one a month.

The deal came as something of a surprise to both suppliers, neither of whom had any previous acquaintance with Dainik Jagran.

"We are high profile in India because we are a technology partner of the Hindustan Times," said Juergen Horstmann (pictured), owner of Krause parent Horstmann Group.

"But the Dainik Jagran deal came out of the blue, and it was begun, negotiated and concluded within a day at Ipex."