Prize Structure and Eligibility Requirements

A. The Jury

1. Each year three juries are appointed with each jury having three members. Two juries are established to determine semi-finalists in each script, Gurmukhi and Shahmukhi. These are referred to as the “Gurmukhi Jury” and the “Shahmukhi Jury.” These two juries determine potential winners in their respective scripts. A Central Jury is established to select the shortlist, finalists and winner. Central Jury members must be able to read books in both Gurmukhi and Shahmukhi scripts.
2. The Gurmukhi and Shahmukhi juries submit from the candidates the greater of 3 books, or 20% of the total eligible Gurmukhi and Shahmukhi submissions each, to the Chair of the Dhahan Prize Advisory Committee. The Dhahan Prize Advisory Committee Chair then forwards the same to the Central Jury for its deliberation.
3. The Central Jury compiles a short list of not less than 6 and not more than 10 titles from the list of recommended books by the Gurmukhi and Shahmukhi juries. The Central Jury recommends the Prize winner and two finalists from the short list to the Dhahan Prize Management Team, ensuring that out of the total three winners, each of the two scripts is represented.
4. Jury membership is confidential until the final granting of the award. Only the jury members, Chair of the Dhahan Prize Advisory Committee and the Dhahan Prize Management Team know the final constitution of the juries. The Dhahan Prize Advisory Committee provides suggestions for jury membership to the Chair, but does not know the final composition of juries.
5. All jury members agree to confidentiality, so as to not discuss matters pertaining to the Prize with anyone outside of the jury they are members of. Particularly, they agree to not divulge or discuss any of the books submitted for the Prize with anyone outside of their respective jury.
6. The juries make their book selections without giving any consideration to the authors’ age, gender, sexual orientation, national background, ethnicity, religion, name recognition or past literary achievements.
7. All jury members receive hard copies and/or electronic versions of all eligible book submissions . Jury members are responsible for reading books in the script associated with their jury.
8. No person is entitled to remain a jury member for a consecutive year. 
9. No jury and Dhahan Prize Advisory Committee member may submit a book for consideration for the prize in a year they serve on a jury.

B. Eligibility Requirements

1. Book submissions must be first-edition novels or short story collections written in either the Gurmukhi or Shahmukhi script. Works of poetry and other genres are not eligible. Reprints of previously published works are not eligible (unless a reprint is published in the same year as the first edition). 
2. More than half of each submitted  book’s content must be newly published (i.e. 51% should not have been published in book form previously, such as in other collections, or otherwise).
3. A submitted book must be published in the calendar year prior to the year in which the prize will be awarded e.g., 2022 for the 2023 prize.
4. Books can be submitted by the author or any other person on their behalf, including the publisher. If not submitted by the author, explicit written permission from the author must be obtained and submitted to the Prize.
5. The submitted book must have an ISBN Number printed on it.
6. The submitted book must be purchasable by the public at a reasonable number of retail outlets.
7. No submission shall be ineligible because the author has won another literary prize previously.
8. Three hard copies of the book must be mailed to the Dhahan Prize office in Canada. An electronic version in PDF format must be submitted via email.
9. After verification that the book meets all eligibility requirements, it will be submitted to jury members. The decision of the Chair of the Dhahan Prize Advisory Committee and the Dhahan Prize Management Team as to whether a book is eligible shall be binding.
10. All entries must be received by February 28th of the Prize year. Submissions received after this date will be deemed ineligible.
11. No book shall be awarded the Prize where the book’s author has died prior to the announcement of the Prize winner and finalists.
12. A winning author of the Prize will be eligible to compete again after a period of 5 years, while finalists will be eligible to compete again starting the following year.

C. Conditions

1. All authors whose books are submitted are required to sign an agreement that: should their book be selected as ‘the winner’ or ‘a finalist’ they will attend the Dhahan Prize Awards Ceremony held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and any affiliated events highlighting the author and theirs works, in order to receive their award. If an author fails to attend, the author will not be eligible to receive the award.
2. Authors and publishers of the winning and finalist books are required to sign an agreement granting the Dhahan Prize the right to reproduce an excerpt, chapter or short story in any Dhahan Prize promotional activity. 
3. The authors and publishers of winning and finalist books are required to sign an agreement to imprint or sticker all future editions with the Dhahan Prize logo, as per instructions from the Dhahan Prize.
4. Each year, the Dhahan Prize will announce the winner and finalists with a press release in early September in Vancouver, Canada. The short list and the names of the jurors will also be released at this time.
5. Each year, the Dhahan Prize Awards Ceremony will be held in late October to late November in Vancouver, Canada. The Dhahan Prize will bear the cost of economy return air travel to and from Vancouver for the winner and two finalists, including the cost of accommodations and meals in Vancouver for up to five days.