Calcutta, Nov.20 :    Calcutta, Nov.20:  He owned one of the five 'The Bishop Mark' covers that existed in the world, before gifting it away to a friend, and a rare 'Red Scinde Dawk' pair, invaluable items in a philatelist's collection. But the vector which the late Deoki Nandan Jatia, of 55/1, Bhupen Bose Avenue, used to catapult India on to the global philately stage was his pioneering research on 1854 four-annas. Now, after DN's demise - a cardiac arrest on November 12 after a protracted battle with cancer - family, friends and the Philatelic Congress of India (PCI), of which he was the founder, are putting their heads together to figure out how best to preserve his invaluable collection and carry on his legacy. Among the suggestions is a museum or an archives in the city where he lived and died in relative anonymity to exhibit DN's rare collection and 'tell the people what a great ambassador he was for the country'. M.G. Pittie, immediate past president, added: 'Unfortunately, in his own backyard, DN never got the recognition he so thoroughly deserved and it's time we set things right.' As a first step, the Jatia family and the PCI have agreed to institute two awards, one, to be presented at every international exhibition abroad and another at international philately exhibitions in India. Efforts are also on to bring out a stamp in his name. 'We will also propose philately as a co-curricular subject in schools and introduce more philately competitions at the grassroots-level to broadbase the practice,' said Rajesh Kumar Bagri, commissioner-general, Indepex Asiana 2000, the 14th Asian International Philatelic Exhibition to be held at Netaji Indoor Stadium from December 7 to 12. As news of DN's death filtered out, condolences started pouring in from all parts of the world. 'His passing away will leave a vacuum in the philatelic world,' wrote Knud Mohr, who took over as president of the Federation Internationale de Philatelie (FIP), from Jatia. Mohr, who will be in Calcutta to inaugurate Indepex, will call on DN's widow, Ratni Jatia, the inspiration behind his pathbreaking work. It was Father Leo Vanbuynder of St Xavier's School who initiated DN into Indian thematics. Then, guided by the late J.N. Sengupta, a family friend, he switched over to Indian Classics. His pursuit of philately earned him many a first - DN was the first non-European to be elected president of the FIP, and served an unprecedented two terms; the first Indian to be invited to sign the Roll of Distinguished Philatelists, started by King George V, in London, 1983... He was also awarded the highest civilian honour, the 'Order of Sofia' by the Bulgarian government in 1989 for his 'dedicated work and contribution to the world of philately'. But the crowning glory came in the form of his book - India's Bi-Coloured Four-Annas 1854, A specialised Study of Third Printing - which he completed from his deathbed and was released on May 24 this year. Queen Elizabeth II sent DN a personal message, saying his book was valuable enough to be kept in the Royal Philatelic Library of Buckingham Palace.