Barkas to go tech-savvy, works for e-library to start soon (Hyderabad)

HYDERABAD: Winds of change are being felt in several Old City areas and Barkas is no exception. Though development had taken a backseat in Barkas for decades, things are all set to change. A swanky e-library is on the cards in this neighbourhood where more children, both boys and girls, are now going to schools and colleges than in the past.

Locals, the Arab-Indian populace of Barkas, share that they are indeed witnessing the change taking place. "We don't have the statistics. But we can tell you that now we have engineers and doctors and other professionals from this locality," Khalid bin Abdullah, a middle-aged businessman, said.

It was in 2011 that the residents of Barkas voiced their demand for a library. A survey by local leaders in collaboration with civil society organizations of 2000 households conducted in the area shed light on the demands of the residents. Among those was a demand for a new library with facilities for the tech-savvy youngsters of the area. When chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy visited Barkas last year during the Rachabanda, foundation stone for the e-library was laid. But the proposal has taken a year to finally translate into work.

Ayesha Rubina, GHMC co-option member associated with ward development in Barkas, said that work on the library would be starting soon. "Earlier it was not clear if GHMC officials or the officials of the Directorate of Public Libraries would take up the work. That has now been resolved. The officials of the libraries department are set to take up construction and management of the library at an estimated cost of Rs 50 lakh. Work is likely to begin in two weeks," she said. It would take about a year for the new library to start functioning, she added.

The new library will come up in the vicinity of the Barkas football ground where an old library exists. For decades now, the residents of Barkas, Chandrayangutta and surrounding areas have had to contend with the existing library which is in a crumbling state with the books in dire need of restoration.

Rubina said that the new library is expected to start operations with 15 computers and access to online library database.

"We have few tentative plans as to how the e-library would function under the aegis of the public libraries officials but the details will be worked out after the infrastructure is in place. More books will be procured and restoration of old books will also be considered," she said.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Barkas-to-go-tech-savvy-works-for-e-library-to-start-soon/articleshow/12873862.cms