STILL A HIT: The library has close to 1,200 members and gets about 700 visitors a day
British-Era Library Short Of Funds,No Salary For 4 Months
Kim Arora
New Delhi: In the days of the Raj,when the English aristocracy travelled to India in the 18th and 19th centuries,they would often occupy themselves with books during the long sea journeys that could last over a month.Bulky tomes with heavy subjects were,evidently,a popular option.Close to 8,000 such books,donated by the British travellers,are currently housed in a corner of Chandni Chowk at Hardayal Municipal Public Library,among the oldest in the city.
Called the rare books collection,they include a 1677 edition of Sir Walter Raleighs History of the World and a Herodotus volume in the original Greek from 1826.But these books,like the library,are facing a threat.It has been four months since the library received salaries for its staff,let alone development funds.
The rare books are kept under lock and key in iron vaults that are neither weather-proof nor fire-proof.The pages of particularly brittle books are individually laminated.As for gaining access to a catalogue of these books,it necessarily involves a trek to Chandni Chowk and a classic cobwebs-inyour-hair procedure of going through physical records that will most certainly leave you with dusty fingers.The library is yet to see computerization.
Located close to the Chandni Chowk police station,the library has close to 1,200 members and gets about 700 visitors a day,library officials say.The library was instituted by the British in 1862,when it was called the Institute Library.In 1916,it was shifted to the current building and renamed Hardinge Municipal Public Library.It was only in 1970 that the Hardinge was replaced with Hardayal.In December 1912,freedom fighter Lala Hardayal had flung a bomb at Lord Hardinges elephant procession.Ironically,the present building was built with contributions from influential Indian individuals and institutions of the time to commemorate Lord Hardinges escape from that attack.
And then,even in the general stacks,history has a way of sneaking up on you.On a recent visit,TOI discovered a dust-laden,moth-eaten,yellowed copy of Mary Elizabeth Braddons Ishmael.One of the last few pages bore the inscription Printed for the Author By William Clowes & Sons Limited,London and Beccles.It is an 1884 authors edition.
The building,nearly a century old,preserves the tall arches,wooden spiral staircases and tall doors.A precarious,narrow iron staircase leads to the first floor that houses books in Hindi and English.Flooded with natural light during the day,youd need to watch your step walking on the frail,creaky,plywood floor.British books on Indian and Roman history,or books in Hindi about homoeopathy,the library has most things covered in the 1,70,000 books it houses.
The reading rooms of the library underwent a renovation two years ago.Open to all from 8am to 10pm,it is particularly popular for its newspapers.During the day,it is invariably populated with young students consulting their books,punching away at their calculators and scribbling in their notebooks.
This is where I prepared for my MA and BEd exams.When I became a teacher,I would send my students here, says Yashpal Arya,the honorary secretary of the library.Currently,it is difficult to say whether the library will survive.Even the various memos and letters submitted to government offices by the staff bear an ominous title enquiring for the fate of the library.Theres hardly any going by the book right now.
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