Experts call for steps to refresh libraries

TRICHY: At a time when digital libraries are becoming a challenge to academic libraries, librarians feel the latter have to look within to find new methods to attract users.

Serving and retired librarians from across Trichy district voiced their opinions on the occasion of 'Librarians' Day', observed on the 120th birth anniversary of renowned librarianSR Ranganathan. The Society for the Advancement of Library and Information Science (SALIS), Tiruchirappalli chapter, organized the programme in the city on Sunday.

Dr K Elavazhagan, librarian and chief knowledge officer from the Indian Institute of Management (IIM-T), Trichy, delivered a lecture on 'Security systems in libraries', saying academic libraries should play a major role. Librarians should be approachable to students so that students felt inclined to borrow books and learn more.

"The lack of security systems, latest technologies and unskilled manpower in libraries also prevent students from accessing academic libraries. As a result, they prefer to go to the Internet for reference. The need for Closed Circuit Televisions (CCTV), radio frequency identification (RFID) and magnetic chips are a must to provide a secure environment to students and also to prevent loss of books. In higher education institutions, students may avoid using academic libraries fearing consequences in case of loss or damage of books. Invariably, the authorities question all of them to find out the actual offender. When there is a system like CCTVs and RFID, they feel free to access libraries. Moreover, librarians who pursue library science through distance education mode lack skills. They should improve their calibre to serve students better. Students should be aware of legal consequences while downloading content from the Internet. They must get permission from the publishers concerned to download material, or else it may attract legal problems," he said.

"In the IIM-T library, we have implemented security systems at the base level. We will have a full-fledged system in future so that students can avail themselves of books at any time," he said. Dr Jesudoss Manalan, chairman of SALIS, Trichy, said it was indeed clear that the number of library users had drastically come down with the advent of digital libraries. It was the right to time to define new roles to attract students. In the same vein, the use of security systems would block the learning process as users may feel offended.

Educational institutions should try to change the attitude of students in order to ensure effective use of libraries, he added.

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