Librarians a neglected lot: The Pioneer

If librarians are not treated with disdain, they are not respected either. In colleges, they are considered inferior to the teaching and the administrative staff. But considering the multifarious roles that they play and the skills that are required of them, they should be given a better deal, writes Zafar Alam Khan

Despite a number of libraries in the State Capital, ‘Librarians’ Day’, observed on the 120th birth anniversary of renowned librarian, SR Ranganathan on August 12 across the country, passed unnoticed in Bhopal. Not a single programme was held on the occasion in the city.

A librarian is considered to be a specialist in the care and management of a library, trained in library science and engaged in library services. A librarian has many important roles to play. Unfortunately, their lot remains neglected due to varied reasons, including the indifferent attitude of the policy makers, perhaps because of their lesser numbers.

SR Ranganathan, considered as father of library science, developed five laws in 1931. He said:

• Books are for use
• Every reader his or her book
• Every book its reader
• Save the time of the reader
• The library is a growing organism

With a few simple adaptations, Ranganathan’s laws hold good even today.

Sachin Chourasiya, assistant librarian in Sadhu Vaswani College, who has written many letters to the Government to draw its attention towards the problems of the librarians, while talking to the Viva City, said “though the number of books has increased in the 31 departmental libraries of the State from a mere dozen to thousands, the number of librarians has remained the same. Besides, there is no fixed standard for their salaries. They are the lowest paid compared to those who are in the same rank in Government jobs.”

A senior librarian serving with the State Government, on condition of anonymity, said “unfortunately, Madhya Pradesh is one of those States where Library Act has not been implemented though the Bill for the purpose had been tabled twice in the State Assembly. It is not an Act till now. This also reflects the unwillingness of the State Government. Librarians across the State are of the view that the State Government would have to show strong commitment for getting the bill passed in the State Assembly.”

Chourasiya said the lesser number of librarians was the major reason for the plight of the community as other cadres like those of doctors, teachers, nurses, patwaris and RIs, etc succeeded in getting their demands fulfilled due to larger numbers and strong unions. The salary of the librarians was also not uniform like other cadres and it varied from department to department. There promotion chances were bleak due to lesser number of posts.

He said the lesser number of librarians did not empower them to raise their voice before the Government and therefore they expected that the Government would act unilaterally on Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay’s policy sentence “pain of last man standing in last queue needs to be resolved.”

MP Library Association and College Library Association are the two bodies meant for working in the interest of the libraries and librarians in the State, but the irony is that both the associations are inactive.

Chourasiya said the need of the hour was that the problems of the librarians, that included uniform wages, promotion guidelines, etc, should get all the benefits that others on equivalent posts were getting and that they should be awarded respectable status.

Nepal Singh Jadon, library and information officer, Indian Institute of Forest Management (IIFM), said “the librarians working under the Central Government are lucky in this regard as the Union Government acting on the recommendations of the Chattopadhyay Committee fixed uniform wages for the library staff. Besides, there is a promotional policy for them.”

Unfortunately, most of the libraries in the State have inadequate staff. The non-progressive attitude of our society is to be partially blamed for this brain-drain in the field of librarianship. Even in academic institutions their wages are not comparable to that of teachers and other administrative staff. They are rarely a part of the policy-making body.

Librarians are considered not more than clerks. Even the authorities concerned have failed to implement a proper service structure, and have not come up with an effective promotion formula till today. Further obstacles that hinder the recognition of librarianship as a noble profession enlist the attitude and working habits of supporting staff in libraries.