Libraries are the life blood of a nation. This is
particularly true for a country such as India, which has a large number
of young people aspiring for a better life. Yet, our public libraries
are grossly neglected. Each one of the country’s 676 districts has at
least one public library, an enormous resource that can deliver a
critical public good if properly utilised.
Have public libraries become relics of a bygone era with
rarely utilized resources? Are they struggling to survive in the
contemporary world, amid change and new generational demands? Without
enough visitors to serve their purpose, has their existence become
largely symbolic, especially in states such as Uttar Pradesh (UP) and
Bihar, and that, too, in the backward districts?
Have public libraries—the most democratic and
community-centric points—become a sorry story with unpaid librarians,
vacant positions, untrained staff, dilapidated structures, no innovation
in content and services and unmotivated environment?
