The Department of Public Libraries is working to digitise all libraries in Bengaluru as part of a larger plan including libraries across Karnataka. Renovating a number of old heritage libraries that are lying in neglect is also in the pipeline. There are as many as 30 district libraries, 26 city centre libraries, 127 travelling libraries, 100 slum libraries, 31 children's community centres and 5,766 rural libraries across the State.
In Bangalore, the plan is to take up digitisation in a phased manner according to Dr Satishkumar S Hosamani, director, Department of Public Libraries. "There are as many as 200 libraries in the city. These are divided into five zones with around 40 libraries in each zone. In the first phase libraries in the central zone such as the RPC library in Hamp Nagar, RT Nagar, KH Road will be digitised. Thereafter, work will start in libraries in the south zone and so on," says Satishkumar.
He also highlighted how work had begun last year on the State Central Library in Cubbon Park on its centenary celebration. "Since then we have already digitised as many as 50,000 books in the library and these are also available through a mobile app," adds Satishkumar.
"We are now planning to build around 127 new library buildings across Karnataka and have also undertaken renovation work of some buildings and will also be doing more on this front," adds Satishkumar. A library at Chikkabalapura, not very far from the city, was built at a cost of Rs 5 crore and inaugurated recently.
Raghu Yadav, a city resident who frequents the State library in Cubbon Park and other city libraries says that some of them are in very bad conditions. "A number of libraries in the city such as the one on the double road, Shanthinagar, Vijaynagar look very good from the outside but if you go inside there are many things lacking. I request the department of libraries to do something about them," he says.
(This was first published in The New IndianExpress)