In August, the Municipal Company of Delhi (MCD) cracked down on buildings in Rajinder Nagar the place basements had been illegally used as non-public libraries. This got here within the aftermath of the loss of life of three civil companies aspirants within the basement of a training centre that was illegally getting used as a library. The query stays why are college students having to go to non-public libraries when India is alleged to have a thriving public library system? How are these teaching establishments working unlawful libraries in violation of fireside and public security norms? The incident exposes the cruel actuality of public libraries and their decline in cities resembling Delhi, the place college students arrive from totally different elements of the nation to organize for aggressive examinations such because the Union Public Service Fee choice, IIT-JEE, and NEET, amongst others.
Reviews point out a decline in libraries, with college students struggling to seek out examine areas. The truth is, many of the MCD-funded libraries have remained in neglect for a few years. The plight of the oldest library in Delhi, the Hardayal Municipal Public Library, exposes the myriad of points that libraries face, together with the dearth of funds, delays within the cost of workers salaries, lack of ample area, and lack of workers, depriving entry to public libraries.
These shortcomings of public libraries, coupled with the excessive demand for studying areas amongst college students, laid the muse for a speedy enhance within the institution of personal libraries within the metropolis. What makes these libraries extra common among the many public? How totally different are they from the general public libraries? Can everybody afford to entry these libraries?
Most non-public libraries in Delhi monetise studying areas on the again of scholars’ aspirations and vulnerability, as they cost exorbitant and unregulated membership charges. There may be minimal effort from the library house owners to make sure the protection of customers, turning these areas into loss of life traps, just like the one in Delhi. These libraries are sometimes situated within the basements of retailers and flats, particularly in areas which can be frequented by aspiring college students. A public curiosity litigation filed in 2024 identified that there are greater than 300 unlawful basement libraries in Delhi, in violation of security norms.
A public library is a dynamic establishment and may evolve in keeping with the wants of the neighborhood. There’s a have to re-envision and re-imagine what a library might be and what it will probably present for its folks. Does a small room with few books represent a library? Or does it must have a proper organisational construction?
Public libraries have usually restricted their sphere of utility, whereas non-public libraries monetise by specializing in particular teams of customers, making certain entry to their precise wants and calls for. In addition they act as peer studying areas for college students making ready for aggressive exams, with their entry to non-silent convention rooms, which open the gates to collaboration and interplay. The MCD can take inspiration from such focused fashions to offer college students with the much-needed reasonably priced and safer alternate options to non-public libraries.
Delhi can take a leaf out of states resembling Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Kerala, which have a thriving system of public libraries, backed with legislations that govern the functioning of those areas. Poor allocation of funds exacerbates the provision and accessibility of those libraries in Delhi.
In these occasions, tattered and dusty rooms turn into areas in want for college students, and their issues and misplaced lives turn into invisible to these in energy. So, will naming these 4 libraries on the 4 college students who misplaced their lives be sufficient? Definitely not.
Sneha Priya Yanappa is group lead (Vidhi Karnataka) at Vidhi Centre for Authorized Coverage.The views expressed are private
