Let's read a book in a park near you

CHENNAI: Reading habits of the non-digital kind among children have been on a steady decline for over a decade, thanks to access to mobile phones and other gadgets, and lifestyle changes. Even among those communities that are economically backward, reading a book is a luxury, primarily due to inaccessibility, among others.

As a way to get around the problem, and encourage children to read books, the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) has launched the initiative of a ‘Reading Zone’ in the parks of north Chennai on a pilot basis.

The goal is to provide access to books in areas that mostly have slum pockets and to inculcate reading habits among the general public. Residents have welcomed the initiative by the local body, which has guidelines for visitors to read books in the park.

The initiative also aims to improve the literacy levels of the people with a focus on women. The ‘Reading Zone’ will have several books ranging from short stories, biographies, novels, etc., and the public will have free access to these books.

“It’s also based on an element of trust in the society that the books will be well-maintained. Users are supposed to enter the details of the book that they read in a register and then place it back in the box after reading. People can also leave their feedback in the register. We also encourage people to donate books either directly in the box and or to the address we have mentioned below,” averred Katta Ravi Theja, regional deputy commissioner (north), GCC.

This initiative is planned in 10 parks across the north Chennai region. Based on the feedback from the users, the facility will be improved and expanded to other parks in the city. The plan is to create a community of readers who can have book-discussions in the parks and spread the joy of reading further.

“We don’t have time to read books as the schedule is packed. It’s a good initiative by the local body, as it allows us to leave our kids to play and develop reading habits during the leisure time instead of wasting time on mobile phones. We hope the authorities would expand the initiative across the city and add more books in different genres for the book lovers,” said J Karthika, a visitor at Raghavendra Park in Choolai.

To attract visitors in the ‘Reading Zone’, people suggest to stock newspapers so people would gain knowledge on current affairs. “More residents will visit the park if such initiatives are launched and it would also improve the literacy rate in the city. Though libraries are functional in the locality, we couldn’t find books in various genres and they were not well-maintained. If the GCC scales up the initiative across the city parks, it would definitely improve reading habits,” opined K Balan, a senior citizen, a daily visitor to the park.

This initiative is expected to increase the number of children visiting the parks, especially for reading purposes. Experts suggested that books should be child-centric with vivid colours and visuals to keep them engaged in reading.

“Books should be moral-based and the local body should ensure they don’t stock books that teach discriminatory practices. They should also encourage kids to share what they have read in the park. In the future, the corporation must set up mobile libraries across the city,” stated child activist A Devaneyan.

However, residents and civic activists are concerned about the long-term maintenance by the local body, as several initiatives have been stopped despite getting a positive response from the beneficiaries. “Only time will tell how effective this initiative would be given the history and a lack of enthusiasm on the part of the local administration in maintaining the existing basic infrastructure within the parks in north Chennai. The play and exercise equipment are in a horrible state. The musical fountains have been defunct and vandalised with one just security on duty,” stated C Raghukumar, a civic activist in north Chennai. “Will the GCC deploy officials in the street library to ensure the books are maintained in good shape and returned properly?”

Parents also wondered whether the initiative would reach the people in the digital era. “Everyone has a smart phone. I have my own doubts if the street libraries will serve any purpose,” he averred.

DONATE BOOKS TO: Regional Deputy Commissioner (North) Greater Chennai Corporation No 61, Basin Bridge Road, Old Washermenpet , Chennai 600021

LAUNCHING NEXT WEEK...

The Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) had launched the ‘Reading Zone’ at Raghavendra Park in Choolai and May Day Park in Royapuram (Zone 5). The initiative will begin in the following parks in north Chennai next week:

Tiruvottiyur (Zone 1) MRF Garden, Poonthottam CPS

Manali (Zone 2) VS Mani 2nd main road, MMDA Park

Madhavaram (Zone 3) Padmagiri Park Phase 1, KKR Garden Park

Tondiarpet (Zone 4) GNT Road Ansa Garden, Jeeva Park