Reading space becomes a ration shop

CHENNAI: While the State government was lauded for its efforts in encouraging the youth to develop reading habits, the condition of libraries, especially in the remote villages of Tiruvallur district, leaves a lot to be desired. Most of them are either closed or are converted to ration shop godowns.

When DT Next visited a few village libraries in Tiruvallur taluk, it found that all of them were in a dilapidated condition.

The 5 libraries in Tiruvallur crying for a much-needed revamp are in Punnapakkam, Thalakanchery, New Siruvanur, Othikkadu and Ramathandalam. Out of these, 3 have been shut down fully, while the remaining are open despite having little to no basic infrastructure facilities.

These libraries were constructed under the Anaithu Grama Anna Marumalarchi Thittam (AGAMT) scheme that was implemented in 2006.

Interestingly, while the Punnapakkam library was closed 9 years ago, the Thalakanchery village library, which was closed two years ago, has now been converted into a warehouse for a nearby ration shop. The New Siruvanur library was also closed over two months back.

However, Othikkadu library is open and now inviting a handful of readers. Ramathandalam library urges for a new spacious building and a toilet for staff and readers to use.

Speaking about the plight of the library in Punnapakkam village, E Manavalan, an assistant professor of a private college and the resident of the village, said, “The library was opened in 2013 in Punnapakkam, but within a year, it was closed due to payment issues for the staff.”

Later, the youth of the village converted the library to a gym, but that too was closed after issues in the village, thus leaving the building empty at present. “Reading habits have declined among all age groups, especially among teenagers and youth. I cannot stress enough the relevance and significance of a library in any community,” added Manavalan.

However, after repeated requests from the youth of the village, M Sundhara Moorthi, the panchayat president of Punnapakkam, has assured that a retired Village Assistant Officer (VAO) will be appointed as the library in-charge in April. “After reopening the library, we’ll restock the books and book-racks from the e-sevai centre nearby,” confirmed the president.

In the case of Thalakanchery library, the building has now been converted into a ration shop. Villagers said that the library was turned into a warehouse when the roof of the ration shop began leaking after Cyclone Michaung.

“During monsoon, the roof of the ration shop weakened. So, the staff began storing rice, pulses and other food items inside the deserted library. Though there are plans to reopen the library, employees do not turn up due to the meagre monthly salary of Rs 1,500,” lamented K Babu, the village panchayat president, Thalakanchery.

Subsequently, the plight of New Siruvanur library is also dreadful as the place was closed two months ago, according to villagers. “The library in-charge who was employed earlier would not open the library regularly. So it was eventually closed down. If it reopens, it would help school and college students,” pointed out a resident of the New Siruvanur village.

Meanwhile, villagers have been demanding the panchayat to reopen the library and even filed a complaint to the panchayat president. However, no steps have been taken, say the residents.

While the above libraries have been shut down in the respective villages, the Othikkadu library is still open with 400 books for the readers. This library today has 10 readers only, of whom six are elderly.

Commenting on this, a retired government museum staff member S Hari Krishnan of Othikkadu village, said, “Today, people are more interested in gadgets. Youngsters reading books has become rare. To encourage the new-age readers, government should encourage people with new facilities at the library.”

Furthermore, Ramathandalam village library, functioning under the District Central Library, Tiruvallur, is crying for more space and toilet facilities. “Over 7,366 books are in this library, taking up most of the space. And on an average, 30-35 readers are using the library regularly. In the evenings, more students come here to read, leaving not adequate space for readers,” said a staff of Ramathandalam library.

When contacted, the education department staff and block development officer said that they would inspect the libraries.