Are libraries a thing of the past? How are they surviving and who are the readers? Archana Nathan does a reality check

Reading is a private experience, but for the longest time it was envisioned as an activity that took place amidst the community. What is the joy of reading, if you cannot share a piece of exquisite poetry with your neighbour? If you cannot discuss Indira’s Phaniyamma with Hardy’s Tess and egg your friend in the library to read them, how can literature be a shared experience? As you looked for a Masti’s book in the packed shelves of the library, if you stumbled upon a Marquez gem and walked the streets of Latin America in great wonderment isn’t that a toast to the humble library that shaped our thought and fuelled our emotions?

For the longest time, the library was central not just to our lives but to our reading experience itself. Come to think of it, there cannot be a more plural and inclusive space than the library. Unfortunately, the bitter truth is that the tall shelves, old books, pin drop silence, helpful librarians and sturdy ladders are gradually making an exit from our imagination- quietly being replaced by Kindle, Flipkart and private collections. Not only is reading changing from being a community experience, reading itself, as the erstwhile library knew it, has become a rare experience.

Conversations with librarians across the State confirm the fact that the institution of the library today is embroiled in challenges. Right from a lack of readership to paucity of funds; different libraries grapple with their own demons in trying to keep their idea of a library alive.

For example, some librarians argue that reading habits have definitely changed. Of course, they have not changed in a singular way. For instance, one of the aspects that has changed is the idea of why one goes to the library. Libraries now are increasingly turning hosts to research scholars rather than casual readers. These researchers need to refer to books for their thesis. The Karnataka State Central Library, the iconic red block that stands out amidst the green patch of Cubbon Park is one example of how the headquarters of the State’s books is now largely being used by researchers with some exceptions of everyday folk. Apart from the various State-run libraries, the privately run libraries such as the Govind Pai Samshodana Kendra in Udupi, the Gokhale Institute of Public Affairs and the B.M Shri Pratishthana etc - all have an academic character to them. In fact, as their name suggests, they are Samshodana Kendras (research centres) and are largely affiliated to Universities.

Most of these private centres are affiliated to Hampi University which encourages research papers that are written entirely in Kannada. However, these libraries have books in other languages as well. In some cases, the percentage of English books is more than the number of Kannada books. Curiously, there is not a single library in the State that is wholly dedicated to Kannada books. “Libraries have a responsibility to cater to all kinds of people. Since the crowd is cosmopolitan, the books too have to be varied and multi-lingual,” says Krishnamurthy who is the Joint Secretary at the Gokhale Institute of Public Affairs.

Now, even though the profile of the visitors to the libraries largely constitutes post-graduate students, it does not mean that there are plenty of them visiting libraries.

Nestled in one of the bylanes in Basavanagudi is one such research centre - the reclusive B.M Shri Pratishthana. S.C. Patil, the librarian there, says that the real challenge for academic source libraries like the B.M.Shri is in attracting a readership. “Despite the fact that this is a research centre affiliated to a University which mandates that students come here to read, the number of people coming to this library has dwindled over the years. Students, instead of losing themselves in the wealth of masterly Kannada treatises that are available here, opt for the haphazardly put together reference guides that are available online,” he reveals.

If this is the case with students who have to compulsorily visit libraries, where are the readers that would throng to the library simply for the love of reading? Where are the ones that individually ventured into narrow sections of the library, picked a book, smelled its worn out paperback, leaned back in their chairs or squatted amidst shelves just to read a passage from Kuvempu’s Malegalalli Madumagalu or Bhairappa’s Parva?

“There is not enough interest in the idea of reading, especially the moola granthagalu in Kannada (original source texts). Such an attitude towards reading has its roots in the education system and what kind of importance reading is given there,” laments Patil.

It is at school that the library comes into one’s life. Turn to the present-day school and one is compelled to put aside one’s nostalgia and confront the reality. Banjagere Jayaprakash, who is the Chairman of the Kannada Book Authority offers an insight into the condition of libraries at schools today. “One of our main projects is to supply books to schools and colleges and help them build a library. But, in a lot of schools, when we go to give books, they ask for a shelf or a rack to be given too. Forget a library, there are no shelves to begin with. It is the State Government’s job to provide the infrastructure and in many cases, it has just failed,” he explains.

The situation gets progressively worse at the pre-university level which is the transitional period for most children from school to college. K.G. Venkatesh, who used to formerly head the State Library reveals the results of a study he conducted: “We did a study of the libraries in pre-university colleges. Out of the 1240 government P.U. Colleges in the State, only 400 have library rooms and some of these do not even have around 200 books in them. Pre-University is a turning point in a child’s life. We are neglecting this crucial aspect where the activity of reading could play a huge role.”

Many librarians feel that teachers themselves have lost interest in the art of reading. “How will they then cultivate the habit in the students?” asks Patil poignantly. “We need to have pride in the language in order to promote it,” he says. He goes on to flag an important point about Kannada literature in libraries. “Why is there no conclusive bibliographical guide to all the Kannada books in the State?” he asks.

Patil then pulls out five or six bibliographical volumes compiled by the Mysore University to show it to me. “They stopped with the year 1976 and then did not pursue it.” Venkatesh confides that it is part of the Library Act and one of the fundamental duties of the State Central Library to bring out a bibliography each year. “It is enlisted in the provisions of the act. But there is such inefficiency when it comes to the Act’s implementation,” he explains.

The discussion gradually veers away from the idea of a library as the silent community reading space to the epicentre of inefficiency and corruption. Paucity of funds determines the fate of the Department of Public Libraries. With lack of funds to even pay newspaper bills, state-run libraries are now worried for their future. If on the one hand, the libraries hold the local Corporation responsible for their fate, some librarians say that the department itself is inefficient in using funds given to them.

Here again, an interesting case in point is what happened to the plan to digitise resources at the library. “Around Rs.10 crore was allotted for the digitisation of the library and the implementation of e-books but that money was not used well. Even in the case of the mobile library scheme, complaints about the lack of a driver or a vehicle started surfacing and the scheme gradually died down. It is such an interesting initiative, ” explains Venkatesh. “Professionally, we have a good system and a good network — one of the best in the world but we do not know how to take care of it,” he adds.

In terms of managing affairs, the position of privately-run libraries is fairly better. They are mostly run through contributions of the local people. The Govind Pai Samshodana Kendra is a case in point where people contribute money towards a publication that the Kendra plans to bring out and the money is then recycled through the sales of that publication. In Gokhale Insititute, even the staff comprises people that have volunteered to work for free. In both these cases, the libraries run on the goodwill established by their respective founders. While some of them succeed in securing additional funds from the State, others do not. So, ultimately, even they are not left out of the messy mix of politics, partisanship and indifference.

If the institution of the library needs to be saved, one would need all the stakeholders — the State, the libraries and the people to join hands and work together.

Where's the money?

The Department of Public Libraries, as of last week, has Rs. 41 crore worth of pending bills. These bills include rent, electricity, books, newspapers, honorarium to employees, and wages for sweepers.

According to the Karnataka Public Libraries Act, 1965, a library cess is levied, (in the form of tax) a percentage of which must go into the maintenance of public libraries. This tax is collected by the local corporation who is in charge of paying the Department of Public Libraries its due. “The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) owes us Rs. 223 crore and the State Government owes us Rs. 62 crore. We now have bills accumulated over a period of eight months and have no money to pay them. We just got a notice that the newspaper supply to the east zone of our libraries will soon stop,” says Satishkumar S. Hosamani, Director, Department of Public Libraries, Karnataka.

The department which takes care of 200 branch libraries in the city, 5766 Gram Panchayat libraries, 490 Taluk libraries, 30 Community libraries, 127 Nomadic libraries and 15 mobile libraries has been struggling for funds. Satish Kumar says that this year, the BBMP has given them Rs. 8 crore but this amount is barely enough to pay a few bills. He adds that around fifty to sixty sweepers have still not been paid.

The writer and the State

“When it comes to support from the Government, there is a certain unpredictability, say some librarians.

Govind Pai has contributed a lot for Kannada literature but the State has not recognised his work. Even someone like Veerappa Moily spent time in our library, wrote two novels, but did nothing for this library,” says Krishna Bhat of Govind Pai Samshodana Kendra.

The situation is almost reversed at the Gokhale Institute. “DVG would never take any money from anybody. In fact, if someone offered, he would refuse,” says Krishnamurthy. Showing two cheques given by Sir M. Visveswaraya and Sir Mirza Ismail to DVG, he said DVG framed them and put it up. “Former Chief Minister, B.S.Yeddyurappa announced Rs. 1 crore for our library, for DVG and within a month it reached us,” adds Krishnamurthy.

Where are the readers? The upmarket reader has vanished from the library, but that doesn’t mean society has no need for one