Competitive exams keep public libraries alive

With the dawn of Internet age and digitalisation, it seemed that the culture of library would be washed away, especially in cities like Ranchi. But, a large number of students still go to the public libraries of the city to study.The city has about four-five recognised and old libraries that are serving as competition examination preparation hubs for the students, who come to Ranchi from across the State.

“The library was set up in 1963 and was renamed as The International library in 1995. We have 1,500 members. There are members of all age groups but the count of students is large. We have almost 300 students studying at anytime of the day. Mostly, those students who are aspiring to clear competitive exams come to the library. Many of my students have cleared State and central level competitions. A few come to read fiction or literature,” said V Pankaj, librarian of The International library.

The easy and instant availability of different competitive books is leading the students to take membership. “I became member of library as it is very easy to get book on every topics and subjects which is relevant to competition. Moreover, the environment is calm and student friendly which helps in concentration in comparison to home,” said Sunil, a student preparing for UPSC at State library.

While studying we need to devote our time and concentration to get maximum output. But Internet tends to divert. “Internet is of no use to me as it takes a lot of time to get relevant information. Sometimes, you do not get enough information and your time gets wasted. I love reading books so, I always prefer to study in library,” said Anjali, a student of Women's College.

There are differences in the attitude of the people regarding culture of library. “There are many books which are not available even in the library. And one could easily find those books on internet. The library should be digitized and books should be made available through Internet. Due to digitization, the same book can be made available to any number of students at the same time. This will help in easy access and will solve the problem of shortage of books,” said Praveena, a student of Ranchi University.

Another student further added that the digitization will help in preserving books which is out of print and at the same time it can be made available to the readers. Internet is not troublesome until it is invested in wrong direction. The idea of e-library is very productive and it will support students in cracking competition.The duo of physical library and e-library will prove to be advantageous for students preparing for competition as well as for those who love reading books.