GOA-LIBRARY Books matter, but who cares in today's Goa?
Books are masters who instruct In an information-driven world, books should play an all- important role. But is this the case? Not so in Goa, where state- run libraries are plagued by the funding crunch, laws meant to boost library functioning are treated languish for long, and no one seems to have time for libraries anymore. One understands the resultant frustrations and anguish. Librarians, unlike many other government servants, often take their work quite seriously. Not only do they like the jobs they do, but they also seem to understand the value of their work, and its importance to society. Says one recent official report on the functioning of libraries in the state: "For the Central Library, the year 1996- 97 had started full of enthusiasm, hoping to see its dreams fulfilled. However, with utter dismay, the library had to strive hard to achieve its goal within its limited resources, as most of the requirements could not be accomplished." It's a story of a lack of funding, and a lack of official support. Even if the government staff can't complain too loudly against the very government which funds them, the roots of the problem is very clear for all those who can see -- or should we say read (the writing on the wall)? Elsewhere, libraries in the globe are going onto the Internet. In Goa, the Central Library is yet to be computerised. Goa became the tenth state in the country to have its own library law. But are we serious about enacting it? Central Library staff concede concedes that this body is not in a position to play its role as a state library "to the full extent". It is hampered by a lack of funds, insufficient space, and the lack of staff. Lack of funds have meant that plans for a new Central Library building are yet to be finalised. This has been lying on the blue-prints for years. Proposals for library automation and microfilming of out-of- print material related to Goa are yet to be the okay from the authorities. Various posts -- including the Central Library's curator's post -- continue to be vacant.
Currently, the situation is bleak and full of ironies. Goa's main library has to depend on a cess on the sale of alcohol for its substance. As an official report puts it: "It is hoped that at least with the implementation of the Goa Public Libraries Act 1995, the financial position will improve and the library will be in a position to play its full role as a state library...." Inspite of all the problems, the libraries are trying to do their job, and help readers get the information they badly need. Now, local libraries are drawing interest from new quarters. Young students in the third year of their Arts, Commerce or Science graduation courses have to undertake projects. Students from secondary and higher secondary schools also have to take up assignments. This is a good trend, and will hopefully encourage the reading habit. Due to the floodgates opened to the new visual media, it seems as if we have all forgotten about the utility of books and libraries. Central Library has also made efforts to collect out-of- print Konkani books -- either in the original or as photo-copies -- depending on the availability of the books. Under the Press and Registration of Books Act of 1867, publishers of books and newspapers are supposed to deliver free copies of what they publish. In case of all items published in Goa and related to Goa. "It is a matter of regret that many publishers do not abide by these rules, as such the supply of some dailies and the majority of other periodicals is irregular and as a result the volumes which are bound and preserved in the library have lacunae," officials at the library say. If more publishers hand in their Goa-related publications, not only will the library benefit, but so will the reading public.
For that matter, the Central Library has long served as a very useful institution. Unfortunately, very few persons seem to be aware of the facilities it offers. Or, how one has to take benefit of being a member. Because it is a government-run institution, there is little done to effectively publicise its existence. It seems that people become members only after getting a word-of-mouth tip about the benefits of membership. Last year, some 1005 adults and 30 children enrolled as members. Only 40,000 books were loant to readers during the year. Many more could certainly take benefit of this institution. Central Library has an open-access system. This means, you can go upto the bookshelves and choose a book you want, after browsing through many. It is virtually as if a permanent exhibition of books is organised for members. Members can take home two books of their choice. This circulation section remains open during convenient hours -- from 9 am to 1:15 pm and from 3:30 pm to 7 pm. Librarians are also open to listening to the views of readers, taking requests for reservations of particular books, and listening to which books do not exist in the section. Even non-members can visit the Central Library to read books. But they cannot take the same home, unless they become members. Children have their own corner, with special books for them at the Central Library. Most of the books are for reference only, which includes different sets of encyclopedias (including the World Book Encylopaedia and the Student Merit Encyclopedia). Some 20 children can be accommodated in the children's corner at a time. But due to the acute shortage of space, the Central Library's Children's Corner cannot be separated from the circulation section. In the past year, the number of books purchased and received as gifts was "comparably less". Consequently, even though the cataloguer was working for half-day in this section, "no work is pending". Is this a hint of the funding crunch, that is even affecting our knowledge-acquisition systems? Central Library lacks the face to file number cards. So, for the last ten years, they were simply stored in the technical section. Catalogue cards of Marathi, Hindi and Konkani books are also not filed due to a lack of space in the circulation section. In the past year, the Central Library purchased 479 English- language books, 389 in Marathi, 390 in Konkani and 3 in Hindi. This is hardly a substantial number for the state's prime lending library. Central Library spent barely Rs 2.62 lakhs on new books in the past year. On magazines, it spent under two thousand rupees a month. Is this becoming of a state-level library?
One can understand that the Periodicals Section Reading Room is also very popular, given that many find reading newspapers and magazines rather interesting. On average, some 175 readers visited the periodicals facility each day. Due to the acute shortage of space at the Central Library, the Reading Room is housed some distance away, at the Massano de Amorim Complex. Over ten thousand persons visited the Central Library's reference section. This includes students. Many interesting publications come to this section -- including the legal publication All India Reporter, Discover India, India Green File, South Asia Green File, Inside Outside, Lawteller, My Doctor, National Geographic, Swamy's News, Current Science, Data Quest, Employment News and The Times of India. But this section is hampered by many problems too. Limited space in the stack room means books acquired could not be properly merged, placed or arranged scientifically. Because of a lack of sitting capacity, most of the time many readers have to stay out of the section, as services are restricted to a limited number of readers. Duplicate-checking is not centralised in the library, meaning one can never be sure whether the book being bought is already available or not. Some duplicate books have been "tied and kept", and these could well be sent to some place where useful. Pilferage of books is a problem, though the exact number of missing books "cannot be ascertained" as no charge of stock was handed over. There is no record showing the number of books in the reference section! There is a tremendous pressure on staff too. Nowadays, more students visit the library for their project work, but the infrastructure has not been subsequently expanded.
Most of the Goa books are kept in the "rare books" section, launched in 1982. Researchers working on Indo-Portuguese and Goan subjects, from across the globe, visit this section. "We felt sorry that students had to be sent home because the section could not accommodate more than ten readers at a time," as the librarians put it. This section also preserves the old collection of about 50,000 books of the former Biblioteca Nacional de Goa. Some rare books of the 16th and 18th century, which came from the old convents of Old Goa, and books printed in seventeenth century Goa, are also part of this collection. "This section is very badly in need of floor space," say staff. Other state-funded libraries also are facing problems. Due to lack of seating place, more readers could not be accommodated at the Government Taluka Library in Curchorem. Average number of books loant out has gone down over the past year "slightly" due to a shortage of books, particularly fiction. One can only hope that adequate thought is given to the crucial issue of the role books should play in our world. Is this the way we are preparing our youth for the twentyfirst century? Even if nobody talks about that concept now, it is just a few hundreds of days away. Frederick Noronha - Journalist |