State’s lone Urdu Library at Cuttack cries for revival
CUTTACK: Shut down for more than four years, the State’s only Urdu Library at Buxi Bazaar wallows in neglect. Faced with apathy from Cuttack Municipal Corporation, the authority which controls its functioning, the library was closed in 2014 for renovation work. But, the restoration plan is yet to see the light of the day. Set up in 1970 by a retired IAS officer M Ahmed from his own resources, he aimed to disseminate the richness of Urdu language among the people. With over 4,000 Urdu books, including those by famous poets like Mirza Ghalib and Amir Khusrow, the library has a collection of Qurans and precious books on Islam religion by various authors.
It also houses some precious Odia books, the library also housed Urdu newspapers, a collection of various books on Urdu literature, history, culture and novels. In 1990s, Ahmed reportedly handed over the charge of the library to CMC but the ownership of land remains with him till date. Sources said, due to poor maintenance by CMC, the condition of the library turned from bad to worse with each passing day. At present, the library is in a dilapidated condition with broken furniture and fixtures.
While water seeps through its roof and cracked walls, the floor is often damp as its ground level is lower than the road. Due to the weak structure and poor upkeep, flow of people to the library started trickling down from around 2014 and it was gradually shut down by the civic body on the plea of renovation. Though a renovation plan was prepared and a provision of `50 lakh was made in its budget in 2017, renovation is yet to be taken up.
Municipal Commissioner Bikash Mohapatra said renovation work of the library building which is in dilapidated state is getting delayed as the land on which it stands is yet to be transferred to CMC. “We are trying to contact the family of Ahmed for transfer of land. Once the land is handed over to us we will be able to spend money for its renovation,” said Mohapatra. The Urdu-lovers have urged for immediate revival of the library.