It has in its possession some valuable documents, such as a set of three notebooks written by the mathematical genius Srinivasa Ramanujam. But the historical library at the University of Madras has remained headless for over half a decade – since January 2008 – as the reply to an RTI query reveals. With a collection of over 5 lakh books, theses numbering over a lakh and subscriptions to over 4,500-odd journals and e-journals, it does seem surprising, and intriguing, that the post was vacant for this long.
A senior professor in the know of things stated that that the wave of apathy engulfing the library had resulted in it neither creating knowledge nor resources. Although the RTI reply – in possession of Express –states tersely that efforts have been made to fill the vacancy, it fails to specify them. The professor debunks the same, stating that the issue was effectively in cold-storage. “The matter has not been treated with the gravitas it deserves even in the Senate meetings of the University.”
Some of India’s eminent researchers and bright minds, such as A P J Abdul Kalam and M S Swaminathan, have been the beneficiaries of this institution, which is also perhaps the oldest of its kind in south India. As mentioned in its website, the library, which was established in 1907, meets the information needs of students and faculty of 12 schools of study, in addition to that of the industry. Currently an in-charge librarian is at its helm of affairs.
Even the pictures uploaded to the library’s website - the latest among which are dated 2009 - are a telltale of apathy. Express had, about a month ago, reported that the varsity had lost its NAAC accreditation.
When contacted, V-C of Madras University, R Thandavan, told Express that the appointment of a librarian for the main library would be accorded “top most” priority and an appointment should be done in about a month and a half. “I will be submitting recommendations to a roster committee that need to be discussed and ratified. An appointment can be made in around 45 days,” he said. He also added that there were another 130-odd postings, across departments, that need to be filled up, which will be taken up on an emergent basis. “There are many departments with minimal staff, such as Advanced Centre for Bio-physics. Recruitments to such departments will also be our priority.”
Thandavan said the staff strength would be buttressed in some departments having a single faculty member. Asked as to why the post was lying vacant, he said his predecessors too had taken steps to fill up the post. “They too had taken active steps to fill up the post, but somehow it did not happen.”