TENKASI: The massive book scam involving Agalvilakku Publications seems to have impacted many public libraries in the state as around 2,200 AI-generated books of the publisher have been removed from the District Central Library in Tenkasi.
When the TNIE visited the library on Tuesday, staff members were in the process of shifting the tainted books, most of which were priced above Rs 1,000, to a separate storeroom.
Speaking to the TNIE on condition of anonymity, library staff members said that all the books had been procured during the previous DMK regime.
“These books began reaching the library in mid-December 2025. All of them were received before the Assembly election. Tenkasi, a newly bifurcated district where a District Central Library was established recently, is one of several districts that received a large number of AI-generated fake books,” said sources.
The racks where the removed books were kept contained books bearing the names of authors such as Nivetha Anbalagan, Nivetha Subbaiah, Manisha Saravanan, Manisha Akash, Manisha Subramanian, Manisha Arjun, Mohana Ravi, Mohana Paulraj, Kala Murugan, Thamarai Panneer and Rishthevan Mahendran, among others.
When contacted by the TNIE, an official said that payments to Agalvilakku Publications were released much faster than those to other publishers.
“We are finding books published by Agalvilakku in several other libraries across Tenkasi district and have begun removing them from the racks. In some libraries, boxes containing these books have not even been opened.
Some librarians became suspicious after noticing books carrying unfamiliar names as authors. However, they were hesitant to raise the issue with higher authorities, who themselves showed interest in purchasing books from Agalvilakku publications and ensuring speedy payments,” the official said.