GUWAHATI: Ease into a hammock and flip through a tome or sit up to prepare for your exams — students in the Miao subdivision of India’s easternmost Changlang district in Arunachal Pradesh would love this New Age Learning Centre (NALC).
Inaugurated on May 7 by Minister Kamlung Mossang, and made officially functional from May 12, it doesn’t look or feel like the typical old university or school library. Sunny K Singh, the young IAS officer posted as the Additional Deputy Commissioner, wanted to let children enjoy reading. Unlike a government building, the NALC is designed like a reading cafe with air-conditioning and colourful cushions with white-coloured bookshelves completing the well-lit walls.
The library has books of varied genres, including study material for competitive exams such as NEET, JEE, UPSC, state civil services, NDA etc. It also provides free wi-fi so that children can avail of e-books.Singh says the place offers a blend of library, cafe and smart, futuristic and interactive space interwoven together. The initiative is to provide an attractive alternative to the youth who find traditional libraries boring, clichéd and outdated, he says.
“The NALC intends to incorporate a futuristic design based on the aspirations of the youth to make it relevant for the present as well as future generations. In a nutshell, it promotes smart and fun learning experience for the readers,” the ADC says.
Another idea behind NALC is to enable children from economically weaker sections to study the books of their choice as well as enjoy the comfort and smart features of the NALC. “The whole range of books starting from the children section, fiction, non-fiction, academic, competitive books, biographies, autobiographies and motivational books will cater to the needs of students, who wanted to read them but couldn’t afford,” says Singh.
Singh says the library may remain open beyond the scheduled time on special requests by ascertaining merit. It will screen motivational movies every Friday and the name of the movie will be displayed on the library notice board every Monday.
“The library period of nearby schools will be conducted at the NALC. Quiz competitions will be conducted once every fortnight,” Singh says. The membership fee is free for the first 200 children and for those coming from economically-weaker sections. Ration card will be treated as the supporting document for EWS kids. For others, the lifetime membership is `50 along with a security deposit of `100. The library has kept some tablets but they can be used only for the purpose of study. The library is equipped with CCTV-based monitoring.
When Singh conducted a gap analysis in the education sector in Miao following his posting in February last year, he discovered disturbing figures. Not only was the pass percentage poor, there was also the problem of dropouts. Alarge number of unskilled and unemployed youth were found to be drug addicts.
The Miao subdivision has a population of about 50,000. Singh says as the subdivision and the Changlang district underperform in competitive exams, it is very difficult to find young circle officers, extra assistant commissioners, IAS officers, doctors and engineers coming from the subdivision.
“Despite having a large population of youth, the subdivision fails to produce doctors, engineers, lawyers and administrators. The main reason is the lack of competitive culture,” Singh says. Besides, competitive books are hard to come by and harder to afford. That’s why NALC has kept adequate books for the benefit of the aspirants. “The librarian is not only the custodian of the books and space but also acts as a counsellor to guide the youth how they can prepare for the competitive exams and apply for jobs,” the IAS officer from Bihar says.
Newspapers including e-papers, magazines and employment journals will be kept at a special section of the library.“The concept of leisurely learning and fun learning is intended to ensure that children sit among books to enrich their knowledge. I am optimistic that the culture of reading will be gradually developed in the subdivision,” Singh says.This is the first of its kind library in Arunachal and perhaps, the entire North-East.