National Librarians' Day

Dear Friends,

August 12th is being celebrated as National Librarians' Day in India, in remembrance of national professor of library science, Padmashree Dr S R Ranganathan (1892-1972), who had spearheaded library development in India.

I request you friends out there, if you are associated with any library in your region; be it public library or academic library, pay a visit to the library and appreciate the library professionals and their service to the emerging society in national development. If we support and recognize the public service organizations like libraries, we have more opportunities to affirm that libraries are change agents in educating the citizens in public life.  In India, lot is to be accomplished, your appreciation and motivation of library services will go a long way to make awareness about the library services to reach the unreached.

In 2020, India is expected to have 574 million youngsters. There is a huge task ahead for librarians to cultivate the reading habit among them. Illiteracy, poverty and lack of access to education in still more prevalent among the semi-urban and rural areas in India. While the successive governments and department of culture have neglected the library development, librarians and struggling their way to create the awareness of reading habit among the general public with limited resources. It is strongly believed that the coming days will change the face of libraries as ICT and social media are a big boost to learning and education.

This small token of yours will help all the librarians and information professionals to keep good morale of their service, realize their mission and strive hard to reach out more masses in our country in the process of shaping our tomorrow's leaders through learning and in national development.

Remember librarians work for you throughout the year, won't you spare sometime to appreciate them on this occasion? Do you stand with me? Will you step out to acknowledge your librarians?

Read to lead.

Thank you.