Bengaluru: If you thought a library is a place where people read in silence and studied, it could surprise you to know what government officials do in the children’s library.
Some of the workers of the Vikasa Soudha and Vidhana Soudha, looking for an empty and silent place to pour their hearts out have found the ‘perfect’ place in the Indira Priyadarshini Children Library.
Discussions starting from what to cook for tomorrow’s breakfast to how to solve a family crisis, all take place at the library, which has become a hot spot for many government workers when they want to have closed-door conversations.
A library staffer, on condition of anonymity, revealed that these workers frequented the library during afternoon hours.
“Normally, the library has less than 20 visitors a day. Even when students come, they are in the library between 3.30 pm and 5.30 pm.
The early hours till late afternoon are generally when outsiders come to the library. Since they are all government departments’ workers, we do not stop them or ask them to leave the premises,” the staffer said.
Though he maintained that these workers do not hold their gatherings often, eyewitnesses told Deccan Chronicle that every alternate day such meetings take place.
When asked if the meetings were related to any official work, he replied, “Not actually. Most of these workers gather to discuss personal issues and have general conversations.
They chat for some time and leave when they wish to.” The library staffer stressed that these casual conversations were not affecting the library atmosphere nor the children engaged in reading activities.
Director of department of Public Libraries Dr Satishkumar.S.Hosamani said severe action would be taken against such acts and more needed to be done to warn these workers.
“I will issue a circular in this regard and conduct surprise inspections so that we can catch these workers red-handed. This is serious violation of rules,” he said.
In a bid to attract more kids to the library and make it children-friendly, the department plans to hold more debates and competitions at the library.
