HYDERABAD: The election code that is presently in vogue ahead of the MLC posts has come as a dampener to one of the most silent, and almost obscure, sectors-the public libraries.
The adverse impact of the poll code is such that Hyderabad City Grandhalaya Samstha (HCGS) is compelled to forgo their eagerly awaited annual feature for the third successive year, albeit for different reasons.
According to Padmaja Potluri, secretary of HCGS, the election code has prevented libraries from celebrating ‘National library week’, held every year from November 14 to 20. The previous two years were lost to Covid-19.
Despite fund crunch, the public libraries have been attempting to turn a page for the better. However, HCGS officials pointed out that grants they receive from GHMC will only help meet ends.
GHMC is supposed to devolve eight per cent of the property tax it collects for maintenance and upkeep of public libraries in its jurisdiction. The civic body collects library cess as part of its property tax collections, as provided for in the
The Telangana Public Libraries Act of 1960.
The Samstha gets Rs 95 lakh from the government every quarter that takes care of salaries and pensions while another Rs 4 lakh it receives every quarter is earmarked for salaries of outsourced employees.
Currently, the Samstha has 79 full-time and 39 outsourced employees. Positions of those who have retired over the years have not been filled.
The GHMC provides Rs 15 lakh every month for buying of newspapers and periodicals, payment of water and electricity bills, covering the 83 libraries under it. Around 10 libraries are in rented buildings, while eight function from rent-free buildings.
B. Avinash Rao, a senior assistant with the Samstha, said “to survive the competition from television and mobile phones, all our libraries need a facelift, more staff and books catering to all aspirations.”
M. Padmanabha Reddy, secretary of Forum for Good Governance, said, “The library cess should be spent only on books and developing libraries. The government should ensure that this money is not diverted to other activities.”
