President Bidya Devi Bhandari has said the libraries established with public or individual initiative have played a vital role in educating and awakening people in Nepal.
The President stressed the need of doing more for upgrading, expanding and installing innovations in the libraries to continue people’s interests and ensure readers’ access.
Addressing a meeting of librarians and experts on library on Thursday, President Bhandari said the library is a source of knowledge for a civilized society and birthplace of innovative ideas.
A library is not merely a store of books. Books on different subjects, research report, historical documents, new and updated statistics in the libraries play special role in knowledge formation as the resource centre, according to the President.
In a basic level, a library could be collection of books but it could be high-level resource centre and place for policy studies in a deeper level, President Bhandari added.
The President was of the view that readers of the new generation were lured to the library through digital means thanks to use and expansion of communications and information technology.
The President, however, said the reading culture is learnt to have declined even at the time of increased access to library and changing form of libraries from reading to watching and hearing ones.
She said the library could be developed as the best place for promoting reading culture in the country. (RSS)
