Library- a reading place or sitting place?
Isra Aziz
2k18/MC/65
Library: When one think about this word, he goes directly into the world of books, knowledge and information. It’s a place where one can study number of books. And with the help of these books students, scholars, researchers or anybody can get their answers of all type of questions, whether their question is about their studies or related to any other information. The essentials for a library are proper sitting arrangements, multiple study halls furnished with air-condition and reading friendly environment. In short, it offers people free excess to a wealth of information that they often can’t find elsewhere.
Being the second largest city of Sindh, still Hyderabad has very few libraries. I visited one of its libraries that is very famous by its name called Shamsul Ulema Daudpota Library. As I entered, I saw many people sitting in the garden, laying their books on the grass and were having an informal conversation. I moved forward to enter in the huge reading hall that was full of books. Thousand of books were all around me. All books were kept in the book shelves and some research based books were locked in the cupboards. And to get any book, it’s an obligation on students to ask for permission from a librarian.
In the second reading hall, a person caught my attention through his way of arguing with the librarian for his library’s membership card. He was asking to renew his card so he can easily get new books to study. But, forgetting where he was standing at the moment, a place where to maintain silence all the time.
Later, I took an interview of former librarian who had served in this library for many years. Basically she was a senior librarian there. She shared her experience with me and some information about this library that how it was established. She told me that the oldest library of Hyderabad named as “Shamsul Ulma Daudpota Government Sindh library” was established in October 1961. At the beginning, it was settled in a section of NJV high school Karachi and after one year it moved to Hyderabad’s Muslim college. In 1965, afterwards the finalization of its new building, it transferred and regained its position, which is now in the exercise of Sindh Provincial Museum. In July 1971, the heirs of doctor Umar Bin Muhmmad Daudpoto, the great scholar of the time, contributed his collection of books, furniture and other components to this library. This library has been running placidly under the administration of culture department because at the time of division of education department, all dominion of public libraries was moved to the newly founded culture department, government of Sindh.
I was totally mesmerized by its building structure, constructed so beautifully and well-furnished both from inside and outside. The three reading halls, separate sections for CSS candidates, oriental section, rooms for ladies and children and a canteen was also included in its area.
This library is basically a public library where around 500 to 600 visitors from different cities and villages are always welcome from 9am to 7pm on working days. Having almost 90,000 collections of books, it provides books of all genres either in Sindhi, Urdu, English, Arabic or Persian to its readers. But, the situation is students from different age groups study in the same library, while the other main cities of Pakistan have specific libraries for particular ages.
At the end what I observed is, around two to three hundred readers visit this library on daily basis. But not all the readers are really concerned with their study goals. They do not truly visit this library to fulfill their aims. Few of them visit this library to have comfort in an air conditioned rooms and to enjoy a mind blowing environment. They come to have some fun and spend their time by doing gup-shups with their friends that causes disturbance and distraction for others during the study. The noises that these people create are totally unbearable while studying. Not only in the reading halls, one can find out in the garden as well one and two groups of people having tea, talking in loud voices and makes an environment unacceptable for a person who literally wants to have consideration. There is no proper management and environment that actually library provides to its readers.
All in all, library is a place of reading but unfortunately due to the lack of resources and mismanagement, the library has become mere place of sitting. Majority of students come here for serious study but they just limited themselves to sit there freely due to the lack of reading-friendly environment.
This practical work carried out under supervision of Sir Sohail Sangi, at Media and Communication studies, University of Sindh Jamshoro
