Kerala State Central Library digitizes Rare Books in Accessibility Drive

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The bibliophilic readers, especially those hailing from Kerala, may be pleased to know of a recent noteworthy achievement of the State Central Library down there. The library, located in Trivandrum, houses hundreds of rare and ancient documents and books that cannot be found elsewhere. Physical access to these books has always been highly restricted and the people who were even aware of their continuing existence were equally rarely found. However, the situation is going to change for the better very soon, with an effort being underway to digitize this entire treasure trove and make the same accessible to the public. It had started quietly way back during 2006 and in the first phase, 707 rare documents (644 English and 63 Malayalam books) containing 3,28,268 pages had been digitized and stored in a digital archive. The second phase of the process had started in 2010, when 480 English books containing 1,84,321 pages had been digitized and added to the archive.

Some of the rare treasures to make their way thus into the public domain include ‘An Account of the Trade in India,’ by Kockyer Charles, dating back to 1711, scholarly books on the ancient Vedas and Islam, Travancore/Travancore-Cochin/Kerala gazettes from 1904 onwards and jewels such as ‘Righte Noble and Pleasant History of Successors of Alexander Surnamed the Great,’ (a 1569 publication) among many others.

A new three-storied Heritage Model Reference Block is also being built at an estimated cost of INR 3 crores and the entire library is being computerized, the first State Library to achieve said distinction, featuring online book reservation and renewal, Internet access for members, self check-in and check-out, and securing of books using RFID tags. Earlier only registered members of the library could access the digital archive via its local network, but at present, it can be accessed to anybody through internet.The Chief Minister of Kerala, Oommen Chandy, who inaugurated this achievement of the library in digitizing its reserves, has also promised all help that is needed on the part of the state government, including addressing problems of employee shortage etc.

One certainly hopes that all the other libraries across the country would soon follow suit, emulating such laudable moves to make more and more of their resources available in the public domain. In fact, several such initiatives are coming to the fore from different institutions recently, including the Digital Library of India hosted by the IISC, Bangalore, the World War I Indian Office records digitized by the British Library etc. Such efforts certainly provide a booster shot in the arm of goals like dissemination of information amongst the public, something to which the Spicy IP team is also dedicated.

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Accessibility of public libraries to persons with disabilities.

The issue of accessibility of public libraries to people with disabilities (PWDs) is an issue that is considered worldwide. In India, it has received an impetus in 2012 after the Copyright Amendment Act was passed by the Parliament.  Post the 2012 Amendment , Sec. 52 of the Copyright Act enables libraries to convert their collections into formats accessible to PWDs free of cost.  In this context, 20 disability rights groups wrote to the Ministers of Culture, HRD and Social Welfare requesting the Government to take action in removing the barriers PWDs face in accessing public library facilities and collections. Their letter can be accessed here.  

The letter notes that as there are approximately 150 million people who are suffering with disabilities in India and as public libraries are critical for the education and dissemination of  information and knowledge to the citizens of India, the Government must take steps to make library materials accessible for PWDs. Moreover, India has signed and ratified the UN Convention on the Right of Persons with  Disabilities. Under Articles 4, 9 and 30 of the UNCRPD, India has the responsibility to take all appropriate measures to ensure that there is minimal or no discrimination to PWDs and that PWDs enjoy access to libraries.  The Ministry of Culture has also constituted a High Level Committee under the National Mission on Libraries to look into the revamping of the library structure in the country. This, along with the Copyright Amendment Acts of 2012, makes for an ideal opportunity for the Government to make the public library facilities in the country more disabled-friendly.

A long list of suggestions for improvement has also been provided by the 20 disability rights groups. These suggestions have been provided by them after conducting research into the issue and are therefore, comprehensive and reasonable. They include increased accessibility by making structural modifications to library buildings such as ramps, handrails, elevators as  well as making public conveniences such as toilets and drinking fountains. They also ask for larger and more visible signs and boards as well as installing the signs in Braille as well. Other suggestions include that the library materials must be digitized and be catalogued in accessible formats. The public libraries must function as a distribution centre for such materials. Libraries should also provide the assistive aids and equipment required by PWD's. In addition to giving adequate training to library staff about interactions with PWD's, there must also be staff and other personnel with a background in disability for assisting and guiding PWDs in the libraries. Such assistance is integral in order to make PWD's comfortable with using the library materials and facilities even if they are present in accessible formats.

 Readers can also refer to this policy of library services for persons with disabilities, this checklist prepared by the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions as well as this writeup of the services provided by the New York Public Library for persons with disabilities.

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