Central Library: Issues and Admin Response

The institute’s Central Library has been an integral part of the campus since IIT Bombay’s inception over 65 years ago. It serves as a repository of various academic resources ranging from books to theses, allows access to several international journals, and also provides specialised facilities like the Bloomberg Terminal (to access real-time financial data). In recent years, however, there has been an increase in complaints about various shortcomings of the library, from insufficient seating capacity to a call for the library timings to be extended. Through conversations with the librarian, the convener of the Library Committee, and responses to a survey floated among the student populace, Insight attempts a deep dive into the issues surrounding the library. For their contributions to the data analysis, we express our gratitude to the DAV Team 2022-23, particularly Team Leads Abhishek Mahajan and Aum Samel, and team members Aman Sharma, Gowtham S and Siddharth Acharya.

Student Concerns

Following the growing number of complaints about the library timings not being extended for the Fall 2022 endsem exams (including posts on the Insight Discussion Forum), and other complaints about access to the Bloomberg Terminal, the Insight team contacted Dr. Manju Naika, the Chief Library Officer to get their comments on the students’ complaints. The Librarian pointed to some underlying administrative issues which manifested themselves as inconveniences to students. Despite this, they acknowledged that there was scope for improvement, and welcomed any suggestions from students. To this end, Insight floated a survey to gather student opinions about the library and their usage of it, as well as their complaints about the library and the improvements they’d like to see. Here is a summary of the responses to the survey, which was filled by 409 respondents:

We see that over 50% of responders use the library at least 5-6 times a month. It is also evident that a strong majority of the responders (>80%) use the library for its conducive study environment, which shows how important the Library is to the institute, especially as a space to study in a quiet environment.

To questions related to areas where the library is lacking, a lot of the responses indicated that students want the library timings to be extended and its seating capacity to be increased. Other problems that were pointed out in the survey include:

• Disturbance due to noise (caused by construction and/or other students)
• Lack of reference books, non-STEM books, magazines and online subscriptions
• Infrastructural problems like those with the ACs, power sockets, chairs, washrooms, etc. 

Some suggestions given by the responders in the survey to improve the library included:

• Dedicating separate spaces without air conditioning
• Including LAN ports near sockets
• More drinking water facilities in the form of water filters/coolers
• Getting the construction done at once and not continually
• Building more discussion rooms
• Updating the reference books
• Opening a cafeteria in/near the library

The Administration’s Response

1. Extension of timings

The root problem with the extension of timings is that of understaffing – over 20 employees of the library have retired over the past 5 years, and there have been no replacements for them yet. In March 2023, in fact, the Librarian made a presentation to the Dean AA and the Registrar, giving details of why the Library, currently having 39 employees, urgently requires 13 additional staff members. With many of the existing staff members already working two shifts, extending the library timings to 1 a.m. (as had been the practice earlier during midsems and endsems) is quite infeasible. Some of the library staff have also been transferred to other departments of the institute administration. The librarian admits that they consistently receive requests to extend the timings, but with the library significantly understaffed, they cannot follow through.

To get more perspective on the matter, Insight interviewed the convener of the library committee, Prof. S. Shankaranarayanan of the Physics Department in September 2023. He explained that the Library hires interns for one year and that last year, the hiring process for the same got delayed. This year, 5 interns have already joined, and the process of approval by the administration for 2 others is underway. However, it is still unclear if hiring these interns will allow the library timings to be extended during these endsems. On a broader note, Prof Shankaranarayanan remarked that the understaffing problem is not specific to the library but one affecting all of IITB, especially after the pandemic, and needs to be solved systematically on an institute level.

Pictures of the Library

(Courtesy of the Librarian, Dr Manju Naika)

2. Seating capacity

The other major issue is seating capacity – currently 550 (+ 200 in the 24/7 Reading Hall); the librarian acknowledged the need for the library to have the capacity to host at least 10% of the campus’ student population (which amounts to around 1300-1400). The size of the student populace has grown manifold over the past 65 years, but, according to the Librarian, the increase in Library space has been marginal. There have been significant improvements in the facilities available, and while alternate measures such as the opening of LHC rooms during the exam period have been implemented, the rather tangible problem of expanding the library remains to be resolved. Prof. Shankaranarayanan agreed, saying that the administration realises the Library is not just a space for students to access books and journals, but a much-needed quiet environment to study. He also added that a lack of proper spaces to study in hostels means the library has to serve as a place suitable for studying. 

The concern of insufficient library space is exacerbated by parts of the mezzanine floor being given to the Admin and Archives offices while the Main Building is under renovation and the delays therein. While this renovation is planned to be completed within 2 months^[1], other offices of the Main Building might be shifted to the Library as and when they get renovated.

Prof Shankaranarayanan further mentioned that the Library Committee plans to increase the library’s seating capacity next year. When asked about the timeline for this proposed expansion, Prof Shankaranarayanan replied that for anything that has to do with construction, his “bets are off”, but 6-12 months after the Main Building renovation is completed would be a feasible time for doubling the Library’s capacity. He also mentioned that while the student strength has increased significantly in the last few years, the infrastructure facilities have fallen behind, primarily due to the long COVID period. The institute administration is working on mitigating this as soon as possible. 

Apart from the Library’s expansion, Prof Shankaranarayanan proposed other measures that could be executed, including increasing the 24/7 Reading Hall’s capacity to 500. This has been discussed with the Design Cell (Dean IPS Office) and, when implemented, should reduce the burden on the library to stay open till late hours of the night. He talked about having more private discussion rooms, three of which are currently functional in the Reading Hall. 

3. Construction

Prof. Shankaranarayanan mentioned that delays in construction have been observed throughout the campus, like the ones in the construction of washrooms in the Reading Hall. Even before the renovation, the lack of hygiene in the single Reading Hall washroom was a major problem for students. The inconvenience was compounded by the lack of drinking water facilities in the Reading Hall for a significant amount of time during these past few months. Acknowledging the problem of hygiene, the Library Committee aims to increase the number of washrooms, making separate ones for men, women, and handicapped persons. For this particular case, Prof. Shankaranarayanan mentioned that he was told, in July, that the construction of new washrooms in the reading hall would take 2 more weeks. However, there have been significant delays and the work is yet to be completed. Further, parts of the ceiling in the Reading Hall have been broken down and are yet to be reconstructed. Currently, the Library Committee has decided to halt all construction in the Reading Hall to ensure students are not disturbed while preparing for their end-semester examinations. The work will be restarted and hopefully completed in December, during which time the Reading Hall will not be accessible for student use. 

4. Resources

In response to the concerns about the lack of appropriate books, Prof Shankaranarayanan directed us to this form on the library’s website that can be filled out to suggest books that the library should procure. The Librarian also emphasized that there is a need to be fully aware about the already diverse existing resources in the library, which encompasses a wide range of journals, books, databases, standards, theses, and more. Several students may not be aware of these resources and how to access them. To find out which books are available in the library, students can visit this link and login using their LDAP credentials. Further, in case someone needs assistance with finding and using any e-resource, the FAQ page on the library’s website suggests contacting the Officer In-charge, Periodical Section (8929) / Reference Section (8922).

5. Cafeteria

The Library had endeavoured to open a cafeteria earlier as well, and had announced it in an email on 11 April, 2022. However, the plans were halted due to last-minute issues with the vendor. The Library Committee informed Insight that they were now in a position to start the service again, and as per emails from the GSHA and the librarian, the canteen in the library courtyard was inaugurated on 16 November.

Conclusions

In conclusion, all the data gathered and interviews with the Librarian and Prof Shankaranarayanan point to the fact that hostel rooms and study rooms do not fulfill the requirements of a major fraction of the student populace. There is a continuous demand for conducive study spaces, which the library can fulfill. Therefore, the renovation of the Reading Hall, as well as the expansion of the library, if executed properly and timely, can be a significant step from the administration’s side to provide the students with a much-needed environment suitable for studying. Apart from that, the problem of understaffing is one that the administration must approach systematically to ensure it doesn’t lead to roadblocks such as the ones faced during extension of the library timings. Efforts can be made to handle construction activities in a more efficient manner, such as by completing them during vacations, so that they don’t hamper student activities and disrupt the library’s environment during the semester. 

The Central Library has been continually evolving over the years, working to stay up-to-date in providing resources for students’ usage. The Library Committee assured Insight that it is receptive to student concerns and is working towards ensuring the best possible facilities for students. Construction delays and insufficient space are issues affecting not just the Library but several other areas in the institute as well, and attempts are being made to resolve them as soon as possible. We believe that if these subtle yet important issues are dealt with the rigour and attention they require, the Central Library can, indeed, be an answer to many of the problems faced by the student community of IIT Bombay today.

^[1] As discussed with representatives of the Estate office in a Library Committee meeting dated 10 Nov 2023