Ludhiana: Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) has planned to modernise and revamp its five-floor Mohinder Singh Randhawa Library with Rs 6.50 crore set aside as the budget. A detailed proposal has been submitted to the state govt.
The upgraded library will be equipped with CCTV cameras, public Wi-Fi apparatus, and a fire detection system along with the other state-of-the-art facilities. The funding for upgrading the library will come from the special grant announced by the state government. Punjab’s AAP govt had announced a financial aid of Rs 40 crore for the university in the state budget presented inside the Vidhan Sabha in March this year.
Going by the proposal, all floors of the library will be equipped with central air-conditioning. As of now, only three floors of the university have the air-conditioning facility. For this purpose, a new 300-tonne air-conditioner will be installed at the library, and it will replace the old AC that has lost its efficiency.
A chillier air-conditioning plant will be set up for this purpose. The library will also have new and better lighting installations across floors and this lighting will be modern and reading friendly. The building will also be equipped with public Wi-Fi for universal internet access.
An official claimed that that the new electrical work will also be carried out on all the floors and multiple laptop-charging points will also be set up across floors. Currently, the library does not have any charging point in its building. The official also claimed that the seating capacity of the library’s reading halls will also be increased, and the CCTV cameras will also be installed.
All these reading halls will be fitted with false ceilings for aesthetic appeal. Moreover, a new washroom will be constructed. The library’s furniture will also be upgraded, while the old chairs will be repaired.
Surrounded by lush lawns dotted with beautiful ornamental plants, the library has a collection of 4,19,179 documents that include books, theses, bound periodicals and digital documents. The building has four reading halls with a seating capacity of 760. It opens from 9am to 8pm during the winter period of January to February and from 9am to 9pm for the rest of the year on all working days, based on information displayed on the official website of the university.
Besides, the university has two Wi-Fi-enabled 24X7 outer reading halls for the readers, with a seating capacity of 132. These reading halls have direct accessibility even when the library is closed. Dr Yogita Sharma, the librarian, said: “As of now the upper two floors of the library do not have the facility of air-conditioning.
The current AC plant of the library is very old and, so, it has lost its effectiveness. Therefore, a new chillier air-conditioning plant will be set up and all floors will be equipped with the central AC facility.” PAU vice-chancellor Satbir Gosal said: “The state govt has sought proposals from on how we plan to spend the grant of Rs 40 crore.
We have proposed upgradation of the library.”.
