ITANAGAR, 19 Jul: The Lohit Youth Library won hearty appreciation at Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA) in Mussoorie, Uttarakhand, when senior volunteer Keselo Tayang of Tezu-based Bamboosa Library presented a talk on the power and role of voluntarism in spreading the joy of reading and “bringing about educational enhancement of the reading-deprived in marginal language communities.”
She was a guest speaker during the in-service training programme on ‘Good governance in Himalayan & Northeast states/UTs’, and was talking on ‘Jan Bhagidari for quality learning: The role of community libraries’ on 18 July.
Tayang stressed on the vital importance of “handholding of government agencies with NGOs and youth groups,” drawing from the rich experience of 16 years at the Lohit Youth Libraries.
She appealed to the officers to “take the lead in supporting rural library activities to strengthen the educational base in rural Himalayan states,” and cited the examples set by IAS officer Prashant Lokhande(the founder-patron of the Lohit Youth Libraries), former Lower Dibang Valley SP Sanjay Sain, and former Anjaw DC Ayushi Sudan.
Ten senior officers from Arunachal attended the programme, which had 32 participants from different Himalayan states and UTs.
Speaking online from Bamboosa Library in Tezu, Lohit Youth Library Network coordinator S Mundayoor traced the history of the growth and popularity of printed literature and reading in India in the 19th century. He pointed out that “dedicated nationalists, revolutionaries, and social reformers vigorously promoted reading by the common people to awaken their thinking, and set up informal reading rooms and study centres, in spite of facing extreme persecution by the British rulers.
“We need to revive that nationalistic urge to empower common people with reading in their mother languages, even if our Himalayan languages are minor and now treated as script-less,” he said, adding that “people should have the freedom to read in their mother languages.”
Sharing her happiness at being invited to speak at LBSNAA, Tayang said: “It was a great experience because I found that the participants from NE and the Himalayan states were very supportive and eager to promote reading in their own areas. Their enthusiasm and proactive attitude were truly inspiring.”
Several participant officers interacted with Tayang after the talk and lauded her for her powerful presentation.
Lokhande, who is now the union joint home secretary, also lauded Tayang and her team of Lohit Youth Library volunteers, and conveyed his best wishes to all reading promotion activists in Arunachal.