HYDERABAD: The State Central Library (SCL), Afzalgunj, will be among the first libraries to be brought under the pilot project taken up as part of creating online public libraries. Apart from the State Central Library, the Department of Libraries has also chosen Regional Government Library and Zilla Grandhalaya Samstha in Warangal for setting up a unique network of online libraries. Despite glitches in acquiring funds, officials put up a brave front and point out that the first phase of computerisation and networking in libraries through e-Grandhalaya software, developed by National Informatics Centre, will begin in a few months. Deputy Director (Administration) of Department of Public Libraries N.S.M. Naidu points out that SCL needs Rs. 24 lakhs for digitisation of its collection comprising five lakh books. The Government is expected to release the required funds soon, according to the officials. "We have covered a lot of ground in the last six months in terms of preparing estimates for the project. Warangal and Hyderabad are the two regions where the project will be taken up on a pilot basis. Over 40,000 books have already been digitised at SCL with the help of Carnegie Mellon University's Universal Online Library Projects," according to Mr. Naidu.

The digitisation works cover titles in Hindi, English, Telugu, Urdu and Persian. Carnegie Mellon University is providing the funding support for this project. "In the first phase, we will digitise books in libraries and then connect them through a network of computers. It may take a few years but on completion readers from any public library can access books of their choice from any of the district libraries. It will literally be an information explosion," Mr. Naidu adds.

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