New Delhi: Sixteen former faculty from the Jawaharlal Nehru University’s (JNU) Centre for Historical Studies (CHS) have urged the university’s vice chancellor to reverse the decision to relocate the CHS’ library building.
The group, which includes the historian Romila Thapar, pointed to the extensive and diverse set of resources currently housed at the CHS’ library, and how it has benefitted the university’s post-graduate and research scholars.
“The CHS faculty brought resources from archives and libraries across India and the world (from Tamil Nadu to [the] French Archives) to the library to facilitate teaching and research,” their letter said.
“A rich collection of primary sources, in the form of volumes of inscriptions, literary texts, and archival documents, as well as important secondary sources of a high academic standing were housed in the library … The library has proved to be of immense value for students at the post-graduate and research levels.”
“In fact, following the CHS example, other centres have also set up departmental libraries in the university.”
They also wrote about how the CHS received grants from the University Grants Commission (UGC) specifically to build the library and later to double its capacity.
“Given this history of the CHS library, as faculty who have nurtured this institution over past several decades, we feel that the library’s relocation and dispersal would essentially destroy this fine institution which was funded specifically for the purpose,” their letter concluded by saying.
The historians also alleged that the JNU administration seems to have decided to move the CHS library “without even consulting the CHS faculty”.
A full copy of their letter has been reproduced at the end of this article.
JNU students raised concerns about the library’s future last week when speculation arose that the administration was going to shut it down.
Maktoob Media reported that signboards for a ‘Special Centre for Tamil Studies’ were also installed in front of the CHS library building.
JNU implements #NEP2020 and the vision and mission of PM Shri Narendra Modi by beginning the Special Centre for Tamil Studies which introduces special courses, translation and learning of the oldest language and its great culture.@rashtrapatibhvn @narendramodi pic.twitter.com/B5VHHSqGdK
— Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) (@JNU_official_50) July 31, 2023
However, the administration clarified on Friday (August 4) that it was not shutting the CHS library down and said that claims saying otherwise were “misinformation”.
“All the members/students concerned of the university are hereby informed that as part of an internal arrangement, the university has planned to relocate the existing CHS Library to the adjoining building,” its statement said according to news agency PTI.
It continued to say that the university’s executive committee met on May 30 to “approve the recommendation of the Space Committee regarding [the] Special Centre for Tamil Studies, allocating them the building/premises adjacent to EXIM Bank Library, i.e. [the] CHS Library,” the Indian Express reported.
In other words, the Tamil Studies centre will move into the CHS library building, which in turn will move to the EXIM Bank Library.
But students say that the latter will be unable to accommodate everything from the CHS library.
“We, as students who are important stakeholders of the university, were not consulted… There is very limited space in the EXIM Bank Library. Only a few books can be shifted. We do not know what is going to happen to the remaining books,” an anonymous PhD scholar told IE.
§
Prof. Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit,
Vice Chancellor,
Jawaharlal Nehru University
6. 08. 2023
Subject: Reports pertaining to the relocation of the CHS CAS Library and reallocation of the Library Building
Madam Vice Chancellor,
We, the former faculty of the Centre for Historical Studies, are shocked to hear that the CHS library building is being taken over by the administration on the grounds of the need for space for new centres that are being established within the university. Since the grant for the building of the CHS library was received expressly for this purpose from the UGC, it is quite disturbing to hear that the building is sought to be put to alternate use after several decades of its existence.
The CHS received a Department of Special Assistance (DSA) status from the UGC in the late 1980s that was aimed at developing the research and teaching in the Centre. The faculty requested that the grant promised be allowed to be used not for more faculty positions, as was the current practice, but to build an exclusive departmental library of the CHS, necessary for teaching and research at an advanced level. Permission was given and the grant received was used to construct the CHS library building. It may be noted the CHS faculty in fact gave up its own promotion avenues by choosing to build the library rather then receive more posts.
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The CHS faculty brought resources from archives and libraries across India and the world (from Tamil Nadu to French Archives) to the library to facilitate teaching and research. A rich collection of primary sources, in the form of volumes of inscriptions, literary texts, and archival documents, as well as important secondary sources of a high academic standing were housed in the library. The library was able to bid for and get from the University of Chicago the rich personal collection of the eminent scholar Bernard Cohn. Collections of other eminent scholars like Satish Chandra and D.N. Gupta were also housed in this library.
The CHS library now houses a repository that was carefully built by the faculty over decades keeping in mind the research and teaching needs of the Centre. The library has proved to be of immense value for students at the post-graduate and research levels. An intensive tutorial based and research based teaching programme that the CHS conducts would have been virtually impossible without such a departmental library available to the students. In fact, following the CHS example other centres have also set up departmental libraries in the university.
Such was the expansion of the library resources and heavy demand for its usage that the need was felt to expand the library. After the CHS was deemed a Centre for Advanced Study by the UGC another grant was sought and received which enabled a near doubling of the space in the CHS library by adding a floor and extending the existing CHS library building.
Given this history of the CHS library, as faculty who have nurtured this institution over past several decades, we feel that the library’s relocation and dispersal would essentially destroy this fine institution which was funded specifically for the purpose.
We therefore sincerely urge the University to reverse this hasty decision which appears to have been taken without even consulting the CHS faculty.
Sincerely,
Profs. Romila Thapar,
Harbans Mukhia,
J.N. Panikkar,
Suvira Jaiswal,
Mridula Mukherjee,
Dilbagh Singh,
Aditya Mukherjee,
Neeladri Bhattacharya,
Yogesh Sharma,
Arvind Sinha,
Kumkum Roy,
Ranabir Chakrabarty,
Sucheta Mahajan,
Janaki Nair,
Radhika Singha,
Supriya Verma
Tanika Sarkar.