The dearth of a modern library for the unemployed youth in their preparation for competitive examinations in Sircilla was fulfilled by a software engineer.
Coming from a weavers’ community, Nagula Poornachander, a software engineer working in Hyderabad had realized the importance of a library and set up one with own funds in the name of his father Nagula Ramaswamy by forming Akshara Chaitanya Educational Trust in 2013. Initially, it was started on a small-scale with around 200 books with simple furniture.
Now it has grown into a modern library with over 3,000 books, plus a digital classroom with internet facility for conduct of online classrooms and live demonstrations. With the contributions made by his friends, he upgraded the library with digital facilities and also installed eight CCTV cameras for online monitoring from Hyderabad by using his mobile phone. Plans are afoot to make it a round-the-clock library.
Everyday more than 40 to 50 youth visit regularly to the library, which is remains open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. They utilize the facilities including the books to prepare for competitive examinations and watch online digital classes.
The library also ensures video classes are conducted and live demonstrations by the experts through internet facilities etc.
The software engineer is shelling out every month ₹ 15,000 from his pocket for the maintenance of the library including payment of rent for the building.
Youth from Sircilla and adjoining villages visit the Nagula Ramaswamy Memorial Library.
Naveen, a student who completed his B. Tech and is preparing for IES, said that the library had come in handy for him to prepare for the examinations without shelling out any amount.
If I go to Hyderabad, I have to pay for coaching and hostel accommodation etc. But, in Sircilla it was free-of-cost and all facilities available in Hyderabad coaching centres were made available here, he maintained.
Mr. Poorchander said that he wanted to develop the library into an institute of human and education excellence by providing skill development programmes to the unemployed youth. He said that the youth after completing their education were confused and remained unemployed because of poor skills.
“I want to transform the library into a skill development training centre so that the youth after entering library would become employable”, he stated.
