Amid mounting offers for donation of books and financial assistance for rebuilding the gutted library established by a 62-year-old man in Mysuru, the officials of Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) and City Central Library will visit the spot in Rajiv Nagar II stage in the city on Monday.
Deputy Director of City Central Library, Mysuru, B. Manjunath said MCC Commissioner Shilpa Nag will visit the park premises in Rajiv Nagar, where the library established by Syed Ishaq stood before it was destroyed in a fire on Friday. She will be accompanied by officials from the Department of Public Libraries.
The visit of officials comes in the wake of publishers of Department of Public Libraries expressing their desire to contribute to the re-establishment of the libraryby donating books or extending financial assistance.
Mr. Manjunath said the officials will examine the ownership of the land on which the library was set up. Even if the land is part of a park, there is provision for establishing a library. If the plot of land did not belong to a park and if belonged to the MCC, a library can be established on the land, Mr Manjunath said.
Report sent
Raja Ram Mohan Roy Library Foundation, which is under Government of India’s Ministry of Culture, too had sought information about the library, he said. A report on the matter had been sent to the State government too through Director of Department of Public Libraries, Government of Karnataka The Department was also ready to offer help, he added.
Meanwhile, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Prakash Gowda did not rule out the possibility of the library catching fire accidentally. He pointed to the presence of a transformer box next to the spot and said sparks from the electrical equipment could have fallen on the books, leading to the fire.
However, he said the police will carry out an elaborate investigation to ascertain if the fire was due to an electrical short circuit or whether it was deliberate act of sabotage by miscreants. The police officials were inquiring with the local residents and checking CCTV cameras nearby as part of the investigation.
Former Mayor Ayub Khan, who is MCC corporator of the area, visited the spot and sought to exercise caution against creating misunderstanding among the public that Kannada books in the library had been targeted. “All types of books, including religious books, were gutted,” he said.
Also, he said the police should be allowed to complete its inquiry to ascertain if the fire was accidental or deliberate. He pointed to the presence of a lot of combustible material nearby, besides the possibility of an electrical short circuit.
He said he would support the cause of rebuilding the library at the same place provided all necessary permission from the government authorities are obtained. “I have no objection to rebuilding the library. I will support the move. But, let us obtain permission from the authorities”, he said.If the land is civic amenities site, which has already been allotted to somebody, it will become illegal to rebuild the library on the same spot, he said, and urged campaigners seeking to rebuild the library to first obtain clearances from the authorities before setting up a library.
