IIT alumni establish digital library at Jhajjar village

Ravinder Saini
Tribune News Service

Jhajjar, February 17

A group of IIT alumni from New Delhi, Roorkee and Kharagpur has established a digital library at Government Senior Secondary School in the district’s Palra village. It has access to the digital library of IIT-Kharagpur, where more than 1.5 crore books on several subjects are available in 16 languages.

Prof Sanjeev Sanghi, Dean, Alumni Affairs and International Programme, IIT-Delhi, inaugurated the library on Sunday.

One of the group members, Anand Bhushan, an alumnus of IIT-Delhi, has borne the entire cost of the library, which came out to be Rs 5 lakh.

The other members of the group — Rekha Bhushan of IIT-Roorkee, Kalyan Patra of IIT-Kharagpur, and Vinod Yadav and Shashank Sonal of IIT-Delhi — assisted Bhushan in setting up the library.

“Education is the best way to give back to society,” Bhushan said, adding that he chose Palra village for it was close to Bhindawas Bird Sanctuary. “I visited several villages and zeroed in on Palra village as it close to an ecologically important site.”

The library stocks about 200 books, and has a projector and four computers with an internet connection. It has been named ‘Sanghi’, as a gesture of respect to Prof Sanjeev Sanghi.

“The library will inculcate the habit of reading among students. Every village should have a library,” Sanghi said. 

Vinod Yadav, former secretary, IIT Delhi Alumni Association, said: “Another digital library is coming up in Gurugram’s Phadi village at the cost of around Rs 12.5 lakh. Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) will bear its cost.” 

Books available in 16 languages  

• The library has access to the digital library of IIT-Kharagpur, where more than 1.5 crore books are available in 16 languages
• About Rs 5 lakh was spent on its construction
• It stocks about 200 books, and has a projector and four computers with an internet connection