K'taka: Committee for library book purchase

Shimoga, Sep 13: Noted historian and Chairman of Book Purchase Committee of Public Library Department of Karnataka, Prof S Shattar, has said a Standing Committee of four members would be constituted to recommend purchase of necessary books for different libraries in the state.

Talking to reporters here today Prof Shattar said during his two years of tenure he had tried to bring transperency in the administration of his department.

He said several reforms had been introduced by him in the department towards purchase of books for the government libraries in the state.

He said there was no system of purchasing the heritage and canon books like the works of Adi Kavi Pampa in the department and in order to purchase such heritage books and to create awareness regarding ancient Kannada literature and language, a committee comprising Dr G S Shivarudrappa, Prof G Venkatasubbaiah, Dr Basavaradhya and others had been constituted.

He alleged that most of the municipalities and local bodies were collecting fees in the name of ''library cess'' to the tune of crores of rupees but not utilising it.

UNI