New knowledge and study centre in Selaiyur packs a punch in terms of aesthetics and facilities, not as much in its collection of books

The two-month-old knowledge and study centre in Selaiyur, chennai packs a punch in terms of aesthetics and facilities. But in terms of resources that can benefit students, it has some work to do

In Selaiyur, the library that doubles as a knowledge and study centre carries swank. It has a plethora of features. Despite that, it also carries a void. And the void has to do with two critical areas: books and manpower.

There is well-appointed infrastructure. Here is a quick count of them. A raft of Internet browsing and reading nooks. Two smart classrooms with giant screens. Free access to Internet and 14 computers neatly kept on tap for visitors. Elegant washrooms. Two lively garden areas, each flanking one side of the building. Two separate parking zones, one for two-wheelers and the other for four-wheelers. Solar lighting to supplement regular power supply. Intelligent sensor-driven lighting in the gardens.

The aesthetics of the facility can be distracting, but not for long. The sparsely populated book shelves catch one’s eye sooner than later, as also the fact that the facility is running on empty in terms of manpower.

As a knowledge and study centre (opened by Tambaram Municipal Corporation in the first week of January, 2024), it comes with a mandate to help students prepare for competitive exams. It had to be stocked up on such books, besides those of other stripes that would appeal to the general reader.

B. Mahalakshmi, a chartered-accountancy student, is at the centre with her father Balasubramanian and she has found her books, the ones packed with information meant for competitive exams. For one Mahalakshmi who manages to get the books she has been looking for, there are nine others who don’t. They scour the book shelves in vain.

A Tambaram Municipal Corporation official admits it. “Based on feedback from the students, we know we need more books of this kind.”

Besides the books the centre had received and purchased through the government machinery, books donated by the general public adorn the shelves.