“I would like to see Reading and Library Movement in the entire country. The movement should not be limited to make people literate. It should try to achieve the real goal of bringing social and economic change. The foundation of good knowledge should be followed by a super structure of a better society.” – Narendra Modi, Prime Minister (2017)
In a move towards carrying forward this Vision Statement of Hon’ble Prime Minister, the Ministry of Education under the guidance of Dr. Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’, Minister of Education; has taken the first step in implementing a Knowledge Communication Centre (KCC) through its nodal agency National Book Trust, India by setting up a library in each Gram Panchayat across the country.
As a step forward towards this Reading and Library movement for a knowledge driven society to bring socio-economic change, the setting up of Libraries in Gram panchayats in State of Haryana has begun. On 23 November 2020, Shri Yuvraj Malik, Director, National Book Trust, India presented the KCC Project and discussed it in detail, in a meeting chaired by Shri M.L. Khattar, Chief Minister of Haryana, at Chandigarh, which was also attended by group of Secretaries from School Education, Higher Education, Panchayat & Development Department, Govt. of Haryana.
The highlights of this project are:
- Setting up a Library in every Gram Panchayat in the form of a Knowledge Communication Centre with National Book Trust, India as the Implementing Nodal Agency and Knowledge Partner of the Project.
- The project will be completed in a phased manner as per available infrastructure at the Panchayat level after a detailed survey. New infrastructure will be created at the places where Panchayat Bhawan is not available.
- Optimum utilization of the existing budgetary provisions for books, infrastructure, computers, and other amenities.
- Special edition for rural set-up and age-appropriate content in local languages and dialects – making this project one of its kind.
- Customization of content as per regional, culture sensitivity and local aspirations integrated with NEP 2020.
- Shape up the ideaof India as a nation through classic collection of books in local languages and dialects.
- Inclusion of gram panchayat in mainstream knowledge share.
- Reader’s Clubs shall be set up in each Gram Panchayat.
- Mentorship to the young budding authors by National Book Trust, India in order to enhance their reading, writing and oratory skills.
- Select writings will also be published by National Book Trust, India.
- Employment to at least one person from every village – creating employment opportunities.
National Book Trust, India through its content development team will interact with Gram Panchayats at these Knowledge Communication Centres (KCC) and will compile the traditional knowledge from the Gram Panchayats and this will be shared with the world and the mainstream media in lines with the vision of NEP.
It is pertinent to mention that in tune with the vision of Hon’ble Prime Minister, the National Book Trust India organised the first-ever Gram Panchayat Pustak Mela and Sarpanch Seminar in Uttarakhand in 2018. In 2019 Panchayat Libraries were set-up in the Union Territory of Diu. And in 2020, the task of setting up the libraries across other States has taken an incline.
The project of KCC is set to be a milestone in shaping the young minds through a better creative engagement of the society in reading, and making the basic unit of Indian society – the Gram Panchayat as an important entity – as envisioned by Mahatma Gandhi as a Mini Republic.
