Mohali's public libraries on the verge of closure

MOHALI: After the municipal corporation’s attempt to purchase 1,100 books worth Rs 12 lakh for six libraries was thwarted for bypassing the committee concerned, these reference centres in phases IV, VI, 3B1, IX, and XI, besides Sector 70, are on the verge of closure.
These libraries have a limited number of books and regular members but, to those senior citizens, reading is the only recreation. They had even offered to manage and operate these libraries but the MC didn't agree.
Municipal commissioner Kamal Kumar Garg said: "We will not let these libraries die. We will design a policy to make these functional.”
In January, the MC had retrenched library managers with three-month pay out of six months of pending wages. This is because the MC failed to make any policy for managing the libraries. Some of these centres don't even have furniture, drinking water points, or signs. Students living in Mohali use the public libraries of Chandigarh, in sectors 17 and 34.
There's an all out credit war between the Congress and the Akali-BJP councillors for these libraries. Former MP Prem Singh Chandumajra accused cabinet minister Balbir Singh Sidhu of inaugurating four libraries that the MP had inaugurated already.
On June 21, there was high drama at the Phase-IV community library when the Shiromani Akail Dal (SAD) councillors laid siege to it after minister Balbir Singh Sidhu demanded to share its books for opening libraries across the city.
Last year, the MC had also turned down the Punjabi University, Patiala, offer of 200 books. Questions are being raised on the decision. The Patiala institute had asked only for a security deposit. It was ready to not only take care of the books but also rotate those in six libraries every week or month as required. Former deputy mayor Manjit Singh Sethi said: “Why was this decision turned down when it could have saved a lot of public money?”