Open libraries, say civil service aspirants: Students opting for MPSC and UPSC examinations write to CM Thackeray

Students opting for MPSC and UPSC examinations write to the CM, stating that they are unable to access study materials

With dates for civil service examinations being announced, the students preparing for the same seem to be in a fix as libraries and private study rooms where thousands of these young aspirants prepare for their tests continue to remain shut in the face of rising cases of coronavirus. The students have now written to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, highlighting their plight and demanding that these study centres be reopened as soon as possible so that they do not lose out on the time left.

Students preparing for these exams, mostly Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) and Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), claim that amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, they have lost a lot of time to prep for the exam as the students who had come from other districts first focused on getting back to their respective villages and towns as they found it hard to survive here amidst the lockdown.

Most of the study material like reference books and general knowledge books that they need to prepare for their exams are available in these libraries/study rooms, for which they have already paid their subscription charges.

Sanket Waman, a student preparing for civil service exams, said, “Some students preparing for MPSC and UPSC are in their villages at present and there is no access to any study material there. They want to come back to the city at the earliest and start preparing again and, hence, we have requested the CM to look into our issue.”

While Mahesh Bade, who heads an MPSC students’ rights group in the city, added, “For the past three months, students across the state are continuously facing one issue or the other, be it about food or their rent. While we have tried our best to support them with whatever we could, we think it is about time that all libraries across the state resume operation now. From our side, in return, we will ensure that all social distancing and sanitisation measures will be taken care of.”

As of now, MPSC exam has been scheduled on September 11, while UPSC exam has been scheduled on October 4.

Commenting on the issue, district collector Naval Kishore Ram said, “We will adhere to the guidelines issued by the state government and allow them to resume operation as soon as we get a nod.”

Sadashiv Peth and Navi Peth are two areas that house many libraries and study rooms and are mostly utilised by students preparing for civil services exams.

Dnyan Prabhodhini library and Abhyasika are some of the most popular facilities amongst students and coach thousands of them every year. Others like Samruddhi Abhyasika and Saraswati Abhyasika too are used by many students.