Librarians, educators, researchers, and policymakers from India and abroad participated in a conference in Tiruchi to explore innovative strategies for creating sustainable libraries on Friday.
Organised by the Department of Library and Information Science of Bharathidasan University, the conference on the theme ‘Building Sustainable Libraries for Connecting Communities: Librarianship, Technology and Collaboration’, was funded by Raja Rammohun Roy Library Foundation.
It featured special lectures, panel discussions and paper presentations on the challenges faced by academic and public libraries in building sustainable connections.
In his inaugural address, Ramesh Yernagula, Director of Library and Information, Ministry of External Affairs, advised young researchers to find solutions for challenges such as access inequality and hurdles in inclusive design.
Pit Pichappan, senior scientist, Digital Information Research Labs, United Kingdom, suggested that services offered by Information and Library Science should be renamed as the Research Support and Research Data Management services similar to the Cambridge University model.
Dewendra Kumar Singh Banaras, librarian, Hindu University, Varanasi, in his keynote address, cautioned against any technology trying to replace human beings.
M.K. Weerasinghe, head and cadre chair senior professor, Department of Library and Information Science, University of Kelaniya, and T. Pratheepan acting librarian, Uva Wellassa University, Sri Lanka, spoke.
A total of 16 technical sessions and 250 presentations were held during the conference. Artificial Intelligence, Sustainable Development Goals, mental health in a digital world, health informatics and telemedicine, and globalisation were among the topics covered at the programme.
Conference director K. Elavazhagan, librarian, Indian Institute of Management – Tiruchi, spoke.
Published - February 07, 2025 07:32 pm IST
