Nehru Centre Library
History
The Nehru Centre Library started in the year 1977, as a small in-house library for research work. The collection comprised of donated books which were given by some generous donors. This small library was located in the 7th floor of the Sterling Centre and occupied an area of approximately 1500 sq.feet with about 2500 books and some scientific journals. Research scholars used the fledging library services for their work.
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In the year 1991, as the Library grew in its collection, services and number of visitors, it was shifted to the Planetarium Basement and the services were thrown open to academicians, scholars and researchers. Gradually, it was also introduced to the general public as a reference library with emphasis only on astronomy. Thus, it was known as a resource centre for information on astronomy related subjects.
Eventually, with an increase in visitors who used the Library and keeping in view their interests in various topics, books and journals on subjects like environment, technology, applied sciences etc were added to satisfy the information needs of the users. This was also the time when school students used it for their project work.
In 1999, the Library upgraded its infrastructure by starting a Cyber Centre with six computer terminals, a network printer and scanner and added the audio – visual section to its collection. Films on environment and the National Geographic collection became popular with readers.
From the year 2000, the Nehru Centre Library has emerged as a popular multi-resource public reference library. Today, the Library is located in the Discovery of India Building and has an extensive collection of more than 40,000 books, subscribes to various Indian and foreign magazines and periodicals, 9 newspapers and has built an expansive documentation centre by indexing articles from newspapers, magazines and journals.
To provide excellent service to all the readers visiting the Library, the library in- house operations are automated and Online Public Access Catalogue (OPAC) service is being provided through a user-friendly software, KOHA. The Nehru Centre Library catalogue is accessible 24/7 to all from mobile, tab, laptop, and PC. Now all book lovers can browse through our collection and enjoy this facility at the comfort of even their homes.
Scope
Freedom, prosperity and the development of society and of individuals are fundamental human values. They can be attained through the ability of well-informed citizens to exercise their democratic rights and to play an active role in society. (Source: IFLA)
The public library acts as a centre of information which makes knowledge and information available to its users. The role of public libraries in a knowledge based society cannot be undermined. It is a space where knowledge and information is created, shared and made accessible to the reading community.
The services of a public library is not limited to any particular class of society but rather it welcomes people from all walks of life to make the most of its knowledge resources.
Our readers vary from a small child who loves to read storybooks, a students working on a research project, an adult or a young adult seeking information or a senior citizen doing some leisure reading!
The Nehru Centre Library is a state-of-the-art public reference library situated at the very heart of Mumbai and it seeks to fulfill the goals and objectives of a good public library.
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The Library has come a long way in building its collection to include varied subjects like economics, environment , literature biographies, architecture and literature to creating a comfortable reading space and area, starting digital services, making its presence felt on social media and conducting wide outreach activities for kids, adults and senior citizens.
The Nehru Centre Library is free and open to all as it aims to inculcate a love for books, reading and promote discussion and sharing of information and knowledge.
To achieve its goals, the Library has created an ambience conducive to reading with centralized air conditioning and ergonomically designed table and chairs. Specially crafted research cubicles are provided to researchers for their study. Internet and Xerox facility is offered at affordable rates.
Apart from collection development and regular library services, the Nehru Centre Library conducts various outreach programmes like book discussions, book reviews, poetry evenings, meet-the-author sessions and many more such outreach events which are open to all. Everyone is welcome to share their love for books and reading!