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Bazinga- Library Card Made Mandatory to Get Admit Card

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DU makes it compulsory for students to have a working library card to receive their admit cards for the exams.

The University of Delhi (DU) released a notification on its website on Wednesday, 3 October 2017 regarding new guidelines for the issue of admit cards, for the upcoming semester exams. Along with the usual minimum 66.7% attendance, a new clause has been added to the list. Students will now have to show their library card, issued to them specifically by the librarian, to be eligible to receive their admit cards.

The move comes after the library staff from most colleges claimed that only a few students actually visit the library to study or read books and/or actually issue some reading material, various informative journals etc. The librarians feel that the students who come just to gossip in hushed voices, wear headphones and keep their heads down, or just come to access their phones freely in the library, disregard and disrespect the decorum of the library. Plenty students don’t even get their library cards made or bother to collect it till their graduation.

The staff and teachers believe that this move by the university will make the students realise the importance and need to read books; both textbooks and leisure reading – be it fiction or nonfiction, and will be a step forward towards tackling the phone addiction most of us suffer from.

Mr Sharma, head of the library staff at one college said that this decision will also help in improving the library book collection and status. “ Books are meant to be sniffed and read, rather than just dusted once in a week lying on those rusty shelves for years. When students don’t use the facility, the administration doesn’t take interest in procuring new books and funding for the infrastructure. Now we can hope to see DU libraries at par with other universities.” He was quoted saying.

Along with the mandatory library card, students will have to show documented proof of issuance of books to their card as well. Yes. You read it right. You just can’t show a blank library card. Although, the types of books to be issued is not specified. Textbooks, novels, motivational reads, journals, research publications – everything is welcome. The university wants for the students to read and learn for their holistic development along with academics.

This announcement has been met with mixed reactions by the students. Some consider it as a benefit to them, while others are grumbling about one more thing they have to do now. Neha, a second-year student at Miranda House said, “ I’m a book freak so kind of excited about this but I’m also looking forward to the enhancement of the library and its facilities. Some of my friends are already exhausted, thinking about reading books. “ She said with a laugh.

 

Disclaimer: Bazinga is our weekly column of almost believable fake news. It is only to be appreciated and not accepted.

 

Feature image credits: DU Beat archives

Gurleen Kaur

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Journalism has been called the “first rough draft of history”. D.U.B may be termed as the first rough draft of DU history. Freedom to Express.

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