Quetta's Two Newly Built Libraries Go Functional Next Month

QUETTA, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 20th Oct, 2019 ) :Concerned on the fading trend of book reading, the Cultural, Tourism and sports Department (CTSD) of Balochistan aims to establish more libraries in the province to drag youth back to the books.

Talking to APP here, a CTSD official said three libraries were established last year while two new libraries will be opened by the next month at Satellite Town and Saryab road.

"The project costing more than a hundred million rupees would help in increasing the literacy rate of Balochistan," he said and added libraries are a nursery that produces leaders, writers, scholars, philosophers and teachers who serve the nation.

While highlighting the importance of book reading, he said libraries would not only encourage book reading culture among youth but will also prove beneficial in their capacity building so that they could compete with students of other provinces in education.

The other three libraries are located at New Library and Computer Center at Alamdar road and Public Library, Research Center at Spini Road and Quaid e Azam library, Quetta, he said.

He said these libraries had a capacity to fulfill the need of Quetta's 30 million people.

"We aim to build more libraries in Quetta and at every district of Balochistan in order to eliminate illiteracy," he said.

"Over the years libraries had been playing a crucial role in the ideological development of societies and also help to eliminate the criminal and subversive activities," he said.

Muhammad Imran a senior librarian of Quaid e Azam library, Quetta said the library was built previous year and has a capacity to accommodate 450 people but it receives more than a thousand visitors' daily including students and researchers.

He appreciated the project of establishing two new libraries in Quetta and suggested that the authorities' must also build a separate section for children as provided by the Quid-e-Azam library to encourage the passion of book reading among them.

Khajida Umar, a regular visitor of Quaid e Azam library said she felt happy to see Balochi students taking keen interest in book reading. "This would help to groom the students' skills when they at any platform would represent the country at international level," she said.