President Mukherjee to launch National Mission on Libraries on Feb 3

New Delhi, Jan 31: 

President Shri Pranab Mukherjee will launch the National Mission on Libraries (NML), an ambitious and lofty initiative of the Ministry of Culture to modernise and digitally link public libraries across the country, at a function at Rashtrapati Bhavan on February 3.

On the occasion, Shri Mukherjee will formally inaugurate the NML’s guidelines, logo and website in the presence of Culture Minister Smt. Chandresh Kumari Katoch and senior officials of the ministry, a top bureaucrat revealed today.

Nine important constituents of the NML (nmlindia.nic.in) include upgradation of infrastructure, digitization and modernisation, census of libraries and their development as knowledge centres and transformation of libraries into empowering and inclusive institutions, Mr V Srinivas, Joint Secretary with the Union Ministry of Culture, told a press conference here. 

Approved by the government in November last year, NML was set up in pursuance of a report of the National Knowledge Commission, which recommended a total revamp of the Library and Information Service sector to serve the changing needs and expectations of the users and give a fillip to the library movement in the country. “The NML plans to build a knowledge society by bringing in libraries across the country on a single platform,” Mr Srinivas pointed out.

Under the scheme, six libraries under the Culture Ministry, 35 Central Libraries in states and 35 District Libraries will be developed as model libraries. Emphasis will on developing these libraries in economically backward districts. Further, 628 district libraries across the states would be provided network connectivity. For setting up of the model libraries, existing libraries would be identified in consultation with the state governments to improve infrastructure and upgrade technology used by them.

NML also intends to create a National Virtual Library of India in the national capital to facilitate a comprehensive database on digital resources, carry out a census on the resources available in the libraries and conduct a study on the reading habits in different regions of the country.   

In the revamped libraries, cataloguing will be done not only of books and journals but also of all policies of the government in public domain to facilitate easy access and research work. Efforts will also be made to provide reading material in a multilingual mode.

Besides upgrading the infrastructure of public libraries, a major component of NML is to initiating need-based training programmes to develop managerial skills and IT competencies of their personnel in tune with demands of the Internet era.  

The chief objectives of NML are to create a world class library system, foster reading habits, facilitate research work and provide information to people in a timely and convenient manner which is also universal and equitable.

The execution of the scheme will entail an expenditure of Rs 400 crore during the 12th Plan period (2012-17), and it is designed to benefit the entire spectrum of population — students, researchers, scientists, professionals, children, artists and differently abled persons. While the survey of libraries would be completed within one year, the other objectives of the scheme would be achieved by the end of the 12th Plan period. 

Kolkata-based Raja Rammohun Roy Library Foundation is the nodal agency for the implementation of NML, a 10-member body headed by Prof. Deepak Pental, former Vice Chancellor of Delhi University.

Public libraries to go digital under Culture Ministry’s National Mission on Libraries

New Delhi, Jan 30: In a move that would deliver a world class library system, public libraries across the country are to be digitized and ramped up under an ambitious plan of the government to foster reading habits, facilitate research work and make people information-fluent. 

Under the scheme, six libraries under the Culture Ministry, 35 Central Libraries in states and 35 District Libraries will be developed as model libraries, with emphasis on economically backward districts. In addition, 629 district libraries across the states would be provided network connectivity, facilitating their transformation from physical to virtual.

Anchored in the Culture Ministry, National Mission on Libraries (NML) will also create a National Virtual Library of India to facilitate a comprehensive database on digital resources with information generated in the country.  

To be mounted at an expenditure of Rs 400 crore during the 12^th Plan period (2012-17), NML is designed to benefit all categories of people -- students, researchers, scientists, professionals, children, artists, differently abled persons and neo- and non-literates. 

Mr. Ravindra Singh, Secretary, Ministry of Culture, said the objective of NML is to expand the learning capacity of the country and deliver a world class library system that provides information in a timely, efficient and convenient manner. 

“Making information more accessible is now paramount in the library sector. Our libraries may be filled with books, but in the digital age, they need to provide access to information that is available online. Digital libraries provide speedy access to information and they also bridge barriers of time and space,” he added.

Approved by the government in November last year, NML was set up in pursuance of a report of the Sam Pitroda-headed National Knowledge Commission, which recommended an overhaul of the Library and Information Service sector.

Kolkata-based Raja Rammohun Roy Library Foundation (RRRLF) has been designated the nodal agency for the implementation of NML, a 10-member body headed by Prof. Deepak Pental, former Vice Chancellor of Delhi University. 

“It is an exciting mission. Libraries continue to remain relevant in our lives. The challenge is not only to have large quantities of materials and resources, but to also make them available to people and empower them,” said Dr K K Banerjee, Director General, RRRLF.

NML intends to create a baseline data of libraries in India through a quantitative and qualitative survey of 5,000 libraries to collect detailed information on quality characteristics and performance indicators in terms of their traditional role as readership promoters and information providers. It would also be assessed whether these libraries meet the requirement of their patrons in the Internet era. 

For setting up of the model libraries, existing libraries would be identified in consultation with the state governments to improve infrastructure and upgrade technology used by them. Efforts would be made to locate them along with educational institutions. 

Further, a census is to be carried out on the resources available in the libraries. A study on the reading habits in different regions of the country and amongst the rural and urban communities has also been planned.

While the survey of libraries would be completed within one year, the other objectives of the scheme would be achieved by the end of the 12th Plan period. 

 “The content on NVL should be available to anyone who has access to the Internet. In new content generation, children’s needs should be given priority. Content will also be generated on skill development and matters concerning regional and local interest,” Dr Banerjee said, adding: “There is also need to create a ‘youth space’ in libraries – informal and comfortable with ICT facility.”

Under the constitution, “Library” is a State subject. Among the 16 states which have legislated on the subject so far, only eight have a reasonably good public library system.

“A major focus area of NML will be to improve the library system services and infrastructure of the states, which are lagging behind. The government is determined to make public libraries vibrant institutions and transform them into empowering and inclusive institutions,” said Mr. V. Srinivas, Joint Secretary, Culture Ministry.

Observing that the advent of digital technology and Internet connectivity has created two sections of ‘digital haves’ and digital have-nots’, he stressed that it is no longer a matter of choice but rather a compulsion to find ways and means of bridging the gap between the two sections. “Virtual library will go a long way in filling up the gap,” he said. 

NML also envisages initiating need-based training programmes for various categories of professionals working in public libraries. It would also develop managerial skills and IT competencies in existing personnel in public libraries.  

Catalogue Launched by painter Ghulammohammed Sheikh, Tate Modern’s Chris Dercon

New Delhi, January 30: 

After taking the contemporary art world by storm with its first edition a year ago, the Kochi-Muziris Biennale gave a glimpse of what to expect in the upcoming edition this December as the organisers of the pioneering festival launched the much-awaited official catalogue in the national capital.

 

Ghulam Mohammed Sheikh & Chris Dercon

The 770-page official catalogue of the first Indian biennale held from December 2012 to March 2013 was released by renowned Indian artist Ghulammohammed Sheikh, who handed over the first copy to Chris Dercon, Director of London’s Tate Modern art gallery.

“It was an exceptional and exemplary biennale,” Sheikh said at a well-attended event on Wednesday evening at the DLF South Court in New Delhi’s Saket Select City Walk.

The catalogue launch function also saw the Kochi Biennale Foundation (KBF) presenting its new curator, renowned artist Jitish Kallat, of its second year beginning on December 12.

“The Kochi Biennale is the ideal spot to reflect on the world today,” said Kallat, who is tasked with the unenviable challenge of repeating the huge success of its first edition. 

Dercon noted that it was very rare that the first biennale is a success anywhere in the world. “I am curious about what the new curator is going to do,” he added. “I believed in the Kochi Biennale from the very beginning and I also believe in the second edition."

The first Kochi-Muziris Biennale has also gone online through the collaboration between the Biennale Foundation and the Google Art Project, which brings museums to people on their mobile phones and computers.

“This is the first-ever biennale in the world to be archived digitally,” said Riyas Komu, the event’s co-founder and co-curator with well-known artist Bose Krishnamachari. “That is a tremendous technological and technical achievement,” Komu added.

Amit Sood, the head of Google Art Project, said those who hadn’t gone to the Kochi Biennale could now visit the whole event from any part of the world. “You can’t replicate the physical experience, but you can actually walk through the beautiful venues of the biennale through our work,” he added.

The official biennale catalogue contains essays by Union Minister of State for Human Resources Development Shashi Tharoor and art theorist and curator Geeta Kapoor besides details information and photos of the works of each artist who participated in the first edition. Co-published with the Kerala-based DC Books in a distribution collaboration, the biennale catalogue was financially supported by the Nirlon Foundation Trust, the Mumbai-based leading charitable foundation, and the National Culture Fund of the Government of India by providing 100 per cent tax deductions for the donation. The catalogue was also supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Government of India and the Government of Kerala.

The catalogue, considered a collector’s item, sums up the values and principles under which the biennale was conceptualized. It was with the similar spirit of the ancient maritime explorers that the KBF set out to do India's first biennale, according to the biennale founders in the book. “The water was uncharted. The vessel untested,” a senior functionary said. “The wind and waves hostile and surging. And, the task daunting.”

Among those who spoke at the event included the Biennale Foundation trustee and former senior Indian Police Service officer Hormis Tharakan besides Ms Kapoor and Poonam Bhagat Shroff of Nirlon.

The catalogue extensively features the woks of the 89 artists from 23 countries who took part in the inaugural edition of the biennale held in 14 venues and over 300,000 sq ft of exhibition area. The event had three-fourth of its works that were site-specific.

Digitization crucial in sharing museum artworks: American expert

From Left to Right- 

Dr. Venu V, DG, National Museum 

and Dr Douglas Druick, 

President of the Art Institute of Chicago

New Delhi, Jan 30: Digitization is gaining increasing importance today as museums across the world want to reach out to the public like never before, according to the head of one the foremost art institutes of the world.

“Every museum should digitize its collections and put them online for wider sharing with the public,” Dr Douglas Druick, President of the Art Institute of Chicago, said at the inaugural talk of a lecture series that National Museum here has launched to bring together experts and practitioners from the arts and culture for Indian audiences.

In fact, digitization has been one of the modern-time strengths of the 1893-founded organization in the US, he told a packed hall of enthusiasts at his talk on ‘The Art Institute of Chicago: Embodying Excellence in American Museum Practices’. “We are very happy to share our knowledge and experience with other museums across the globe,” the expert added.

The head of the Art Institute, which has now collaborated with India’s Ministry of Culture to invite curators and museum practitioners of the country to visit the establishment in America’s third most populous city, noted that an art museum is not just about collections and exhibitions.

“It involves deep research and interaction with academic institutions and curators to gain credibility and make way for new initiatives in the field of fine arts,” pointed out Dr Druick, who has led key curatorial departments at the museum’s Department of Medieval to Modern European Painting and Sculpture as well as the Department of Prints and Drawings.

Dr Douglas Druick, President of the Art Institute of Chicago responding to questions at the lecture

As for public-private partnerships in the field of art conservation and storage facilities, he said museums should invest in strengthening their own facilities as well. “For museums where adequate space is a problem, such steps are being taken after ensuring proper security of the objects,” added the scholar, in reply to a post-talk question.

National Museum Director-General Dr Venu V said Indian museums need to have a robust art acquisition policy to be able to expand their collections, to which Dr Druick said his Art Institute was deeply engaged with acquiring new works. “In such instances, the faculties of a senior curator are very useful. Often curators submit proposals for purchasing or acquiring new objects for the museum; sometimes such acquisitions are also funded by sponsors,” the speaker said.

Jyotsana Singh, Director of Jammu-based Amar Mahal Museum and Library, sought to clarify the need to involve schoolchildren and develop educational programmes to make museums popular for the young generation in the country. Dr Druick concurred to the view, saying it was important to involve the young in museum activities to secure their interest for the future.

National Museum has already begun a pioneering volunteer guide programme that takes schoolchildren around its galleries.

Dr Venu, while noting that the ‘NM Lecture’ series would provide an exclusive opportunity for audiences to interact with experts, revealed that the February lecture will be delivered on the 9th by Dr. Hans Martin Hinz, President of International Council of Museums, an acclaimed international body for museum professionals on the theme of Global Trends in Museums.

इंडिया आर्ट फेयर का शुभारम्भ

सुबोध गुप्ता की पेंटिंग 

30 जनवरी 2014 

आज से भारत की चाक्षुस कला के सबसे बड़े मेले का शुभारम्भ दिल्ली में हुआ।  इंडिया आर्ट फेयर के नाम से प्रति वर्ष होने वाले इस मेले में विश्व भर से करीब 150 कला संस्थानों ने भाग लिया है जिनमे लगभग 400 कलाकारों की  कलाकृतियां प्रदर्शित की गई है। आज शुरू हुए इस मेले का समापन 2 फरवरी को होगा। 

सुबोध गुप्ता की कृति 

सूरज कुमार काशी अपनी पेंटिंग के साथ 

यू. एस. पाठक अपनी विडियो आर्ट के साथ  

सचिन्द्र नाथ झा कि कृति 

अरुण पंडित की मूर्ति 

चिन्तन उपाध्याय की कृति 

तार की जाली द्वारा बनाई गई एक कृति 

बुधवार को जारी होगा कोच्चि बिनाले कैटलॉग

अपनी अंतर्राष्ट्रीय प्रतिष्ठा को आगे बढ़ाते हुए भारत का अब तक का पहला बिनाले पिछले साल केरल में 96 दिन के समारोह के सम्पन्न होने के 10 महीने बाद अपना कैटलॉग जारी करेगा। कोच्चि&मुजिरिस बिनाले कैटलॉग राष्ट्रीय राजधानी में कल आधिकारिक तौर पर जारी किया जाएगा। अंतर्राष्ट्रीय स्तर पर प्रसिद्ध चित्रकार&विद्वान गुलाम मोहम्मद शेख लंदन के टेट मॉडर्न आर्ट गैलरी के निदेशक क्रिस डरकान को 770 पृष्ठ की पुस्तक को समर्पित करेंगे।  

12 /12 /12 से 7 मार्च 2013 तक आयोजित अग्रणी समकालीन समारोह के आयोजकों के अनुसार निरलॉन फाउंडेशन द्वारा वित्तीय मदद और केरल सरकार के संस्कृति मंत्रालय के समर्थन सहित अन्य के समर्थन से कोच्चि बिनाले फाउंडेशन ¼ के बी एफ ½ के द्वारा प्रकाशित इस पुस्तक में महोत्सव की भावनाओं की सही और परिपूर्ण अभिव्यक्ति मिलती  है।

के बी एफ ने कहा कि बिनाले के संपन्न होने के बाद राष्ट्रीय संस्कृति निधि और मुम्बई स्थित एक प्रमुख चैरिटेबल ट्रस्ट निरलॉन के समर्थन से अनोखे ढंग से इस कैटलॉग का प्रकाशन किया है।   बुधवार को आयोजित समारोह को इस वर्ष सम्भावित रूप से होने वाले 2014 के एम बी के क्यूरेटर जितीश कलात अन्य लोगों के साथ सम्बोधित करेंगे। अन्य वक्ताओं में के बी एफ के सचिव रियास कोमू के अलावा पूर्व शीर्ष पुलिस अधिकारी होरमिस थारकन, गूगल सांस्कृतिक संस्थान के निदेशक अमित सूद, कला इतिहासकार गीता कपूर शामिल होंगे।

के एम बी गूगल कला परियोजना पर चित्रित किया गया दुनिया का पहला बिनाले भी है। 

बिनाले के उद्घाटन संस्करण में 23 देशों से 89 कलाकार शामिल हुए थे जिन्होंने 14 अलग&अलग स्थानों और तीन लाख वर्ग फुट वाले प्रदर्शनी क्षेत्र में प्रदर्शन किया। कोच्चि मुजिरिस बिनाले का पहला संस्करण इसके कार्यों का तीन चौथाई था। इसने संगीत, नृत्य, रंगमंच और सिनेमा के महोत्सवों के साथ एक निरंतर शिक्षा कार्यक्रम का भी आयोजन किया था।