How a colonial-era library has inculcated reading habits in Sangrur

Before renovation, it could accommodate just 70 people and now it has a seating capacity of around 235 on the ground and the first floor.

“It’s been a year that the library has been renovated and with this, Sangrur is now getting popular for its reading habits. The library, which is open on all seven days from 8am to 9pm, remains mostly crowded with people coming even from far away villages of the district,” said Sangrur languages officer Ranjodh Singh Sidhu, adding that now the administration is also renovating a library in Dhuri and a few others in some villages. This library has a collection of around 65,000 books and some new books on competitive exams such as UPSC, CAT, JEE, NEET and CUET, were added after the renovation.

Elaborating on the history of the library, Varjeet Walia, Sangrur additional deputy commissioner (development), said in the colonial era, Sangrur was the capital of Jind state and was ruled by Maharaja Ranbir Singh. “In those days, the library was situated near the deputy commissioner’s office but in 1971 it was shifted to the existing building which was specially designed for the purpose. After 1971, it was taken over by the state government. The library not only has rare reference books of the colonial era, but also houses 50 images depicting the rich history of Sangrur,” he said, adding that people come here from far.

Jagdeep Singh, a student who comes from Ladda village about 10 km from the library, said, “I come here daily to study. The library is very clean and has a great environment. Though I always knew about this library, I started coming here two months ago after I got to know of the renovation.” Gurpreet Singh, who visits from Bhawanigarh which is about 20km away, added that he has been frequenting the place for over six months now. “I am preparing for UPSC and this library has a very good collection. When I see people around me studying, I also get the motivation to work hard,” he said, adding that the new canteen is also a bonus.

Walia added that looking at the rush of students, they decided to start a canteen in one corner of the library. “The canteen, which is being run by NGO ‘Pehal’, has tea, coffee and also some snacks.”

Sidhu added that the library comes under the Department of Higher Education and is open for all. “The lifetime membership fee is only Rs 100. Earlier, we had around 6,000 members but after renovation, the number has gone up to over 10,000,” he said.