“Reimagining Libraries: Technology, Services and Education in Modern Era”
The Department of Library and Information Science, Swami Vivekanand Subharti University, organized a seminar titled “Reimagining Libraries: Technology, Services and Education in Modern Era” on 12 August, on the occasion of National Librarians’ Day, commemorating the birth anniversary of Dr. S. R. Ranganathan, the eminent scholar and father of library science in India. The seminar brought together experts to deliberate on the rapid technological and pedagogical transformations shaping the library and information science sector. Its principal objective was to examine the evolving role of libraries in the contemporary digital and technological environment, and to encourage innovation in library services, technology, and education, with a view to making libraries more modern, user-centric, inclusive, and future-ready.
Delivering the welcome address, Prof. (Dr.) Sudhir Tyagi, Dean, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, extended a warm welcome to all guests and participants and observed that the role of libraries is changing rapidly in the current digital and technological era. He remarked that libraries today are no longer confined to the collection and preservation of books but have evolved into vital centres of knowledge, research, digital information, innovation, and lifelong learning. Highlighting the relevance of the seminar’s theme, he emphasized the need for library services to keep pace with artificial intelligence, digital technology, and changing academic requirements, and expressed confidence that the deliberations of the seminar would prove valuable in understanding new possibilities and future directions in the field.
The seminar witnessed active participation from educationists, information scientists, librarians, research scholars, and students associated with the field of library and information science. Eminent speakers included Dr. Anil Dhiman, Information Scientist, Gurukul Kangri University, Haridwar; Prof. Devottam Tyagi, Principal, C.S.S.S. PG College, Machhra, Meerut; Sh. Sanjeev Pawar, K.V.P.G. College, Lakhawati; Dr. Anil Kumar, Mahavir University; Dr. Kulshreshtha, (Retd) MMH College Ghaziabad; Dr. Subhash Tyagi(Retd) LR College, Ghaziabad, President, UPLA, Ghaziabad Branch; Dr. Vinod Kumar, K.L. College, Ghaziabad; Mr. Praveen Kumar, Bennett University; Smt. Poonam Tyagi, HLM College, Ghaziabad; and Dr. Madhvendra Abhinandan, Rishihood University, Sonipat, among others.
In their addresses, the experts noted that in the changing digital environment, the role of libraries is no longer restricted to the collection and availability of books; libraries today are evolving into vital centres of knowledge, research, digital information, innovation, information literacy, and lifelong learning. While emphasizing the adoption of modern technologies, they also stressed the importance of preserving human values, reliable information, and academic integrity within libraries. Dr. Sapna Sharma proposed the vote of thanks, expressing gratitude to all distinguished guests, speakers, teachers, research scholars, students, and participants, and noted that their presence and active participation had made the session meaningful. Ms. Shalini Tyagi presented the seminar report.
At the conclusion, Prof. (Dr.) Sudhir Tyagi, Dean, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, proposed the vote of thanks, expressing appreciation to all guests, speakers, and participants, as well as the members of the organizing committee, for their contribution to the success of the seminar. Dr. Alpana and Ms. Bhavana Joshi skilfully compered the programme. All faculty members, library staff, and students present in the auditorium showed keen interest in learning about the accomplishments shared during the seminar and also expressed their own views on the occasion. Faculty members, students, and library staff attended the event in large numbers.
