President Murmu launches ‘Festival of Libraries’ 2023

President Draupadi Murmu launched the 'Festival of Libraries 2023' on 5 August 2023 at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi. The Library Festival is organized by the Ministry of Culture.

The two-day (5-6 August) festival ('Festival of Libraries 2023') is showcasing the specialties of the world's famous libraries.

• The objective of the Festival of Libraries is to initiate a discussion on the modernization and digitization of libraries in India.

• The organization of the Festival of Libraries is in line with the Prime Minister's vision to promote the development and digitization of libraries and promote the reading culture in the country.

• Festival of Libraries will work to prepare action oriented policies for the development of ideal libraries up to the village and community level in the country.

• The festival is a part of the second phase of 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav' and aims to promote the development and digitization of libraries and inculcate the reading culture in India.

• The Festival of Libraries will serve as a platform to showcase prestigious libraries of the world, which will initiate a dialogue on modernization and digitization of libraries. It aims to facilitate the formulation of action-oriented policies for the development of model libraries up to the village and community level in India.

• The festival will also mark the launch of a special ranking system for libraries in the country, which will promote excellence and innovation in the library sector.

• The government's National Mission on Libraries (NML), launched in 2014, underlines its dedication towards increasing libraries across the country.

• The total budget of this mission is Rs 100 crore to develop model libraries, connect district libraries with digital networks and give priority to libraries in economically backward districts.

National Virtual Library:

• The National Virtual Library is being developed to realize the dream of One Nation One Digital Library.

• In this context, it is said that the success of the National Library Mission strengthens the culture of connecting with libraries and reading books.