Library Philosophy and Practice 2010

ISSN 1522-0222

Status of Textile Engineering College Libraries in Haryana, India

Dr. Chetan Sharma
Assistant Librarian
Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University
Delhi, India

Rajender Kumar
Librarian
Panipat Institute of Textile & Engineering
Samalkha, Panipat, Haryana, India

Introduction

Education for engineering and allied subjects has been transformed by the emergence of ICT. Textile engineering is not a new field, but still it is unique. Collection development in textile libraries is a challenge for librarians, due to limited resources. Libraries must frequently update their services to suit the rapid developments of society and the economy (Li, 2007). Special libraries must provide information in a more efficient and economical way than other libraries (Junping, 1996) . In developing countries, special libraries have an important role in serving society. Effective collection development requires understanding the research needs of patrons. Ideally, this would mean that selectors would have subject expertise (Williams, 2006) . Collection development includes assessing user needs, evaluating the collection, selection policies, and other kinds of planning and coordinating activities. Collection development is not a single activity but a group of activities (Kumar, et al., 2008).

Background

Haryana is among the smallest states of the Republic of India. There are only two textile engineering institutes in Haryana, the Technological Institute of Textile and Sciences and Panipat Institute of Textile and Engineering. Padma Vibhushan Dr. G D Birla established the Technological Institute of Textile and Sciences Bhiwani in 1943 under the auspices of the Birla Education Trust. It was the first textile institute of the Haryana state. With a modest beginning the institute has grown into a premier technical institute of the country drawing students from all over India and abroad. The institute has a textile factory for training students under actual mill working conditions. In 1943, the institute started functioning with a Diploma in Textile Manufacturing (DTM). In 1952, it introduced a B. Tech in Textile Technology (TT).

Panipat Institute of Textile and Engineering is run by Vidhyapeeth Education Trust and was founded in 2005. It is the second engineering college in Haryana and the 17th in India to have textile engineering as a trade. It is situated in NCR region at Samalkha, Panipat. All the courses in the institution are approved by the Kurukshetra University and All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE).

Review of Literature

The literature of collection development is vast. General treatments of special library collection development include Rajendiran (2008), who conducted a study at Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology. Singh and Satija (2008) conducted a study on information seeking strategies of agricultural scientists working in the ICAR institutions in India and found that seventy two percent of the respondents for all categories of agricultural scientists preferred their library/information centre for information seeking. Sharma and Kumar (2008) observed that the college libraries in Sonipat (Haryana) are not in good condition, and that library services are ill-supported. Kaur (2007) did an exploratory study of marketing of information services and products in university libraries of Punjab and Chandigarh, India, and point out that university libraries spend huge amount every year in building up their collections and offering library services. Olaojo (2006) observed that collection development is a planned, continuous, and cost effective acquisition of quality, relevant materials to meet the needs of users and the objectives of the library. Mulla and Chandrashekara (2006) conducted a study on e-resources and services in engineering college libraries and found that the collection and service infrastructure of the libraries in the sample regions are inadequate. Beals (2006) conducted a study on assessing library collection using Brief Test Methodology and found that the methodology can be used to assess any size or type of collection and applied to both broad and narrow subject areas. Hyden, et al. (2005) found that the library environment was well-maintained and usable, but still had shortcomings in comfort and infrastructure. Ramesha and Kumber (2004) observed that all the seven university libraries in Karnataka provide traditional services like lending, reading and reference, acquisition of primary periodicals, inter-library loan, and so on. Al-Habashi (1996) stated that the collections available in the school libraries of Oman are not sufficiently used and are unable to enrich the curricula. Byrd (1982) used a statistical method for determining subject strengths and weaknesses in a library book collection in relation to user demand.

Methodology

The present study is a status survey of textile engineering institute libraries of the Haryana state of India. A structured questionnaire was designed to collect the primary data. Visits were made to both libraries. Information was also collected from official documents of the colleges.

Data Analysis and Interpretation

Table 1. Library Collections

The total collection of the Technological Institute of Textile and Sciences library is nearly three times as large as that of Panipat Institute of Textile and Engineering, while journal subscription numbers are about the same.

Table 2. Library Membership

The two institutions have a roughly equal number and distribution of members.

Table 3. Library Staff

Both libraries have a sufficient number of well-qualified staff. Panipat Institute of Textile and Engineering professional library staff are allowed to go for in-service training, to attend seminars and conferences.

Table 4. Library Budget (in Rs.)

Technological Institute of Textile and Sciences library spends a sufficient amount on books and journals, although there is no budget for computer infrastructure. Panipat Institute of Textile and Engineering was started in the session of 2006-07. Though the librarians of both the libraries are satisfied with the budget assigned to their respective libraries, the budget should still be enhanced every year.

Table 5. Orientation Program of Library Resources/Services

Both libraries organize orientation programs for new users every year and both libraries also provide a computer training program.

Table 6. Circulation System

Table 6 describes the circulation system. Technological Institute of Textile and Sciences library offers computerized issue return to its users using Libsys Library Software, whereas Panipat Institute of Textile and Engineering follows both patterns of circulation, i.e., automated and register system to its users with the help of Library Management System Software. Both libraries also provide book reservation.

Table 7. Issuing of Books

Table 7 shows the varying policies on number of books that can be checked out, and fines assessed, based on user category.

Table 8. Other Services

Both libraries offer CAS and photocopy services. Panipat Institute of Textile and Engineering library also provides bibliographic services.

Table 9. Infrastructure: Library Automation

The two libraries have comparable equipment and IT infrastructure.

Table 10. Operating System

Technological Institute of Textile and Sciences library uses the Window/95/98/2000 and Unix, whereas Panipat Institute of Textile and Engineering library uses Windows XP.

Table 11. Computerized Activities

Panipat Institute of Textile and Engineering is somewhat more computerized than Technological Institute of Textile and Sciences.

Table 12. Consortia Membership

Both libraries are members of INDEST-AICTE.

Table 13. Library Networking

Both libraries have LAN connectivity and are part of their respective institute's network.

Table 14. Member of Library Network

Neither library is a members of any library network, which is a problem in this age of resource sharing.

Table 15. Internet Service Provider

Each library has a different ISP.

Table 16. Internet Connection

Technological Institute of Textile and Sciences library has leased line and ISDN connectivity, whereas Panipat Institute of Textile and Engineering Library has only leased line connectivity.

Table 17. Help Seeking by User

Users of both libraries frequently demand help using the OPAC, reservation of books, CD-ROM databases, and consortium searching, showing user awareness of services provided.

Conclusion

On the basis of the survey, some conclusions may be derived. Technological Institute of Textile and Sciences is a renowned textile institution of India, while Panipat Institute of Textile and Engineering is new and comparatively less popular. The libraries of both institutes are making an effort to do well in collection development, services, and infrastructure.

References

Al-Habashi, M., Al-Esaey, S., & Al-Baloushy, S. (1996). The present status of school library educational services in secondary and preparatory schools and their problems: An evaluation study (in Arabic). Muscat: Ministry of Education, Department of Educational Research.

Beals, J.B. (2006). Assessing library collections using Brief Test Methodology, Electronic Journal of Academic and Special Librarianship 7 (3).

Byrd, G.D., et al. (1982). Collection development using inter-library loan borrowing and acquisitions statistics. Bulletion of the Medical Library Association70 (1):1-9. Available: http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pmcentrez&artid=226660

Hayden, H., et al. (2005). User survey at Waterford Institute of Technology Libraries. New Library World 106 ( 1): 43-57.

Junping, H. (1996). Special libraries in China: Present and future, Chinese Librarianship: an International Electronic Journal 1 . Available: http://www.iclc.us/cliej/cl1.htm

Kaur, A. (2007). Marketing of information services and products in university libraries of Punjab and Chandigarh (India): An exploratory study. Electronic Journal of Academic and Special Librarianship 8 ( 3).

Kumar, K., et al. (2008). A survey of collection development practices in technical institutes in Ghaziabad , Utter Pradesh, India. Library Philosophy and Practice . Available: http://unllib.unl.edu/LPP/kumar-hussain-singh.htm

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Boulder Public Library (2006). Boulder Public Library 2006 user survey: Report of result http://www.librarymasterplan.info/

Olaojo, P.O. (2006). Collection development policies: Ground rules for planning university libraries,” Library Philosophy and Practice 9 ( 1). Available: http://unllib.unl.edu/LPP/olatunji.htm

Rajendiran, P., et al. (2008). Identification of users' information need: An analysis of inter-library loan requests for journals selection. DESIDOC journal of Library & Information Technology 28 (3): 56-59.

Sharma, C., & Parveen, K. (2008). Status of college libraries in Sonipat (Haryana): An analytical study. Library Progress (International) 28 (1): 11-19.

Singh K.P., & Satija, M.P. (2008). Information seeking strategies of agricultural Scientists working in the ICAR Institutions in India, DESIDOC journal of Library & Information Technology 28 (3): 37-45.

Williams, V.K., et al. (2006). Materials used by master's students in engineering and implications for collection development: A citation analysis. Issues in Science and Technology Librarianship. Available: http://www.istl.org/06-winter/refereed1.html .