Patna University: save our heritage

By: A. K. Sunil

It has been revealed that the home of oriental manuscripts in several languages, the Patna University Central Library is allowing their decay. The manuscript admits more than 5000 in Persian, Urdu, Arabic, Sanskrit, Maithili, Magadha, Bhojpuri, Pali and Hindi. These are in urgent demand of care and saving.

These manuscripts are part of the library, formerly taken to be a deposit of full of social and cultural inheritance. It has been lying non operational for the some high days. Resources of the highest quality is being unused for either teaching or research purposes. This unique repository of oriental manuscripts is in the verge of being eaten by termites.

No attempt has been made to save these decaying important manuscripts by converting them to digital and electronic forms. Simple scan would do the trick. This university has been linked with the “Information and Library Networking plan” of the prestigious “University Grants Commission” (UGC) indicating the importance of the institution and the manuscripts.

There was a time when the library was looked after by investigative assistants but they have now taken leave due to retirement. Even the air conditioning unit has been non-operational for more than 2 decades. It is well known that the universities received a battering during the last 15 years. No qualified personnel or research students have been appointed at the university while several key positions remain vacant, either due to lack of funds, lack of responsibility and negligence and/or political misadventure. Surprisingly the funds from the UGC are being used to buy several more books. A great university is collapsing under its own weight. No wonder the students of Bihar leave for greener pastures as Universities in Bihar has little to offer. Once the highest seat of learning; some universities in Bihar are in ruins; not due to the lack of expertise but purely due to criminal negligence. They have to be saved!