As aspirants continue to use the Knowledge Centres set up by the Tiruchi City Corporation, the bookshelves are still empty and need to be stocked ahead of exams, they say.
The newly-constructed Knowledge Centres at Palakkarai and Kuthupapallam are lined with bookshelves most of which are not stocked. Aspirants say that they need more textbooks of different authors and latest editions, especially for Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission (TNPSC), National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) and Banking.
In addition, they also request for more amenities, such as tables and chairs to accommodate the increasing footfall.
“I can’t bring all my books from home so I expect the centre to have not only many copies of the same textbook but also by different authors so it can be easy to prepare. The thing is that if there are amenities for the students like drinking water, tables, as well as textbooks it will be of immense help,” said Vinoth Kumar, a TNPSC aspirant.
Though the Knowledge Centre has a collection of books for leisure reading, a delay in the selection process has caused a lag in restocking them. | Photo Credit: Judah Jerusalem
The Knowledge Centre was inaugurated in January as part of Tiruchi Corporation’s Smart City Mission projects. These were installed to serve marginalised students and unemployed youth which cost about ₹2.57 crore each.
At present, the library has around 2,074 books, both in hard copy and digital formats, on communication and interpersonal skills development and study material on civil services, the National-Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test, Railway Recruitment Board, banking, engineering and other competitive examinations.
Initially, it was slated to feature around 10,000 books but the delay in selection of study materials has caused a lag in restocking the books.
“I took stock of the situation at the knowledge centre having extensive discussions on what kind of books to bring to the centres. I have sent in an order for textbooks for the aspirants. They will arrive in two weeks,” said V. Saravanan, Corporation Commissioner.
