BANGLADESH NATIONAL LIBRARY
Introduction:
National Library is the custodian of the creative works of the nation as well as conservator and preserver of the nation's history, heritage and culture. In fact, a National Library acts as the barometer of a country's scholarship, as a mirror of its cultural heritage and also as the apex of its library system. The National Library of Bangladesh was established under a special order of the government soon after the liberation of the country.
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| Bangladesh National Library |
Location:
Before independence, there was a branch of the Central Library of Pakistan in Dhaka that started functioning from September 1967 and was designated as 'Books and Newspapers Collection Branch'. At the beginning, the National Library was housed in a rented building in Dhaka at 103 Elephant Road, then at 106 Central Road (also rented) and finally in 1985 it was moved to its own building constructed by the Government at Agargaon, Sher-e-Banglanagar, Dhaka. At present the National Library is situated in 32, Justice SM Murshed Road, Agargaon, Dhaka.
History of National Library Origin:
In 1947, when two separate states were born in the subcontinent, the Pakistan-India, Pakistan was not divided into parts of other libraries including the imperial library in India. In 1950, according to the recommendations of a seminar organized by UNESCO, there were calls from different countries to establish a National Library for the development of each country and to develop a national center under it. In view of this, the establishment of a library was not established in East Pakistan or Bangladesh, since then Bangladesh has demanded the establishment of two libraries in Bangladesh.
In 1962 the Tenancy Act was enacted in Pakistan. In view of this, the need to establish a national library is felt. In 1964, the National Library was developed and established in the Asia Pacific region. In 1973 the Government placed the National Library of Bangladesh under the care of the Directorate of Archives and Libraries with necessary organisational changes. At present the Directorate is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Cultural Affairs.
The Function of Bangladesh National Library is discussed below:
1)to collect and preserve all publications within the country in accordance with the Bangladesh Copyright Act, 1974 (amended 2000), to manage them properly and make them available to the readers and researchers;
2) to prepare and publish a national bibliography;
3)to act as the guardian of all the libraries in the country;
4) to make contact with all the libraries home and abroad and share and exchange resources and information with all of them;
5) to prepare and publish an index of all the editorials and important articles published in the national dailies;
6) to assist and co-operate for the development of the library science and information service;
7) to prepare and publish a library directory;
8) to allocate International Standard Book Numbers (ISBN); and
9) to prepare and publish a Union Catalogue for Bangladesh.
10. Collect and store all the prominent information in the country.
11. Work as a national information donor of the
country.
12. Collects information about eminent personalities.
13. Collect Gift and Donation
Total collection of National Library of Bangladesh:
* Total books: 5,00,000
#Current Bangla Dailies Titles-55
* Current Bangla Periodicals title-105
* English Dailies titles-6
* Periodicals-20
* Weekly-10
* Microfilm-60 Roll
* Microfish-20 (1985-93)
Preserve of Bengali dailies titles-165
* Weekly-313
* Periodicals-627
* English Dailies-25
* Weekly-36
* Periodical-325
#Number of National Bibliography published-11 from 1972 to 1991
#Index, Abstracts etc. Published-22
Services of National Library of Bangladesh:
National Library of Bangladesh has been providing services to the people from the beginning. These are discussed below-
01. Reference Service
0. Documentation Service
03. Bibliographical Service
The National Library of Bangladesh has several sections namely the Bibliography Section, Library Section, Binding Section, Processing Section, Computer Section and Microfilm Section. It has undertaken an automation programme for its collection and information through Foxpro, Visual Foxpro and CDS/ISIS systems. A scanning programme through computer has also been adopted for preserving many rare books and documents.
Facilities :
The National Library has various reader services and other facilities. It has four large Reading Rooms covering an area of some 743.22 sq m. It also has a temporary Exhibition Hall and a 300-seat capacity air-conditioned auditorium. The National Library organizes special exhibitions, seminars and symposia for all kinds of readers and users of the library, both children and adults, on a regular basis. Besides, it takes part in all national book fairs as well as in other relevant exhibitions within the country. Except Weekly and government holidays, it remains open from 9 am to 5 pm everyday.
Conclusion:
Though the National Library had a humble beginning but soon it assumed the characteristics of an important centre of learning both in national and international sense. It started collecting all important national and many international publications on various subjects, particularly history, politics, culture, administration, science, medicine and technology. Consequently, it has become the largest repository of paper materials in Bangladesh regarding the nation’s history and heritage.