Rohith Bolineni
Rohith Bolineni
The first book to be included in the Government Regional Library in Warangal in north Telangana was Prashantha Paarijatham by Narla Venkateswara Rao. An eminent Telugu journalist and writer, Rao lived and died in undivided Andhra Pradesh. He was known to frequent libraries, and owned more than 20,000 books. The library staff takes pride in having his book, which was first published in 1959, as part of the collection. Unfortunately, there are no takers for the book because of the changing tastes of the younger generation.
The library has 70,000 books, including study material in its collection. An average of 200-300 people, mostly students, visit the library daily.
Last year, during the pandemic, the library got a new lease on life. It is one of the few libraries that is directly funded by the state government. As part of the Smart Cities initiative, the district administration gave the library a facelift. The exterior and interiors of the library were redesigned.
The outer wall has a huge mural of a girl, surrounded by bookshelves, reading a book on Kakatiya ruler Rani Rudrama Devi. Inside the library one can see portraits of freedom fighters, famous personalities and soldiers who were martyred. A few sections have a vibrant feel to them, thanks to walls decorated with famous quotes, and nature- and cartoon-themed illustrations.
“A lot of people enter the library after seeing the murals,” says librarian M. Alivelu. “We see many youngsters taking selfies against the backdrop of the paintings. The makeover has certainly helped the library.”