The Temple of Books in Neyveli – The Neyveli General Library

THE TEMPLE OF BOOKS IN NEYVELI – THE NEYVELI GENERAL LIBRARY

A friend asked me a few days back if our General Library was functioning.
I told him that, since the time lockdown was enforced in Neyveli Township, the Library was closed for the general public but now that restrictions were being gradually lifted, the library was indeed working.
I also told him (yesterday) that, today, 10th March, 2022, was Thursday and long long ago, the General Library did not function on Thursdays.
I am sure many of those who lived in Neyveli will remember that Thursday was a holiday for the Library.
The Neyveli General Library is a golden memorable monument as far as Neyveli is concerned, almost as memorable as the Arch Gate, Amaravathi Theatre, Gandhi Mandapam and Main Bazaar. Countless children, Employees, Homemakers, Students and other members of the public must have visited this lovely library since its inception decades ago. I love our Library a lot.
In the days when TV and Internet were not there, books were the only medium for recreation of the mind. So people in Neyveli, most of whom were avid book readers, visited the General Library frequently, despite there being Reading Rooms at strategic places in the township.
Old-timers will remember that the approach to the Library was there from both sides, that is, from Fire Station side and from the Kamaraj Road side. All school children of various schools around the Library used to cycle through that road both ways freely. Some enterprising children used to stop their cycles in front of the library, go inside and have a tumbler or two of chilled water from the water cooler kept inside!!! I never did this unless I visited the library, but my friends used to. Sometimes the strict Librarian used to call out to the children not to talk loudly.
At the entrance to the Library, on the left, there was the counter for returning books and on the right side there was a security personnel who asked the visitors to sign in the register and keep bags or other materials outside beside his seat, as they were not allowed inside.
Inside on the left, there was a table where books that were returned were kept. And on the left and right in the big hall, there were racks on which books were displayed under various categories like Fiction, Management, Political Science, Economics, Philosophy, Religion and Literature. The racks on the left contained English books while the racks on the right contained Tamil books. Up above on the walls, there were large portraits of National Leaders. At the end of the first hall was the cabin, where Mr. Raghavan, the librarian, sat. The Library was his kingdom and he was the king !!! Nobody can forget him, I am sure. The little man used to be energetic and had a loud voice. I don’t remember if there was any Librarian before him.
One side of his cabin was the Newspapers/Magazines section where many newspapers and magazines were kept. And on the other side of the cabin was the pathway to another big hall. On the pathway was the water cooler with a steel tumbler chained to the cooler. I always made sure I drank at least two glasses of cool water there whenever I visited the Library!!!
Beyond the cabin was another big hall of books kept on racks on either side. In both the big halls, there were large tables with chairs where visitors used to sit around, reading books there.
In 1977, when I was in 5th standard, I joined the Children’s Section and was also issued a card. I was so proud of the card issued in my name!!! I used to be a regular visitor from 5th standard. My favourite books were Enid Blyton books and of course the comics, Tintin and Asterix. There used to be a demand for certain new books and when more than one person wanted the same book, Mr. Raghavan used to issue the book through draw of lots! I used to be so happy when I was chosen and dejected when someone else was the lucky one. My sister and I were among the many children who loved reading books a lot.
The Neyveli Library was a veritable Temple of books for Neyvelians. It was a favourite haunt for those who loved reading and in those days, almost everyone was interested in reading. Neyveli always had a lot of book lovers from olden times. The Library was well maintained and provided the visitors a peaceful atmosphere to read excellent books there. All popular Tamil and English magazines were subscribed and it was a great privilege to read magazines like “The Illustrated Weekly of India”, “India Today”, “The Week”, “Sportstar”, “Caravan”, “Kumudam”, “Ananda Vikatan”, “Bommai”, “Tukhlaq”, “Saavi”, “Pesum Padam”, “Idhayam Pesugiradhu”, “Thaai” and “Kungumam”, besides other Business magazines and the daily newspapers.
I somehow was not interested to read story books there in the Library but always loved reading the books lying in bed at home. There were some people who read popular story books there in the Library itself. After reading a few pages, they kept the book back on the shelf safely to read it the next day. They used to keep the book “safely” in the “Philosophy” section, sure that nobody would go that side. This was a common ploy and so, it was usual to stumble across a “Sujatha” book in “Religion” section and a “Stephen King” novel in the “Travel” section!!!
The Library had excellent reference books and rare books of great authors. I remember the eagerness and enthusiasm with which all the people took books home, read them, returned them on time and took home more books to read. The NLC Management took care to see that a good number of books on all subjects were procured for the readers of Neyveli.
The Technical section was probably started somewhere around 1985. I was a “Non-Technical” person and I was not interested in it. The Technical Section was really useful to many persons interested in those subjects. My friends told me so.
All in all, the Library is a cherished memory for all the book loving people of Neyveli. A great ambience, excellent books on a variety of subjects in many languages (Tamil, English, Hindi, Telugu, Kannada), well-maintained infrastructure, the water-cooler (with the chained tumbler), friendly staff and able librarians. Every Librarian since Mr. Raghavan has contributed to the improvement of the amenities at the Library during their tenures.
Today, the tradition continues. The Neyveli General Library continues to be well-maintained with a host of improvements. One Mr. Aravind Babu, a dynamic person, is the present Librarian. Car parking facility, restriction of public movement inside the campus by closing the entrance from one side (Kamaraj Road), Computerisation of book returns/issue, Digitalised Book Catalogues, improvements to Technical Section, Exclusive Women’s section, a special section on the first floor catering to Special Technical books, over 1 lakh books on all subjects and different languages (I think this must be the biggest Library in our district today in terms of the number of books and magazines), friendly staff and a dedicated Librarian – What more does a hallowed Institution want? Neyvelians must really be thankful to the NLCIL management for providing this excellent facility to its employees, their families and the public.
Also, today, our Neyveli General Library has a distinction – It is the only Library that is open all 365 days of the year!!! Really wonderful.
And hence, the Block-18 General Library continues to be a premier storehouse of knowledge and food for the mind, serving the Neyvelians with a delicious and wide range of books to savour.
For the benefit of those who retired many years back, I would like to inform that, some 6-8 years back, I think, a Vivekananda Statue has been erected aptly just outside the Library facing Kamaraj Road.