29-yr-old sets up library at bus stop

KOLKATA: At a time when the number of visitors to libraries is dwindling alarmingly, a 29-year-old man has set up a library on a bus stand to encourage people to develop reading habit.

At the Jora Girja bus stop, between Mullick Bazar and Moulali, one would find a book rack—spread with comics, magazines and children's books, amongst others—on the right corner of the bus stop.

This rack has been placed unguarded here by Mohammad Tauseef Rahman, a resident of Alimuddin Street. The library was set up by him on May 30.

Setting up a library is one of his many philanthropic activities. He had previously installed a fridge on the roadside of his vicinity to provide relief to passersby with free cold water. He has also been distributing food to poor people near Jora Girja petrol pump, at the mouth of Alimuddin Street, for the last 365 days. In the area, everyone recognises the library as Touseef da's library. The locals consider the initiative as a positive contribution to developing reading habit among people, who have been smitten by technology and screen time.

Ever since the first Covid-induced lockdown in March, 2020, the screen time for children has increased massively. According to a survey by OLX India, screen time in the age group of 5 to 15 years has shot up by 100 per cent.

Rahman, who is a frequent traveller to Europe, got the idea for a library from a telephone booth in Munich, Germany. "There was an artificial telephone booth near the bus stop, which was filled with books. I came to know that it was for people waiting for the bus and thought about building something similar in my vicinity," he said.

At first, people were concerned about books being stolen, but Rahman dismissed the fear and continues to remain hopeful about the library becoming a source of information for the people.

"I want to see what it is like for two to three weeks. If I get the desired response, then I will expand it. But before doing that I will have to take permission from the administration because it is public property," Rahman concluded, hoping that the administration would want to merge with the idea and build more such street libraries across the city's

bus stops.