Adil Lateef
Srinagar, Nov 12: Missing several deadlines and witnessing nearly 100 percent cost escalation, the construction work of new Sri Pratap Library (SPS) in city centre is still incomplete after 14 years.
A senior official of Jammu and Kashmir Projects Construction Corporation (JKPCC) Limited told Excelsior that the work on the project by JKPCC – the executing agency – began back in 2003 and that time the estimated cost was Rs 17 crores.
“The construction work, however, came to halt several times and we missed deadlines. The main reason for delay in the completion of the project was paucity of funds and a High Court stay for three years. But funds’ scarcity was the main reason,” he said, adding that the cost of the work escalated to Rs 31 crore from Rs 17 crore. “We have now got Rs 25 crore,” the JKPCC official said, adding: “We will complete it by the end of December.”
Spread over 55,000 square feet, the SPS library on Maulana Azad Road in Lal Chowk would be the largest library in Kashmir, the official said. During his visit to the new SPS library complex recently this year, Works Minister Naeem Akhtar had said that “its design will be reflection of a beautiful blend of Kashmir’s rich tradition and modernity”.
“It is a six floor library (including ground) and it would have various sections including reading section, manuscript section, senior citizen section, children section, scholars’ section and general public section. There would be other facilities as well,” the JKPCC official informed. The first public library in Jammu and Kashmir was established by the then ruler, Maharaja Ranbir Singh in 1879 at Jammu and was named as SRS Library.
After SRS, another library named as SPS Library was established by Maharaja Pratap Singh in Srinagar in the year 1898. In 1904, the Department of Research and Publication was established and, in 1919, the SPS Library was separated from the SPS Museum and brought under the control of the Department of Research and Publication. The present SPS Library at Lal Mandi here in summer capital was severely damaged due to devastating floods of 2014.
The SRS Central Library in Jammu and SPS Central Library in Srinagar have a collection of sixty thousand and forty thousand titles on varied subjects, respectively. The JKPCC official said that it is for Department of Libraries and Research to decide whether they want new complex of SPS Library’s takeover in December or wait till lift work is completed.
“The lift work would take three-four months. But if they want to new complex’s takeover, we have no problem,” he said. No official from the Libraries Department was available for the comment.
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