Public seeks new well-equipped building for 60-year-old library at V. Pudur

Efforts are being made by the members of the public from V. Pudur and neighbouring villages in Thoothukudi district to secure a new well equipped building for the area’s decade old library which has been functioning in a rented building for the past 60 years.

The library which houses around 30,000 books and several study materials is now in a dilapidated building, prompting the public to seek government intervention for the construction of a new building.

P. Murugesan, a retired government official from N. Chinnayapuram, a neighbouring hamlet of V. Pudur, said that the library housed around 30,000 books and several study materials that needed to be preserved. Residents of the region had been demanding a new government built-library for the past six years, but no concrete steps had been taken to fulfil their demand, he added.

Though around five cents of land had been allocated for the construction of a new library at nearby police quarters land in 2025, no funds have been allocated for the construction of the new library, he said.

Mr. Murugesan further noted that ₹10 lakh had been sanctioned from MLA constituency development fund for the construction of the library, but the proposed size would be insufficient to accommodate 30,000 books currently held by the existing library.

He urged the government to take steps to construct a well equipped library that would benefit residents of the region.

A. Varadharajan, an activist also echoed similar concerns, stating that ₹10 lakh sanctioned from MLA constituency development fund would be a deficit to establish a library of expected standards. A new library would help students and other aspirants prepare for various competitive examinations.

When The Hindu contacted an official from the Town panchayat department, he said that work was currently being undertaken under the MLA constituency development fund. He added that even if additional amounts are allocated through the same fund as per the demand of residents it remained unclear whether the town panchayat or Public Works Department would execute the project.