Connemara Library with new children’s corner and science park to open soon

Soon bibliophiles visiting the Government Museum in Egmore will see a new avatar of the Connemara Public Library. With a renovated lobby, conference hall, children’s section among others, the library is expected to draw more readers.

In 1890, the foundation stone for the library was laid when the then Governor of the Madras Presidency, Lord Connemara, recognised the need for a public library in the city. By 1896, the library was officially opened to the public.

Now, the Connemara Library will get an exclusive children’s reading corner and a children’s science park. Staff at the library noted that while a children’s section existed at the library, there was no designated room for children’s literature.

Refurbished at a cost of over ₹4 crore, the library will also have renovated toilets, elevators and competitive exam preparation hall, according to an official from the Directorate of Public Libraries.

“The library has procured children’s and civil services exam books at a cost of ₹1.5 lakh. Further, the Children’s Science Park would also be opened to the public soon. The science park would have as many as nine science equipment to simplify science learning to children,” an official said.

Welcoming the move, K. Rithika, mother of an eight-year-old girl, said, “We usually visit the museum and see the library from outside. With such dedicated spaces for children, we can also browse and read after the museum visits to inculcate reading habit,” she said.

The library has now become a space for many students who are preparing for competitive exams. The library sees over 700 students every day. With a dedicated space and more reference books, the candidates said that this will bring in more people.

“I usually come at 10 a.m. There would be many people preparing already. It would be wonderful to have a space to prepare and discuss,” said M. Rachna, who is preparing for chartered accountancy exam.

President of the Madras Library Association K. Nithyanandam said that library is not only a place for books. “It should become a learning center. Knowledge must become an opportunity to reinvent society,” he said.