How schoolchildren built a library network for students without access to books during the lockdown
In and around Nanakmatta in Uttarakhand, these children continue to run their libraries with determination.
A community library session in progress at Barkidandi
“I want to study. My parents are labourers, and it is tough. I want a better job,” said Simran Kaur. A class seven student, Simran is a regular visitor to the student-led mobile community library in the village of Barkidandi in Nanakmatta, Uttarakhand. Nanakmatta is an important Sikh pilgrimage site in the district of Udham Singh Nagar.
As in the rest of the country, the coronavirus pandemic and the ensuing national lockdown adversely affected the education of children like Simran, who come from low-income, working-class backgrounds. In response to their problems, an informal network of community libraries in the area, an initiative of the students of Nanakmatta Public School, sprang up.