Libraries continue to play a central role in providing open and free access to information and ideas: Vice President Ansari

Addressing the gathering after inaugurating the 19th National Convention on Knowledge, Library and Information Networking - NACLIN 2016, in Tezpur of Assam, which was jointly organized by the Tezpur University and Developing Library Network, New Delhi the Vice President said that the explosion of information now being produced in digital form has dramatically changed expectations about the production as well as the use of knowledge.

“Social networks and social media have become more important in people’s learning strategies. Changing paradigms of knowledge production, expanding sources and modes of dissemination, faster and broader accessibility to a growing range of information – also have the ring of opportunity.  Libraries must transform and avail these opportunities to remain vital forces of knowledge dissemination in the years ahead,” Ansari said.

“DELNET was established with the prime objective of promoting resource sharing among the libraries through the development of a network of libraries. It aims to collect, store, and disseminate information besides offering computerised services to users. It has become an invaluable tool in promoting quicker access to information," the Vice President said.

"The open information culture as exemplified by Wikipedia attests to a dramatically altered conception of knowledge as something produced, not solely by experts, but through a convergence of many who bring knowledge or experience- even though imperfect- to bear on a subject," he said

"Knowledge has been transformed from objective and certain to subjective and personal. The advent of high speed mobile internet has facilitated networked information and altered the learning venues and expectations. Social networks and social media have become more important in people’s learning strategies," Ansari said.

The evolution that continue to occur—changing paradigms of knowledge production, expanding sources and modes of dissemination, faster and broader accessibility to a growing range of information – also have the ring of opportunity.  Libraries must transform and avail these opportunities to remain vital forces of knowledge dissemination in the years ahead,” the Vice President said.

The Vice President said that we are living in the information age and this implies that the main sector of economic productivity is changing from agriculture and manufacturing to creation and processing of information and knowledge.

He pointed out that in the present context; the libraries have the obligation to act as equalizers.

“An interesting note of caution was sounded recently by the astrophysicist Stephen Hawkins who said our digital future may be dystopian with the growth of artificial intelligence threatening the very human existence. Similarly, Technologist Elon Musk, even as he advocates a human colony on Mars, has said that the advancement of artificial intelligence can create a situation where humans become ‘house-pets’ of the machines, and warned that such power should be ‘broadly distributed’ not be ‘concentrated in the hands of a few,” Ansari said.

He further said that by providing equitable and affordable access to knowledge and information to larger numbers in society, they can allow a larger proportion of the society to participate in the knowledge driven growth.

“It is relevant to remind ourselves that technology in the service of humankind has its limits,” Ansari said.

Assam Governor Banwarilal Purohit, Assam minister Ranjit Dutta and the Vice-Chancellor of Tezpur University Prof. Mihir Kanti Chaudhuri were also present on the occasion.

(Reporting by Hemanta Kumar Nath)