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The International Library Conference 2016 began at IIM Indore in collaboration with Asian Library Association (ASIALA) on April 14, 2016. The three-day conference proposes to explore libraries as a broad foundation for interaction with information and information management in a digital world in furtherance of the Digital India vision. It aims to delve into the issue of Digital Libraries with a focus that supports not only information seeking and discovery but also community interaction and collaboration. The conference intends to engage the participants in a discussion of critical issues faced by practitioners managing library resources, functions and services in the light of the Digital India Programme of the Government of India.
The conference will witness 60+ paper presentations submitted by 100+ participants from across the globe. Speakers from eminent institutes including Oxford University, Drexel University, ISB Hyderabad, IIT Roorkee, NIFT Delhi, IIM Calcutta, etc. would be speaking at the conference.
The first day of the conference began with a Workshop on Paper Development and Publishing in Electronic World, conducted by Professor Srinath Jagannathan, Faculty, IIM Indore and Dr. Akhtar Parvez, Librarian, IIM Indore. Professor Jagannathan conducted an interactive session wherein he discussed about various aspects of paper development and the factors which affect its quality.
The inaugural ceremony had Dr. S.S. Dhaka, President ASIALA, Professor Rishikesha T. Krishnan, Director, IIM Indore, Col. K.T. Udupa (Retd.), Chairman, Organizing Committee and Professor Ranjeet Nambudiri, Chief Conference Advisor as the guests.
Dr. Akhtar Parvez gave the opening remarks about the conference and discussed about various sessions which were lined up for next three days.
Dr. Dhaka mentioned about the role of ASIALA in the promotion of librarianship as a profession and its aim to provide coordination and leadership to library professionals, institutions and library community. He also mentioned the initiatives taken by ASIALA to develop libraries and collaborate with other nations and international agencies to provide a common forum to develop librarianship via conferences.
Professor Nambudiri delivered the welcome address and noted that the researchers have become more demanding and discerning today. It is a challenge for libraries to adopt to these demands. ‘Library managers are grappling with multiple issues like evolving norms, changing budgets, external fluctuations, etc. that place constraints on ability of libraries to procure resources’, he noted. He concluded welcoming all the guests present and mentioned that the conference would help the participants to leave with some defined goals.
This was followed by the Inaugural Address by Professor Krishnan, who mentioned that the libraries have changed tremendously and the efforts of the libraries have also changed. He noted how library was trying to change itself a few years ago, and now it has transformed itself so much that today it is considered a hub of knowledge and activity. ‘Definitely Google has advantages, but internet has limited number of books online. If you want old and specialized books, library is a place to be’, he said
This was followed by the release of Conference Proceedings by Professor Krishnan and guests. Col. Udupa delivered the vote of thanks.
The first day of the conference had two sessions which witnessed a keynote address and 13 paper presentations. The first session was chaired by Dr. Sanjeev Kumar, Director (Library), NIFT and Dr. Dhavalben D. Bhatt, Chief Librarian, Parul University, Vadodara. Dr. Kuljeet Gill, Guru Nanak Institute of Management Studies, Matunga was the rapporteur for the session. The contributed papers theme for this session was Digital Governance.
This was followed by a Keynote Address by Ms. Chris Flegg, Bodeleian Business Librarian, Said Business School, University of Oxford, Oxford. She discussed on the topic ‘Decision Making in an Age of Change’, which was followed by a Q&A session.
The second session had Dr. S.S. Dhaka, Library, Director, MEA and Ms. Jyoti Bhatt, I/C University Librarian, M.S. University, Baroda as chaipersons. Mr. Ghulam Samdani, University of Delhi was the rapporteur. The contributed paper theme for this session was Digital Libraries/Developing Digital Cultural Collections.
Second day of the conference would witness various technical sessions and a panel discussion would be held on the topic ‘Have Library Consortia Brought Value to Small Institutions?’
There would be four keynote addresses, by Professor Madhusri Srivastava, Faculty, IIM Indore, Dr. Swati Bhattacharya, Librarian, IIM Calcutta, Dr. Saiful Amin, Director, Semantic Consulting & Visiting Faculty, DRTC, Bangalore and Dr. Jay Bhatt, Librarian & Dr. Samir Shah, Associate Clinical Professor in Management Information System, Drexel University, Philadelphia.