By News18
New Delhi, Jul 2 (PTI) In a landmark development nearly four decades in the making, the Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) is set to establish a Department of Library and Information Science, following the education ministry鈥檚 recent approval of six teaching posts for the university.
The move marks a major academic expansion, as the university has been offering the Bachelor of Library and Information Science (B.Lib.I.Sc.) course since 1985 without any permanent faculty, an official statement from JMI said.
The sanctioning of these posts will provide much-needed academic infrastructure and is expected to invigorate the popular programme with fresh pedagogical energy and direction, it said.
Vice Chancellor Mazhar Asif and Registrar Md. Mahtab Alam Rizvi expressed deep gratitude to the Union government and the University Grants Commission (UGC) for approving the long-pending proposal.
They hailed the support as 鈥渋nstrumental鈥 in bolstering JMI鈥檚 academic offerings and called it a 鈥渕ilestone鈥 in the university鈥檚 journey.
Asif described libraries as the 鈥渃ornerstone of academic life鈥, emphasising their role in shaping research and advancing knowledge in the digital age.
鈥淢y vision is to strengthen teaching in librarianship and information science by setting up a full-fledged department to train the next generation of highly skilled librarians,鈥 he said.
He also highlighted the department鈥檚 potential contribution to the study and digitisation of the Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS).
Rizvi noted the strategic importance of libraries in a technologically advancing world, saying, 鈥淚t is imperative that we train and equip our students with the right tools and insights so JMI can emerge as a leader in library sciences.鈥 The development is seen as a significant boost for the 105-year-old university, whose Central Library dates back to JMI鈥檚 founding year in 1920. PTI MHS RHL