The Fifth Library Day is being marked on Friday around the theme—Let´s Go to Libraries and Cultivate Reading Habit.

Nepal started marking the Library Day from August 31, 2008 in remembrance of the day 200 years ago when the then king GirvanaYuddha Bikram Shah decreed the establishment of the Putak Chitai Tahabil (a library office).

This year the day is being celebrated by organizing a variety of programmes highlighting the importance of libraries for the public. A five-member main celebration committee has also been formed with the Education Secretary as the coordinator. The Ministry of Education has already issued circulars to the District Education Officer in all the districts for celebrating the Library Day.

Before this, the Library Day used to be celebrated under the aegis of the Nepal Library Association and in cooperation with various libraries and related organizations.

It has not been very long in the country since Library Science was offered as one of the subjects in higher education. Tribhuvan University started offering the course at the post-graduate level since 1995.

A variety of programmes as essay competition, library visits and art exhibitions have been planned for celebrating the Day. Similarly, programmes like blood donation, cleaning public places and libraries, sapling planting, book donations, mobile library, book exhibition, discussion, interaction and distribution of posters and pamphlets are being held to mark the Day.

There are about 1,200 libraries, including community and public libraries, throughout the country, according to a record prepared by the Nepal National Library.

source: republica,31 august 2012