Who says newspapers are dying?
New Delhi, Jan. 30 — In these ‘iPad’ times of 24X7 news channels and streaming video portals, when the death of the newspaper is considered a certainty, a small bookless library in Daryaganj is doing well with its reading room full with those supposedly dying entities. “We have 19 dailies in Hindi, English and Urdu,” says Mohammad Alam, the attendant at Hardayal Municipal Public Library. Situated on the perennially clogged Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Marg, about a hundred readers come here daily. “We also subscribe to 25 magazines, but most people prefer newspapers,” says Alam. The bare library has no sofa, recliner or air-conditioner. It’s just a large, airy room with one exhaust fan, three low-hung ceiling fans, four tube-lights, eight tables and a couple of benches. A picture of Saraswati, the Goddess of learning, hangs on one wall. The traffic noise comes in through the open door and a large window, but the library retains its library-like quietness. Most who visit are regulars. “
