The National Library entrance. A Telegraph picture

National Library is planning to provide free Internet access to readers so that they can reach any text simply by clicking a mouse. Towards that end, initially 15 computer terminals have been installed in Bhasha Bhavan. This will allow about 200 readers to use the facility.

Bhasha Bhavan building was inaugurated in 2004 and opened to readers the next year. The old building of the library, which has been declared a heritage building, can accommodate 500 readers. The new building has space for three times as many readers.

“We have spent about Rs 10 lakh on the project. Each reader will be apportioned a fixed length of time when he or she can enjoy the facility. This is meant specially for students and research scholars,” said Sudhendu Mondal, director of the library.

This new facility will also enable readers to access old books and journals, some of which may be too brittle and fragile to handle. Already 30 lakh pages have been digitised. Some of the rare books, digitised versions of which will be made available to readers, were published as early as 1607.

Some of the incunabula and journals which will be available by clicking a mouse include The Platonic Dialogues for English Readers published in 1589, Calendar or state papers and manuscripts relating to English affairs from 1607-1610, The History Of the Rebellion and Civil Wars in England, by Edward Hyde, published in 1888, and others.

Digitised versions of new books, too, will be available. Thus, digitised versions of books, magazines and newspapers published from 1584 to date are there for the clicking. Readers will be able to take printouts of the desired text for a fee.

The library has completed cataloguing about 2 lakh books. After standardisation of the cataloguing procedure as followed in institutions such as the Library Congress of Washington — which is technically known as MARC 21 (Machine Readable Catalogue) — it will be made available to readers. “We are trying to introduce this facility within this month along with Internet access, added Mondal.