Digital Library Initiatives in India: A Comprehensive Study

This study is a survey of digital library initiatives in India collecting secondary information from about fifty digital libraries from their respective websites. The findings show that in most cases the actual conception of the digital library is still in a nascent stage. Online subscriptions and links to third-party websites are also considered digital libraries. However, many digital libraries do have not any proper search interface on their respective website due to improper arrangement of metadata. In some cases, they do not have their own digitized collection and provided other collections or referred to their users to some third-party website. Moreover, there are many digital libraries that cannot be accessed outside (remote access) of the organization. Hence, regular website maintenance, remote access facility, and proper training of information professionals are required. Moreover, the so-called digital libraries in India have not developed their own standards or are not following any global standards. However, the usage statistics for government digital libraries are far better than the usage statistics of academic or public libraries. Users are perhaps more interested in government rules, laws, orders, etc. That is perhaps a positive sign of digital governance and reaching the public. There are several important observations and policy suggestions that may be helpful for students, scholars, library professionals, and the decision-makers in the government.Comment: 14 Pages, 6 Figure

Status of Central Libraries at Iranian Universities of Medical Sciences for Joining an Integrated Network of Medical Libraries

The aim of the study is to offer integrated access to information and data sources in the libraries of Iranian universities of medical sciences (UMS) as an important feature enhancing the quality and quantity of research. Thus, it is essential to study the status of Iranian libraries of UMS in terms of integration features. Accordingly, the main objective of the present study was the identification of integration in libraries of Iranian UMS in terms of metadata, digital contents, software, hardware, and human force. The quantitative study was conducted with an analytic survey method. The statistical population consists of 66 Iranian UMS, of this, 59 libraries completed the researcher-made questionnaire. To ensure the accuracy of data, interviews and, in some cases, observations were also performed. Statistical estimates of frequency, percentage, cumulative frequency, and diagrams were utilized for data analysis. The results demonstrated that the library software programs of UMS do not have a desirable status in terms of content, human force, software infrastructure, and integration features. These libraries enjoyed an optimal status in terms of hardware which was, however, not properly used. To create integrated access to the contents of libraries of Iranian UMS, it is essential to provide the required infrastructure, including integration features, human force, and appropriate contents such as the metadata and digital contents of data source

Digital Library Initiatives in North East India: A Survey

This study is a survey of the digital library initiatives of North East India. The recent initiative by the Government of India towards digitization is reflected in various digitation programs. The secondary sources of data used to map the 15 digital library initiatives in eight North East parts of India. The study has observed that digital libraries in the true sense perhaps lacking. Many digital libraries are not accessible from the outside and lack regular maintenance. In this context, a national-level policy initiative is the need of the hour including various stakeholders including academics, library professionals etc. The study also comes up with various important observations and policy suggestions which may be helpful for scholars, librarians, policy and decision-makers in the government