RKSMVV LIBRARY: AN OVERVIEW
RKSMVV has a well-equipped, spacious and efficiently maintained library carrying around 23,000
books, 40 journals, and access to several online databases catering to the academic needs of the
students and the faculty. Named ‘Shraddhaprana Pathakakshma’, it was set up in 1961 when the
College was established. Over the years, it has undergone considerable modernization and expansion,
and, is currently located in the first floor of the sprawling Muktiprana Sabhagriha, the main Assembly
Hall of the College. Covering approximately 4000sqft, with a seating capacity of over a 100, the
library is completely computerized and has a user-friendly interface. The library provides open-shelf
access and easy borrowing and lending facilities and offers a range of membership benefits to the
students and the faculty. It remains open during college hours from Monday to Saturday, and remains
closed only on Sundays and holidays.
Sections
The library has a number of sections ranging from text and reference books, to competitive examrelated
material and career-oriented resources, popular magazines, English and Bengali periodicals,
newspapers, visual and mixed materials, an Internet Resource Centre among others. In addition to the
Central Library, every Honors Department has a Seminar Library which is fully controlled by the
respective Departments. The library also houses a Research and Resource Centre on the ‘Women
Missionaries of the Ramakrishna Orders’, which provides interested readers with related books,
journals, e-resources and archival materials. Independent women researchers or those affiliated to
other institutions, can also apply for in-house access to these holdings. There is also a separate Gender
Resource Corner to display research publications and other compilations pertaining to gender issues.
Materials and findings related to the UGC sponsored Minor-Research Projects undertaken by the
college faculty are also catalogued and stored in a designated section of the library.
Digital Access and Digital Resources
In 2016 the RKSMVV library opted for a Digital Depository. It employs the Koha computerized
management system to maintain a fully functional OPAC facility, which allows for online and remote
browsing of available titles.
The library has a subscription to Inflibnet NLIST, which allows members access to more than 97000
ebooks and 6000 e-journals. Remote access to this vast database of texts and peer-reviewed references
is allowed for both faculty and student members. This facility provided by the College has
enormously helped both teachers and students during the pandemic sessions.
The Library provides useful links to further online databases such as Internet Archive, National
Library, Sodhganga, OpenDOAR, OCLC WorldCat and the like to acquaint students with further
academic resources. The RKSMVV library has linkages to other established libraries and has an
institutional membership to the American Library.
Among online resources, the library further maintains a repository of previous years’ university
question papers, UGC-NET guide books, and, question papers and answer keys for the SET exam for
enabling students to prepare for career oriented, competitive exams in the future.
Other Facilities
Along with the spacious reading room, the RKSMVV library has a study hall for students and
separate cubicles for the faculty within its premises.
Following its modernization, the library has worked toward developing an Internet Resource Center
equipped with computers and strong internet connectivity to enable students make use of e-resources.
The library has a reprographic facility, which helps students and faculty to make necessary
photocopies of library material at reasonable costs. Members can also take printouts of e-resources
from the several printers available in the library.
Library Staff and Services Offered
At present, the library has a team of six staff, including the library in-charge, the primary and assistant
librarian, the library clerk, the library assistant and a technical assistant to provide reprographic and
other technical services. Composed of both monastic and regular members, the staff are warm and
helpful, and, are ever ready to ease a newcomer’s access to the library and the various facilities it has
to offer.
The RKSMVV library organizes separate orientation programmes for freshers from different
Departments every academic year to facilitate their access to the library. Besides, the library also
provides reference services, book displays and current awareness services to keep the students and the
faculty abreast of new titles and facilities. The library has a suggestion box and takes regular feedback
from its members regarding user-interface, requisition of new titles, possible improvements in general
library facilities, and so on. The RKSMVV library is particularly accommodative of student needs,
and on request, departs from the rules and lends more than two books at a
time to students. Called ‘Special Issue’, this modification of rules indicates the earnest
efforts of the College library to be more user-friendly.
The inviting open access book shelves, the rich and varied collection of reading material, the
sprawling reading room overlooking the college gardens, and the up-to-date modern facilities
available in the library, come together to create a peaceful yet stimulating academic environment for
students and faculty alike.
