ict infrastructure in university libraries of...

236 ANN. LIB. INF. STU., DECEMBER 2009Annals of Library and Information StudiesVol. 56, December 2009, pp. 236-241

ICT infrastructure in university libraries of Karnataka

R. H. Walmiki1 & K.C. Ramakrishnegowda2

1Assistant Librarian (Sr. Grade), Kuvempu University, Shankaraghatta – 577 541,Shivamogga – District, Karnataka, E-mail: [email protected]

2University Librarian, Kuvempu University, Shankaraghatta – 577 541, Shivamogga – District,Karnataka. E-mail: [email protected]

Survey of the status of ICT infrastructure in six selected university libraries of Karnataka revealed that the libraries greatlyvary from one to another as far as the ICT infrastructure is concerned. Most of the libraries lack sufficient hardware andsoftware facilities and do not have adequate internet nodes and bandwidth. The campus LANs of the universities are not fullyextended to exploit the benefits of digital information environment.

IntroductionInformation and Communication Technology (ICT)comprises a diverse set of technological tools to identify,collect, organize, create and disseminate data andinformation. The ICT encompasses a wide range oftechnologies including telecommunication technologies,such as telephony, cable, satellite, TV and radio,computer-mediated conferencing and video-conferencing, as well as digital technologies, such ascomputers, information networks (internet, world wideweb and intranet) and software application. In otherwords, ICT has emerged as a result of the digitalconvergence of computer technologies,telecommunication technologies and other mediacommunication technologies.

ICT has altered the ways in which the academicactivities – teaching, learning, research and extensionactivities – are carried out at higher education level.ICT has helped to overcome the barriers of time andspace and reduced the time-lag between the generationof information and its consumption by the end user.University library, as a sub-system of higher education,should act as a trend-setter in adopting ICT in itsactivities.

Ever dynamic ICT has challenged the traditional processof library activities and this situation stresses thenecessity for the university libraries to be part of theICT based information world. ICT offers ampleopportunities for libraries to automate the traditional

activities, implement efficient and effective librarycooperation and resource sharing networks, developinstitutional repositories, provide value-added informationservices and initiate capacity building programmes forlibrary staff and library users. The present study is anattempt to assess and report the ways in which theuniversity libraries in Karnataka have responded tochanging information environment and developedinfrastructure to use ICT.

Literature review

The ICT infrastructure is as important as the olderessential technological infrastructure such as electricityand transportation1. The ICT has become ubiquitous andushered into a whole new era of teaching, learning andresearch2-3. Similarly, the ICT has influenced the field oflibrary and information services4. The main componentsof the ICT are computers, network and internet, displayscreen technologies and peripherals, and software andinformation systems5. Rubrics (set of categories thatdefine and describe the important components of the areasbeing assessed) have been proposed for assessing ICTinfrastructure6-7.

Nyamboga and Kemparaju8 revealed the status of ICTinfrastructure such as availability of computers andnetwork facilities in six Karnataka State UniversityLibraries. They concluded that the university libraries inKarnataka that they studied were lagging behind in theapplication of ICT. Naik9 examined the communication

WALMIKI & GOWDA : ICT INFRASTRUCTURE IN UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES OF KARNATAKA 237

media available in eight university libraries in KarnatakaState and confirmed that these libraries were at differentstages of development and majority of them lack ICTinfrastructure. Venkataramana and ChandrasekharRao10 conducted a survey to evaluate the hardware,software, network facilities and status of libraryautomation in central university libraries in India. Thestudy concluded that IT has been deeply embedded inthese libraries and the trend will continue in future.Mahapatra and Padhi11 reported the state-of-the-art ofICT infrastructure and problems in application of moderntechnologies in libraries in Orissa. They confirmed thatinadequate finance and lack of trained staff were themajor stumbling blocks in application of ICT in theselibraries. The survey conducted by Haneefa12 found thatthe special libraries in Kerala have fairly well developedICT infrastructure but library staff need proper trainingfor making optimal use of the resources. Borang andSarma13 reported status of ICT infrastructure and ICT-based services in libraries of academic institutions inArunachal Pradesh. The libraries under the study wereproviding access to Internet, e-resources underconsortium activities and OPAC of their own libraries.

The university libraries in India are still struggling to buildthe required ICT infrastructure on one hand and recruitthe required human resources to handle them on theother. The earlier studies carried out by Nyamboga andKemparaju14 in the year 2002 and Naik15 in the year2003 assessed the application of information technologycomponents for library and information services in theselected university libraries of Karnataka during a periodIT was making its inroads to the university librariesparticularly with the support of INFLIBNET Centre.The UGC-Infonet Digital Library Consortium wasintroduced in the year 2004 and this is bound to havehad a bearing on the ICT application in university librarysystem in Karnataka. The present study attempts to re-audit the progress made by the university libraries withregard to the ICT infrastructure in light of thisbackground here.Objective of the studyΤhe main objective of the study is to find out the statusof hardware, software and other ICT infrastructureavailable in university libraries of Karnataka.

MethodologyThe study is based on the primary data collected fromthe libraries of those universities which have been

established under the Karnataka State Universities Act,2000. The university libraries included in the present studyare: Bangalore University Library (BUL) at Bangalore,Gulbarga University Library (GUL) at Gulbarga, KarnatakUniversity Library (KaUL) at Dharwad, KuvempuUniversity Library (KUL) at Shankaraghatta nearShivamogga, Mangalore University Library (MaUL) atKonaje near Mangalore, and Mysore University Library(MUL) at Mysore.A structured questionnaire was designed to obtain thedata from the university librarians. The data hencereceived was reduced to the statistical tables and simpletable analysis done to draw conclusions.

AnalysisHardware infrastructure

The Mysore University Library has maximum numberof server systems (6) followed by Gulbarga UniversityLibrary with 5, Bangalore University Library andKuvempu University Library with 3 each, and KarnatakUniversity Library and Mangalore University Library withone server systems each. The number of desktopcomputers available in the six university libraries variesfrom 12 in Mangalore University Library to 140 inGulbarga University Library. Except Gulbarga UniversityLibrary and Mysore University Library, other universitylibraries do not have scanner. The Bangalore UniversityLibrary has 2 barcode printers, and Gulbarga UniversityLibrary, Kuvempu University Library and MysoreUniversity Library have one barcode printer each. TheGulbarga University Library has maximum of 15 back-up devices followed by Karnatak University Library with2 and Mysore University Library with 1 back-up device.The Gulbarga University Library has 2 LCD projectorswhereas Bangalore University Library, KuvempuUniversity Library and Mysore University Library haveone each. The Bangalore University Library, GulbargaUniversity Library Mangalore University Library andMysore University Library have one fax machine each.Only Gulbarga University Library and KuvempuUniversity Library have web camera facility. TheKuvempu University Library has one identity card printer(Table 1).

It is apparent from the analysis that the GulbargaUniversity Library, Bangalore University Library andKuvempu University Library have better hardwareinfrastructure compared to the rest.

238 ANN. LIB. INF. STU., DECEMBER 2009

Software

Table 2 shows the software facilities available inuniversity libraries under study. In order to automate thehouse-keeping operations such as acquisition, technicalprocessing, circulation, and serials control, GulbargaUniversity Library and Mangalore University Library areusing LIBSYS. The Karnatak University Library is usingSOUL and Kuvempu University Library is using SOULalong with CDS/ISIS. The Bangalore University Libraryis using NewGenLib, and Mysore University Library is

using SLIM++ for automation of house-keepingoperations. For the purpose of digital library activities,Bangalore University Library and Kuvempu UniversityLibrary are using E-Prints, Gulbarga University Libraryis using DSpace, and Mysore University Library is usingNewGenLib. The Karnatak University Library andMangalore University Library are not using any digitallibrary software. Except Gulbarga University Library,no other library under the study is using CD-Netmanagement software. Four university libraries are usingNorton anti-virus software. The Gulbarga University

Table 1 –– Infrastructure facilities in university libraries of Karnataka

Sl. No. Hardware BUL GUL KaUL KUL MaUL MUL

1 Computers•Server Systems 03 05 01 03 01 06•Desktop Computers 70 140 25 50 12 14•Laptop Computer 01 05 - 01 - -

2 Printers 03 12 07 09 03 063 Scanner for Digitization - 01 - - - 01

Barcode Scanner 03 03 01 01 01 015 Barcode Printer 02 01 - 01 - 016 Back-up Device (Tape Drive) - 15 02 - - 017 LCD Projector 01 02 - 01 - 018 Fax 01 01 - - 019 Web Camera - 02 - 01 - -10 UPS 01 01 03 05 01 0211 Identity Card Printer - - - 01 - -

Note: BUL: Bangalore University Library, GUL: Gulbarga University Library, KaUL: Karnatak University Library, KUL: KuvempuUniversity Library, MaUL: Mangalore University Library; MUL: Mysore University Library

Table 2 –– Software facility in university libraries of Karnataka

Sl. No. Software BUL GUL KaUL KUL MaUL MUL

1 House-Keeping NewGen LIBSYS SOUL CDS/ISIS, LIBSYS SLIM++Operations Lib SOUL

2 Digital Library E-Prints D-Space - E-Prints - NewGenLib

3 CD-Net - CD- - - - -management NAS

4 Anti-virus Norton McAfee Norton Trend Norton Nortonmicro

5 Research Data SPSS SPSS - - - SPSSAnalysis

Note: BUL: Bangalore University Library, GUL: Gulbarga University Library, KaUL: Karnatak University Library, KUL:Kuvempu University Library, MaUL: Mangalore University Library; MUL: Mysore University Library


Library is using McAfee and Kuvempu UniversityLibrary is using Trendmicro anti-virus software. TheBangalore University Library, Gulbarga UniversityLibrary and Mysore University Library are using SPSSfor research data analysis. Half of the university librariesdo not have software facility for research data analysis.

Campus LAN

The Local Area Network (LAN) of a university systemis essential to provide access to the information sourcesand services electronically to end-users at their points.The users can be alerted of the information resourcessuch as books and journals procured and / or licensed tohave access in the university library over campus LAN.The users can recommend, request for loan or reservethe information resources through campus LAN. The

users can also search OPAC of their university libraryfrom their desktop and also browse the internet. Thestatus of campus LAN in the universities under the studyhas been presented in Table 3.All the six universities are found to have established theircampus LANs. The Kuvempu University has set up anextensively spread-out campus LAN which reaches outfrom library to all the academic departments,administrative sections, hostels, guest house and selectedresidences of the officers and academic staff. Thecampus LANs of Bangalore University, GulbargaUniversity and Mangalore University are spread out overthe library, university computer centre, academicdepartments and administrative sections of theirrespective universities. The campus LANs of KarnatakUniversity Library and Mysore University are restricted

Table 3 –– Campus LANs of universities

Sl. No. Campus LAN BU GU KaU KU MaU M U

1 Established campus Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes YesLAN

2 Levels of Extension: a) Library Computer - - Yes - - Yes

Centre, university b) Computer Centre, and

all AcademicDepartmentsLibrary Computer

c) Centre, University Yes Yes - - Yes -Computer Centre,AcademicDepartments, AndAdministrativeSectionsLibrary Computer - - - Yes - -Centre, AcademicDepartments,AdministrativeSections andResidences

3 Maintenance of University University Exam University University Dept.campus LAN Library Computer Section Library Computer of

Centre Centre Physics

4 Physical Medium of UTP Cable, UTP Cable, OFC UTP Cable, UTP Cable, OFCTransmission used OFC OFC OFC OFCfor LAN Wireless


240 ANN. LIB. INF. STU., DECEMBER 2009

only to the library, university computer centre andacademic departments. The Bangalore University Libraryand Kuvempu University Library have shouldered theresponsibility of their campus LAN maintenance. AtGulbarga University and Mangalore University theresponsibility rests with the university computer centres.

Table 4 –– Internet facilities in the university libraries

Sl. Internet facilities BUL GUL KaUL KUL MaUL MULNo.

1 Type of V-SAT, V-SAT V-SAT, Leased V-SAT, Leasedconnection Leased Leased Line Leased Line

Line Line Line

2 Service provider BSNL, ERNET BSNL, BSNL, BSNL, BSNLERNET India ERNET ERNET ERNETIndia India India India

3 Bandwidth 512 kbps, 2 Mbps 512 kbps 2Mbps 512 kbps, 2 Mbps2 Mbps 2Mbps 2 Mbps

4 No. of internet 75 140 25 45 12 15nodes

5 Browsing Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yessection

6 Separate Yes Yes No Yes No Yesbrowsing sectionfor academicstaff

7 No. of internet 18 40 - 10 - 02nodes foracademic staff

8 Personnel Library Library Library IT trained - Librarysupervising Staff with Staff Staff with staff staffinternet section IT skills with IT IT skills

skills9 Department Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

chamber

10 Levels of All All Chairpersons All Chairpersons Allprovision Academic Academic of Academic and Professors, Academic

Staff Staff Departments Staff Readers Staff

11 Plans to update Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yesnetworkinfrastructure


The physical media of transmission used for LAN areUTP cable and OFC in Bangalore University, GulbargaUniversity, and Mangalore University. KuvempuUniversity has used wireless connectivity apart fromUTP cable and OFC. Karnatak University and MysoreUniversity libraries have used only OFC for the purpose.


Internet facilities

Internet as a computer network of networks offers accessto a vide range of e-resources such as full-text journals,books, reports, standards, newspapers, content pages ofjournals and books, abstracts and bibliographic databasesof research articles, reference sources such asdictionaries, encyclopedias, directories, etc. In short, itserves as a window to the world of knowledge. Thee-mail, bulletin boards, newsgroups, electroniccommerce, etc., are few other services of the internet.The internet can be used to support library activities suchas acquisition, technical processing and serials control.It is an effective channel for marketing of library andinformation products and services at global level. Theinternet facilities made available in the universities withspecial emphasis on their respective university librariesis as shown in Table 4.

The universities under the study have either leased lineor V-SAT or both for internet connection either fromBSNL or ERNET India, or both of them. The internetbandwidth varies from 512 kbps to 4 mbps. The internetnodes created in the libraries vary from 140 in GulbargaUniversity Library to only 12 in Mangalore UniversityLibrary. Except Mangalore University Library, all otheruniversity libraries have internet browsing section. Fouruniversity libraries have separate internet browsingsections for academic staff. The internet nodes createdfor academic staff in the libraries varies from 40 inGulbarga University Library to 2 in Mysore UniversityLibrary. The Bangalore University Library, GulbargaUniversity Library and Karnatak University Library haveappointed the library staff with IT skills for supervisingthe Internet sections. The Kuvempu University Libraryhas assigned such responsibility to IT trained staff andMysore University Library with library staff (not ITtrained).

ConclusionICT infrastructure in the university libraries of Karnatakais still at different stages of development. Insufficientcomputer hardware and suitable software and lack ofinternet facilities with required bandwidth indicate thatuniversity libraries of Karnataka are yet to establish

extensive facilities required for efficient informationaccess. Hence, there is an urgent need on the part ofthe university libraries in Karnataka to plan, implementand develop ICT infrastructure to be fit in facing thechallenges ahead of them.

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