Use of ICT in college libraries inKarnataka, India: a survey

B.T. Sampath Kumar and B.S. BiradarDepartment of Postgraduate Studies and Research in Library and Information

Science, Kuvempu University, Shivamogga, India

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the use of information communication technology(ICT) in 31 college libraries in Karnataka, India by investigating the ICT infrastructure, current statusof library automation, barriers to implementation of library automation and also librarians’ attitudestowards the use of ICT.

Design/methodology/approach – Data-gathering tools used included questionnaire, observationand informal interview with selected college librarians.

Findings – Application of ICT in Indian college libraries has not reached a very high level. Lack ofbudget, lack of manpower, lack of skilled staff and lack of training are the main constraints for notautomating library activities. Even though library professionals have shown a positive attitudetowards the use of ICT applications and library automation, they need extensive and appropriatetraining to make use of ICT tools.

Originality/value – This is a comprehensive study on the use of ICT in Indian college libraries. Itsfindings should help college librarians, local government and also the University Grants Commission,New Delhi.

Keywords Communication technologies, Library automation, College libraries, India

Paper type Research paper

1. IntroductionIn recent years libraries in India, particularly those of state and central universities,national institutes (such as the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), Indian Institutesof Management (IIMs) and Indian Institutes of Science (IISc)), research anddevelopment organisations, and private high-tech institutions, have implementedICT-based applications as India moves towards being a knowledge-based economy(Ghosh and Ghosh, 2009). Emerging ICTs in India have changed traditional librariesinto knowledge centres and librarians function more like consulting informationengineers or knowledge managers. However, the situation in college libraries in India isdifferent and many are not in a position to fulfil their objectives reasons for whichinclude:

. lack of a good library policy;

. high rate of unplanned growth;

. irrelevant collections;

. poor organisation of materials;

The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at

www.emeraldinsight.com/0033-0337.htm

The authors wish to thank Kuvempu University for providing necessary funds for thecompletion of this project.

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Received 30 November 2009Revised 7 April 2010

Accepted 18 April 2010

Program: electronic library andinformation systems

Vol. 44 No. 3, 2010pp. 271-282

q Emerald Group Publishing Limited0033-0337

DOI 10.1108/00330331011064267

. high cost of collection and storage;

. unqualified staff;

. inefficient retrieval systems;

. diversion or unscientific use of funds; and

. lack of support from management side.

In many cases college libraries lack the ability to give teachers and students theinformation support they require. Despite widespread awareness about the importanceof libraries, they often remain the most disregarded division in colleges. Theapplication of ICT in Indian college libraries is not up to the mark. Use of ICT tools incollege libraries is an important constituent that determines the quality of academicactivities going on there. This paper aims to assess the extent of the use of ICT, thestatus of automation in college libraries, and the attitude of librarians towards use ofICT. It also makes an attempt to provide guidelines and strategies for improving ICTfacilities and library automation in science college libraries affiliated to our university– Kuvempu University in the state of Karnataka.

2. Related literature2.1 Use of ICTMany studies have been conducted regarding the use of ICT in libraries. For instancein Nigeria, Agboola (2000) reported on the situation at the turn of the millennium andnoted that the lack of uptake of ICT in libraries has resulted from poor funding due tothe economic downturn, as well as to the poor state of the energy andtelecommunication infrastructures in the country. Also in Nigeria, Fatoki (2005)conducted a study on the acceptance of global system of mobile (GSM)communications technologies and concluded that this had potential for services inlibraries and information centres. However, information managers need to exploit fullythe opportunities to provide improved products and services to the library users,especially in the academic sector. Fitzgerald and Savage (2004) explored the impact ofICT on public libraries in the state of Victoria, Australia, and commented that theselibraries are increasingly reliant on ICT to manage, access and deliver informationservices. The specific projects such as satellite delivery of bandwidth, rural points ofpresence (POPs), Victoria’s Virtual Library, the Gulliver Consortium and the Swiftlibrary consortium are discussed. Ramzan (2004) pointed out that the situation withregard to information technology (IT) usage in Pakistan and other developingcountries is not encouraging. He noted that veteran educators and librarians haveobserved that general librarians in developing countries were prone to implementinformation technologies, and that librarians in Pakistan were not prepared to embracethe changes forced on them by new technologies. He explains that most of them wereuncertain about ICT applications in their libraries and the ultimate benefits to theirparent organisations. Okiy (2005) also looked at ICT in Nigerian academic libraries andidentified obstacles including inadequate funding, inadequate electricity supply,shortage of competent manpower for operation and maintenance of ICT facilities,lukewarm attitude of the Nigerian government towards the provision of ICT facilitiesand low level of computer literacy among Nigerians. A later study in Nigeria by

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Womboh and Abba (2008) study found that poor ICT facilities in Nigerian universitylibraries has continued.

Haneefa (2007) reported that though the libraries in Kerala in southern India hadhardware, software, and communication facilities to some extent, ICT-based resourcesand services were not reaching the users. A good number of the library users were notsatisfied with the application of ICT in their libraries and indicated inadequate ICTinfrastructure as the major reason for their dissatisfaction. They proposed a variety ofmeasures of formal orientation and training on ICT to become more effective users. Astudy by Chiware and Dick (2008) in Namibia examined the current state of the use ofICTs in the small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) sector to access businessinformation services. The findings revealed that there is a very low level of ICTutilisation among SMEs while among business support organisations it is relativelyhigh.

2.2 Library automationSingh (2003) traced briefly the history of library automation in India and analysed thevarious factors that directly or indirectly affect the progress of library automation suchas management issues, resources available within the libraries, level of skill of staff,availability of suitable software, geographic location area. In Thailand,Siriwongworawat (2003) showed that many libraries had used CDS/ISIS since the1980s for their library operations and, in 1987, Chiang Mai University library was thefirst to introduce a commercial integrated library management system. The trend forlibrary operations in the early 2000s was for electronic information resources, e-booksand the virtual library. Oduwole (2005) studied 16 federal universities and two stateuniversities that had automated their cataloguing processes using the TINLIBsoftware in Nigeria, and reported that automation of the cataloguing process hadincreased efficiency in these libraries. However, the high cost of maintenance of theTINLIB software was identified as a major constraint to the use of the software. Otherconstraints included poor computer literacy on the part of the librarians, incessantpower-cuts and lack of infrastructure.

Suku and Pillai (2005) discuss the present scenario of automation activities inuniversity libraries in Kerala. The survey findings mainly cover various aspects oflibrary automation such as information technology infrastructure, inhouse activities,information services and their usage, manpower development, and budget. The paperbriefly describes the role of INFLIBNET Centre in accelerating the automationactivities of university libraries, especially in the context of the UGC-Infonetprogramme (www.ugc.ac.in/new_initiatives/infonet.html).

Swee and Abdullah (2005) reported on a survey to determine the status of libraryautomation in Malaysian Chinese secondary schools. Just over 40 per cent of these hadautomated their library functions (mainly circulation control, followed by cataloguing)and most of the remainder planned to do so in the near future. Ani et al. (2005) indicatedthat only six university libraries in Nigeria were fully computerised and nine wereabout to be computerised. Seven of the surveyed libraries have installed local areanetworks, five had OPACs and only four libraries provided access to the internet. Themajor obstacles that influence effective adoption of ICT in university libraries areinadequate funds and the poor state of electricity in Nigeria. Efe (2006) also reported onlibrary automation in Nigeria and included faulty equipment and obsolete computer

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systems as obstacles. Uwaifo (2007) also cited the absence of a national policy on ICTas a reason for limited library automation systems in Nigeria. Haneefa (2007) showedthat special libraries in Kerala started implementing library automation systems,mainly using CDS/ISIS for cataloguing purposes, during the 1990s. Most of theselibraries were hampered by lack of funds, lack of infrastructure, and lack of skilledprofessionals to embark on automation of all library management activities andapplication of ICT. CDS/ISIS is also used in Bangladesh libraries (Islam and Islam,2007) as well as locally-developed software. Most of the private university librariesthere provide computerised services to users, while most of the public universitylibraries are not yet able to do so

Bansode and Periera (2008) reported on a study of 23 college libraries in Goa, India.Four of these were fully automated, five were partially automated and 14 were in theearly stages of library automation. A majority of the libraries lack the staff required forautomation. Traditional barriers such as insufficient funds, lack of trained staff, andlack of space are faced by a majority of the libraries.

2.3 Attitudes of librarians towards ICTAdekunle et al. (2007), Babu et al. (2007), Uwaifo (2007) and Dhanavandan et al. (2008)have all reported that library professionals in various countries have a positive attitudetowards the use of ICT, although they need extensive and appropriate training to makeuse of ICT tools and techniques. Spacey et al. (2003) suggested that training is anappropriate means of enabling staff to cope effectively with technological change andthat, since staff have different needs, it is best to offer a range of training methods.Adomi et al. (2005) found that all the respondents in a survey in Nigeria use ITcomponents and most of them use computer system daily, but frequent power outages,among other factors, militate against use of the use of ICT. Adeyoyin (2005), also inNigeria, found that out of about 268 professional librarians, only 87 (32.46 per cent)were ICT-literate, and of the 358 paraprofessionals only 7.8 per cent were ICT-literate,and of the 1,133 ‘other’ staff members 6 per cent staff were ICT-literate. Ademodi andAdepoju (2009) focused on the computer skill of librarians in academic libraries inOndo and Ekiti states of Nigeria. Few librarians there use computers to carry outlibrary functions, and only one third of respondents had received formal computertraining.

King et al. (2006) reported the findings of a survey into staff perceptions of theUK-wide ICT training for public library staff as part of the People’s Network project.. Itwas found that while the staff found the training rewarding, there were concerns at thelack of ICT troubleshooting in the programme. The paper suggests that ICT trainingfor library staff should be built around problem solving and troubleshooting, ratherthan generic skills, in order to match the kinds of queries encountered in the front lineof libraries.

3. Objectives of the studyThis study looked at the use of ICT, the status of library automation and the attitudesof library professionals towards the use of ICT in science college libraries affiliated toKuvempu University (www.kuvempu.ac.in/). The main objectives of the study were to:

. identify the use of various ICT tools for providing services in the collegelibraries;

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. trace the status of library automation and the barriers in adopting libraryautomation;

. determine the attitude of the library professionals towards library automation;

. investigate the impact of library automation and its services as perceived bylibrary professionals; and

. provide guidelines and strategies for effective use of ICT in providing betterservices and also to automate college libraries.

4. Scope and methodologyThe study addresses science college libraries (in four districts – namely Shivamogga,Chitradurga, Davanagere and Chikmagalore) affiliated to Kuvempu University in theIndian state of Karnataka. The majority of the libraries are funded by the UniversityGrants Commission of India. A structured questionnaire was designed to collect datafrom the college librarians regarding the availability of computers, availability of theinternet, automation of library, type of software used for automation, etc. Theresearcher visited the 31 selected college libraries (as listed in the Appendix) andconducted interviews with 21 librarians and ten assistant librarians to gather therequired information.

5. Results5.1 Library collection overviewTable I shows the collections held in the 31 libraries.

Table II indicates the breakdown in funds (in Indian Rupees – Rs) for types oflibrary materials.

Table III shows the classification schemes used in the libraries as well as the use, ornot, of specific catalogue codes.

Table IV shows the various library services offered and it can be seen that few offerany computer-based services.

No. of collegesCollection Range of Collection (n ¼ 31) %

Books ,5,000 5 16.125,001-10,000 7 22.58.10,000 19 61.29

Journals ,10 8 25.8011-20 16 51.61.20 7 22.58

Encyclopedias ,50 20 64.5151-100 7 22.58.100 4 12.90

Dictionaries ,50 25 80.6451-100 2 6.451.100 4 12.90

Table I.Collections in the college

libraries

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5.2 Use of ICTIn recent years, access to computers and the internet has become an unavoidablenecessity for every institution of higher learning and research. It was found that only17 of the 31 college libraries (i.e. 54.83 per cent) had computer facilities and of these 12had access to the internet. The internet was used in these 12 libraries for:

. searching for information (6-50 per cent);

. e-mail (12-100 per cent);

. accessing databases (5-42 per cent);

No. of collegesBudget allotment Range of budget (Rs) (n ¼ 31) %

Books ,25,000 8 25.825,001-50,000 22 70.96.50,000 1 0.032

Journals ,25,000 20 64.5125,001-50,000 7 22.58.50,000 4 12.90

Table II.Allotment of librarybudget

No. of colleges(n ¼ 31) %

Classification schemeDDC (Dewey Decimal Classification) 13 41.93CC (Colon Classification) 4 12.90UDC (Universal Decimal Classification) 0 0Local arrangement 14 45.16

Catalogue codeAACR-II 9 29.03CCC 4 12.903No catalogue code 18 58.06

Table III.Use of classification andcatalogue codes

Library services Manual % Computerised %

Document delivery 20 64.51 5 16.12Reference 23 74.19 4 12.90Referral 17 54.83 – –News clipping service 19 61.29 – –Bibliographic service 15 48.3 – –Selective dissemination of information (SDI) 13 41.93 4 12.90Interlibrary loan 14 45.16 – –Reprographic 10 32.25 – –New arrivals 17 54.83 – –CAS 13 41.93 – –

Note: n ¼ 31Table IV.Library services

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. downloading software (6-50 per cent);

. providing a current awareness service (5-42 per cent); and

. accessing e-journals (5-42 per cent).

Table V shows availability of various ICTs in the 31 libraries.ICT facilities in college libraries in Karnataka are not used to a great extent, which is

similar to results reported by Okiy (2005), Haneefa (2007), and Chiware and Dick (2008).

5.3 Library automationIn total 11 of the 31 college libraries reported some form of computer-based system inthe library. Three of these were fully automated and the remainder, eight, werepartially automated. Regarding the areas of library automation seven of the 11 hadautomated acquisitions, cataloguing and circulation. One library had a computer-basedserials control system and three reported the use of a computer-based administrationsystem. As to software used, this was given as:

. Easylibsoft – 3 (software from Bangalore, India – www.easylibsoft.com/);

. Library Manager – 3 (www.sawansoft.tk/);

. E-lib – 3;

. SOUL – Software from University Libraries – 1 (from Inflibnet, India – http://web.inflibnet.ac.in/soul/); and

. Profit þ – 1.

There are parallels between the results of previous studies, such as those by Efe (2006)and Swee and Abdullah (2005) and this investigation shows the low level ofautomation in college libraries.

The respondents gave a number of reasons for not automating their college librariesas shown in Table VI with the major reasons being lack of manpower, lack of skilledstaff and lack of training (90 per cent each). These findings are comparable to thosefrom other studies (e.g. Okiy, 2005; Efe, 2006; Haneefa, 2007; and Uwaifo, 2007).

Library staffThe qualifications of the staff interviewed in the 31 college libraries were given as:

. PhD – two;

No. of collegesFacilities/equipment (n ¼ 31) %

Photocopy machine 11 35.48Fax 3 9.677Dot-matrix printer 7 22.58Laser printer 7 22.58Inkjet printer 5 16.12Scanner 5 16.12Overhead projector 2 6.451LCD 3 9.677

Table V.Facilities/equipment in

college library

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. MPhil – ten; and

. Postgraduate Master’s level – 19.

Of these 20 (65 per cent) stated that they had knowledge of computer-basedapplications in libraries and that this had been achieved through methods identified inTable VII.

Training programmes attended by these 20 library staff are detailed in Table VIII.The majority of these library staff have attended several training programmes to

cope with the changes in the ICT as well as the library automation. Spacey et al. (2003)and Haneefa (2007) also report that training is an appropriate means of enabling staff

No. of staffTraining programme (n ¼ 20) %

Library automation software 16 80Different modules of library automation software 8 40Different modules of digital library software 8 40Information retrieval systems 10 50Catalogue data generation and conversion programme in MARC 3 15Web designing 6 30Web publishing 6 30Online and offline database search 4 20Barcode generation 10 50Internet and its application 14 70Software and hardware installation –

Table VIII.Training programmesattended by library staff

No. of staffMethods (n ¼ 20) %

Through formal education (degree/diploma) 8 40Through short-term summer/winter courses 10 50Software package training organised by suppliers 4 20Attending the workshop or seminar/conferences 10 50Assistance from colleagues or friends 16 80Self-study through manuals/trial and error method 18 90

Table VII.Methods of acquiringcomputer skills

No. of collegesReasons (n ¼ 20) %

Lack of budget 16 80Lack of manpower 18 90Lack of skilled staff 18 90Lack of training 18 90Lack of co-operation from the management 6 30Non-availability of computer system 6 30Non-availability of automation software 1 5No demand from the library users 2 10

Table VI.Reasons for notautomating the library

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to cope effectively with technological changes. Table IX details the opinions of these 20staff on their perceived benefits of library automation.

A majority of staff members strongly agreed that library automation eliminatedduplication of work (40 per cent) and 45 per cent of them agreed that libraryautomation improved user satisfaction and attitude towards the library. They alsoagreed that library automation enabled enormous savings in time and effort, ability toperform tasks which cannot be done by manual systems, enabled rapid communicationand helped to disseminate the information in user defined format (40 per cent each).The finding that educational qualification correlates to, and significantly predicts,librarians’ positive attitude towards ICT is also supported by the report of the studyconducted by Popoola (2002) and Adeyinka (2009).

6. Recommendations and conclusionBased on the findings of the study, an attempt has been made to suggest a fewrecommendations, which will help the librarians and management authoritiessuccessfully use ICT facilities as well as to automate the college libraries:

. Since many of the colleges offer postgraduate studies it is necessary for them tomake more journals available for these students and research scholars. Morefunds, from the UGC, state governments and local management are necessary forthe purchase of books and journals. All libraries should classify their collections.

. It is essential to have computer and internet facilities for providing effectiveinformation services to the users. The automation of library activities will help toprovide better services to the users. Some library automation software is open sourceand so freely available on the web. Librarians working in a college library may takeadvantage of such software to download and install for library automation. Thelibrarians need to have technical support for respective software to implement.

. Implementation and maintenance of library automation costs money. Librariansmay mobilise funds for library automation by undertaking projects, convincingthe management to start self-financed courses and also requesting differentfunding agencies to implement library automation. In addition to this, libraries

OpinionStrongly

agree % Agree % Disagree %

Reduced the need for more staff 3 15 5 25Reduced unit costs of operation 3 15 7 35Facilitated networking and resource sharing 4 20 7 35Improved control over library operations 5 25 6 30Eliminated duplication of work 8 40 6 30Enabled enormous savings in time and efforts 4 20 8 40Enabled marketing of the library services 3 15 7 35Perform tasks which cannot be done by manual systems 4 20 8 40Enabled rapid communication 4 20 8 40Improved user satisfaction and attitude towards the library 4 20 9 45Helps to disseminate the information in user defined format 1 5 8 40

Note: n ¼ 20

Table IX.Opinions on the benefits

of library automation

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need to restructure their budget policy by allocating a part of their annual budgetfor ICT infrastructural development and training for library professionals. Besidesthis, all libraries should put effort into procuring online databases, e- journals ande-books, as well as e-theses, to provide better services for their users.

. The study showed that lack of budget, lack of manpower, lack of skilled staff andlack of training are the main reasons for not automating the library activities.However, it was also found from the study that the majority of library staff arewell qualified and have knowledge of computer applications. So library staffshould change their mindset and their attitude to use ICT applications in variousactivities of library and information centres.

. The majority of staff members learned computer applications by trial and errormethods or with the help of friends, so they consider that the user trainingprogrammes are a high priority. Thus college libraries should initiate a variety oftraining programmes within the existing instructional facility and also with thecollaboration of campus computer centres. This study also found that no collegelibrary surveyed had its own website and hence librarians need to design librarywebsites as appropriate and provide links to e-journals from these sites.

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Appendix. List of colleges visited

(1) A.V.K. Womens First Grade College, Akkamahadevi Road, P.J.Extension, Davanagere.

(2) Chethana Hi-tech College, Davanagere.

(3) D.R.M. Science College, Davanagere.

(4) D.V.S. Arts and Science College, Shivamogga.

(5) Dr C.V.Raman College of Administration and Network Sciences, Davanagere.

(6) Government First Grade College, Hosadurga.

(7) Government First Grade College, Koppa.

(8) Government First Grade College, Molakalmuru.

(9) Government First Grade College, Shikaripura.

(10) Government Science College, Chitradurga.

(11) H.M.T. Arts, Science and Commerce First Grade College, Nayakanahatti.

(12) HPPC Government First Grade College, Challakere.

(13) Kamala Nehru Memorial National Arts, Commerce and Science College for Women,Shivamogga.

(14) L.B. and S.B.S. Arts, Science and Commerce Autonomous College, Sagara.

(15) M.B.R. First Grade College, Sirigere.

(16) M.E.S.M.S.P.S. Women’s College, Ratnagiri Road, Chikmagalur.

(17) Mountain View College of Management Science, Chikmagalur.

(18) S.J.M. Arts, Science and Commerce College, Chitradurga.

(19) S.J.V.P. Arts, Science and Commerce Autonomous College, Harihara.

(20) S.R.Nagappa Shresti Memorial National College of Applied Sciences, Shivamogga.

(21) S.T.J. Women’s First Grade Arts, Commerce and Home Science College, Chikmagalur.

(22) Sahyadri Science College, Shivamogga.

(23) Saraswathi Hi-tech College, C.K.Pura Extension, Chitradurga.

(24) Sir M.V.Government Science College, Bhadravathi.

(25) Smt. Indira Gandhi Government First Grade Womens College, Sagara.

(26) Sri J.C.B.M. College, Sringeri.

(27) Sri Shivalingeswara Swamy Government First Grade College, Channagiri.

(28) St Mary’s College of Biotechnology, Chitradurga.

(29) T.M.A.E.S. Science College, Harapanahalli.

(30) Tunga Mahavidyalaya, Anandagiri, Thirthahalli.

(31) Vedavathi Government Science College, Hiriyuru.

Corresponding authorB.T. Sampath Kumar can be contacted at: sampathbt_2001@rediffmail.com

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