National Library gets new director general

The largest library in India, the 177-year-old National Library, here has got a new director general, a ministry of culture statement said.

According to the release, P.Y. Rajendra Kumar has taken over as director general of the historic establishment, replacing Swapan Chakravorty.

He has been appointed to the post on contract basis for a period of three years, subject to satisfactory performance.

Kumar has worked in various capacities in the Department of Public Libraries, Karnataka and retired as its director. After his retirement, he also worked as Consultant (Admn.) at IGNCA, SRC, Bangalore, the release said.

Situated on a sprawling 30 acres at Belvedere Road in south Kolkata, the building is a monument of national importance under the ministry of culture.

It boasts of books in all major Indian languages and has divisions for books in foreign languages like east Asian, German, Slavonic, African and west Asian as well. It houses rare books belonging to the era prior to 1860.

Currently, it is undertaking extensive digitisation of rare and brittle books and documents.