NDLI stall: A crowd-puller at International Kolkata Book Fair

Over 50,000 people visited the stall of an online library at the 44th International Kolkata Book Fair to download books of their choice for free.

The National Digital Library of India (NDLI) stall enabled visitors to log in via computers or install its app on smartphones and access 4.5 crore free contents.

A person manning the stall told PTI that till Saturday evening, over 50,000 people, had visited the stall since January 29, and did live registrations free at https://www.ndl.gov.in.

The 44th International Kolkata Book Fair ended on Sunday.

"There had been a great deal of interest among people of all age groups, and we asked them to scan on android and IoS, the QR code displayed next to the subject of their choice.

"With the QR code they could access the required contents on their smartphone and download the same for free," she said.

Apart from e-books, audio books, simulations, e-thesis, question papers were also among the contents.

However, to see the entire content of the chosen subject, in over 300 languages, one had to first log-in (online registration) at the digital repository and then scan the QR code of the said topic to view it fully, she said.

From Satyajit Ray's 'Kheror Khata' (notebooks containing rough jottings by the maestro) to yesteryear editions of 'Amrita Bazar Patrika', to tales from the Upanishads, from updates on technology to world history and literature, there was great deal of interest among the visitors of all age groups, she said.

The NDLI was sponsored by the Union Human Resources Development Ministry and developed by IIT Kharagpur.