The City of libraries

Bangalore is called by many synonyms such as Garden City, Pensioners Paradise, Silicon City and Public Sector City. However, there is one nomenclature that has escaped the attention of people. Bangalore is home to some of the best and oldest libraries in this part of India and yet many of such centres of excellence remain either unknown or ignored.

Bangalore once had the highest number of circulating libraries, private libraries and public libraries in Karnataka. However, the 1980s saw the slow decline in readership and libraries slowly gave way to Internet and other modes of communication.

Today, libraries are generally associated with students and it is rare for a library to break new ground and make a name for itself. Of course, there are exceptions such as the British Council Library but they are far and few.

Today, the public libraries in Bangalore and there are about 20 of them are fairly well-stocked with a variety of books but they sadly have fallen behind private, corporate and scientific and industrial libraries.

Yes, very few know that one of the first industrial libraries in India came up at HAL and ITI campus. Sadly, they too have fallen prey to the vicissitudes of time and they are a sad reminder of the days gone by.

Yet, Bangalore should take heart as it still has some of the best known libraries in the State and even in the nation. One of the most well-known and exhaustive libraries in the scientific community is  the one at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Malleswaram.

The IISc library, now renamed as JRD Tata, was established in 1911 and since then it has gone on to make a name for itself. The library offers a variety of services and it has some of the finest books on science and technology.

The main library has more than 1.88 lakhs books and monograms, 2.25 lakh bound books, reports, e-journals, patents and what not. lakhs bound books. This is in addition to the libraries maintained by each department.

The National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS) at Mathikere has a comprehensive collection of books. The collection includes more than 14,000 books, 54 print journals, 1,680 online journals and 1,847 back volumes of journals.

The Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research at Jakkur also has a well heeled library.

The library at Bangalore Medical College near City Market has the largest collection of books and periodicals on medicine. It has more than 35,000 books and it is spread over two floors.   

Another library, which is a researcher’s delight is the Mythic Society on Nruputunga Road. It has an excellent collection of over 40,000 books, periodicals, magazines and paintings. The library was founded in 1909.

The National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS) on Hsour Road has a library established in 1954. It  subscribes to over 1500 e-Journals in addition to over 350 national and international print journals in the field of mental health. Its library includes 35,000 books and 40,000 back volumes of journals, thesis and dissertations, research reports.

The library at the Indian Institute of World Culture located on B.P. Wadia Road in Basavanagudi has more than 40,000 books and most of them are classics in English and Kannada. It was founded in 1945.

The main library of Bangalore University is located at its Jnana Bharati campus on Mysore Road. It was established in 1966 and it possesses 1.5 lakhs books for circulation, 35,000 reference and text books. Another library of the university is in the Central College Campus which was set up in 1858.

The UVCE (engineering college) library at K.R. Circle has over two lakhs books covering various branches of  mathematics, science and engineering. Along with the main library, each department has its own library.

The UAS library has 1.52 lakhs books, 11,000 pamphlets, 10,000 theses, 17,000 reports at its GKVK campus. It also operates college libraries in Shimoga, Chintamani, Mudigere, Mandya and Ponnampet.

The Indian Institute of Horticulture Research, Hesarghatta, has 27,139 documents, 10,279 books, 14,169 back volumes of journals, 95 theses and dissertations, 1031 reports, 214 proceedings and 1361 bulletins. It subscribes to 87 foreign journals, out of which 21 journals have online access, 120 Indian journals, 33 Advances, Methods and Annual Reviews. A special collection of Acta Horticulturae, published by the International Society of Horticultural Science Belgium, is the unique resource in the Library.

The Institute of Social and Economic Change has named its library after Dr. V K R V Rao. It is considered to be  one of the major social science resources in India and it has a vast collection of over  1,21,000 documents including books, bound back-volumes of journals, reports. It also has 250 theses, 300 current print journals and E-Journals in various subjects. It is recongnised by the World Bank as a depository library.

The University law College, which is ranked among the best law colleges in India, has one of the best law libraries with a collection of 45,000 books, 16,000 journals and 18,000 reference books. The national Law College, which is rated the best institution of its kind in India, has the Narayan Rao and Melgiri Memorial National Law Library at its campus in Nagarbhavi. It has an extensive and scholarly collection of over 40,000 bound volumes in addition to periodical holdings.

The Melgiri Library was inaugurated by the then Chief Justice of India R.C. Lahoti on August 27, 2005.

The library at the sprawling campus of the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Bannerghatta Road, is housed in an independent building of 55,000 square feet spread across four floors.

It has 2.35 lakh books, back volumes of journals, government publications, technical reports, conference proceedings, non-book materials apart from 72 e-resources and 884 e-books from Elsevier Science and Cambridge University press.

The library subscribes to 2330 print and e-journals and 27 newspapers. Apart from this, more than 35,000 full text journal titles are available in the databases subscribed to by the library. It also receives around 200 newsletters and has 2200 annual reports from public and private organisations.

The library of Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA) is more than two hundred years old. It has a vast repertoire of  books and periodicals on astronomy, journals and catalogues. Today, it has the distinction of  having the largest collection in Astronomy in the country.

The library at Raman Research Institute (RRI) was started by Sri C.V. Raman.  Its collection centres mainly on astronomy and astrophysics, theoretical physics, optics and liquid crystals.

The Central Power Research Institute (CPRI) on New BEL Road has one of the best libraries in India in the field of electrical power engineering. It has more than 30,000 books.

The library has 19,000 books and it covers topics such as   observational astronomy, theoretical physics and astrophysics and back volumes of many core journals from Vol.1.

The Indian Statistical Institute, Bangalore centre, is among the three important centres of ISI in India. The library here was established in 1976 and it has one of the best collection on Statistics, Mathematics, Quality Engineering/ Management and Library and  Information Science in India.

The library subscribes to 300 international journals on various subjects. There are about 24,000  books and reference materials, , directories, encyclopedias, CDs.

The M.H. Marigowda Library in Lalbagh is home to several rare botanical books and magazines. It contains more than 1,000 original artworks of which 700 are watercolors, 300 pencil drawings and 12 are in ink.

 Another little known library is the Central Forest Library which is on the ground floor of Aranya Bhavan in Malleswaram. It came into being on April 24, 1984  and it stacks books, bound volumes of periodicals, technical reports, working Plans, reports, lecture notes, videotapes, CD ROMs and manuals on several aspects of forestry and wildlife.

The library on the premises of the Karnataka High court is one of the best in India and it has an original copy of the Constitution of India. This book is signed by all the members of the Constituent Assembly.

The library also has many judgments and almost all varieties of books, journals and texts on law and jurisprudence. It also has some old judgments.  

Exactly opposite the High Court is the Vidhana Soudha and the Secretariat Library housed in the majestic building has a vast collection of 1.28 lakhs books, gazettees, orders and reports of commissions.

The Gokhale Institute of Public Affairs, Bull Temple Road, Basavanagudi, also has a well-stocked library. 

Another little known library is located within the campus of the Madras Engineering Group or MEG in Ulsoor. It has a well-stocked library with several thousand books, many of them on Bangalore and its history. The library contains a record of all previous commandants’ activities, the various wars the Thambis  was involved in and even social work it has been involved with.

There is also a book in the MEG that has a record of the articles displayed and the achievements of the Thambis. The book is priced at Rs. 1,000.

The British Council library is now on Kasturba Road after it was shifted from its earlier location on St. Mark’s Road several years ago. It is a favourite among bibliophiles and it has well-stocked shelves on several topics.

The king among all libraries in Bangalore is obviously the State Central Library which is housed in Seshadri Iyer Memorial Hall in Cubbon Park. Established in 1915, it is rated as among the best and largest reference libraries in India. It houses 2.5 lakh books, including some 6,000 old and rare volumes and periodicals.

The Indira Gandhi Children’s Library, a unit run by the State Central Library directly, has 6,804 books and 127 charts and maps. It also has 212 playing equipments for children as well.

Apart from these libraries, several localities such as Jayanagar, Malleswaram, Rajajinagar have their own public libraries. The BBMP too has set up libraries in a number of wards.

However, the public libraries have not been able to compete with the private libraries and today Bangalore has a large network of private libraries and some of them such as Eloor on Infantry Road and Esaylib in Koramangala have become household names.

Many scientific and research institutions in Bangalore such as ISRO, NAL have libraries but they are generally not open to the public. Educational institutions in Bangalore have well-stocked libraries but outsiders are to allowed to use the facility and they are limited to students and staff.

An island of birds

This is the second part of the article that deals with the flora and fauna of the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bangalore.

While the earlier post was devoted to bats, this is for the many birds that is found in the IISC.

The IISc is an ocean in the vast urban metropolis that Bangalore has now become. This post wishes to record some of the birds that have made IISc their home for several years and they live in relative quite and peace.  

The large number of trees, the vast grasslands and the open spaces all make the campus a veritable sanctuary. Just look around you when you are sure to be astounded abut the flora and fauna.

There are about 8600 species of birds in the world and of them, 1,200 are found in India. Karnataka possess 525 of  them and the IISc campus offers a safe haven for 120 of them.

The IISc is a sprawling campus of 170 hectares and even before the land on which the IISc stands was made over to the institute, it played host to a variety of flora and fauna.

The IISc was an open scrub and forest land before the institute came into being in 1909. A host of scientists and botanists changed the landscape of the IISc but retained its original character. Thus, apart from birds, we also have small animals like the Slender Loris, Bats, snakes and even snails.

The campus is dominated by several fruit trees and avenue trees of  May Flower (Delonix regia), Rain Tree (Samanea saman), Mahogany (Swietenia mahogani), Cassia, Tabebuia,  Ficus benjamina, phyllode Acacia and Casuarina apart from dense thickets of Lantana.

Apart from these trees, grasslands and open ground are found in and around a small area meant to be an airstrip. A small grassy marsh and a pool in an old quarry are the only major wetland habitats in the campus.

Unlike the worldwide phenomenon, tree cover has increased in the campus. Several surveys have been conducted about the birds of IISc and almost all of them are scholarly and well-documented.  Some of the recent surveys have indicated that Iora, Indian Treepie and Little Brown dove are no longer present in the campus and they were found to have migrated to the outskirts of Bangalore. These birds need open grounds and shrubs, which has been decreasing in the IISc campus. These birds are common only in the outskirts of Bangalore where

Large Grey Babblers, Thickbilled flowerpeckers, Tickell’s Flowerpecker, all rare in an urban conglomerate, have been seen. Tickell’s Flowerpecker is found in plenty roosting on Singapore cherry trees (Muntingia calabura), feeding on its berries and also using its fibrous bark for nest building.

The Indian Robin and Pied Bush Chat were found along the Northern boundary of the campus. The Indian Roller and Blackwinged Kite are getting increasingly rare to spot.

The marsh in the campus once had open water and Baya weaverbirds nested from the wild date palms (Phoenix sp.) around it. When the authorities drained the marsh, the Baya seems to have vanished along with the Small Blue Kingfisher.

The quarry pool in the campus  had clear water and Pied Kingfishers regularly fished in it. Today, the water is putrid and

murky and the kingfishers are not seen.

You need prior permission to enter the campus.

The birds that can be generally spotted in the campus are: Grey Pelican (Pelecanus philippensis), Little Cormorant (Phalacrocorax niger). Pond Heron (Ardeola grayii), Large Egret (Ardea alba), Smaller Egret (Egretta intermedia ), Little Egret (Egretta garzetta), Cattle Egret (Bubulcus ibis), Night Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax), Painted Stork (Mycteria leucocephala), Lesser Whistling Teal  (Dendrocygna javanica), Pintail (Anas acuta, Shoveller (Anas Penelope), Blackwinged Kite (Elanus caeruleus), Honey Buzzard (Pernis ptilorhynchus), Pariah Kite (Milvus migrans govinda),

Blackeared Kite ( Milvus migrans lineatus), Brahminy Kite (Haliastur Indus), Shikra (Accipiter badius), Sparrow-Hawk (Accipiter nisus), Longlegged Buzzard ( Buteo rufinus), White-eyed Buzzard (Butastur teesa), Crested Hawk-Eagle (Spizaetus cirrhatus), Booted Hawk-Eagle (Hieraaetus pennatus), Tawny Eagle (Aquila rapax), Indian Longbilled Vulture (Gyps indicus), Indian Whitebacked Vulture (Gyps benghalensis), Scavenger Vulture (Neophron percnopterus), Pale Harrier (Circus macrouros),

Montagu’s Harrier (Circus pygargus), Marsh Harrier (Circus aeroginosus),Short-toed Eagle (Circaetus gallicus), Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus japonensis), Shaheen Falcon (Falco peregrinus peregrinator), Red-headed Merlin (Falco chicquera), Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus), Grey Partridge (Francolinus pondicerianus),Yellowlegged Button-Quail (Turnix tanki), Whitebreasted Waterhen (Amaurornis phoenicurus), Redwattled Lapwing (Vanellus indicus), Yellowwattled lapwing (Vanellus malabaricus), Green Sandpiper (Tringa ochropus), Common Sandpiper (Tringa hypoleucos), Fantail Snipe (Gallinago gallinago), Woodcock ( Scolopax rusticola), Green Pigeon ( Treron phoenicoptera), Blue Rock Pigeon (Columba livia), Rufous Turtle Dove ( Streptopelia orientalis), Red Turtle Dove (Streptopelia tranquebarica), Spotted Dove (Streptopelia chinensis), Little Brown Dove (Streptopelia senegalensis), Roseringed Parakeet (Psittacula krameri), Redbreasted Parakeet (Psittacula alexandrii), Blossom headed Parakeet (Psittacula cyanocephala), Pied Crested Cuckoo (Clamator jacobinus), Common Hawk Cuckoo (Cuculus varius), Indian Cuckoo (Cuculus micropterus), Indian Plaintive Cuckoo (Cacomantis passerinus),  Koel (Eudynamis scolopacea), Crow Pheasant (Centropus sinensis), Barn Owl (Tyto alba), Collared Scops Owl (Otus bakkamoena), Spotted Owlet (Athene brama), Mottled Wood Owl (Strix ocellata), Common Indian Nightjar (Caprimulgus asiaticus), Alpine Swift (Apus melba), House Swift (Apus affinis), Lesser Pied Kingfisher (Ceryle rudis), Small Blue Kingfisher (Alcedo atthix), Whitebreasted Kingfisher (Halcyon smyrnensis), Blackcapped Kingfisher (Halcyon pileata), Bluetailed Bee-eater (Merops philippinus), Small Gree Bee-eater (Merops orientalis), Indian Roller (Coracias benghalensis), Hoopoe (Upupa epops), Small Green Barbet (Megalaima viridis), Crimsonbreasted Barbet (Megalaima haemacephala), Indian Pitta (Pitta brachyuran), Rufouswinged Bushlark,  Ashycrowned Finch-lark (Eremopteryx grisea), Eastern Skylark ( Alauda guglula),Collared Sand Martin ( Riparia riparia), Dusky crag martin (Hirundo concolor), Barn/Common Swallow (Hirundo rustica), Wire Tailed Swallow (Hirundo smithii), Redrumped/Striated Swallow (Hirundo daurica), Baybacked Shrike (Lanius vittatus), Brown Shrike (Lanius cristatus) and Golden Oriole (Oriolus oriolus).

Other birds that can be spotted on a regular basis are: Black Drongo (Dicrurus adsimilis), Grey Drongo (Dicrurus leucophaeus),

Whitebellied Drongo (Dicrurus caerulescens), Haircrested Drongo (Dicrurus hotentottus), Greyheaded Myna (Sturnus malabaricus malabaricus), Whiteheaded Myna ( Sturnus malabaricus blythii), Blackheaded Myna (Sturnus pagodarum), Rosy Pastor (Sturnus roseus), Indian Myna (Acridotheres tristis), Jungle Myna ( Acridotheres fuscus), Indian Treepie (Dendrocitta vagabunda), House Crow (Corvus splendens), Jungle Crow (Corvus macrorhynchus), Common Wood Shrike (Tephrodornis pondicerianus), Large Cuckoo Shrike (Coracina novaehollandiae), Blackheaded Cuckoo Shrike (Coracina melanoptera),

Small Minivet (Pericrocotus cinnamomeus), Common Iora  (Aegithina tiphia), Goldfornted Chloropsis (Chloropsis aurifrons), Goldmantled Chloropsis (Chloropsis cochinchinensis), Redwhiskered Bulbul (Pycnonotus jocosus), Redvented Bulbul (Pycnonotus cafer), Large Grey Babbler ( Turdoides maclolmii), Whiteheaded Babbler (Turdoides affinis), Brown Flycatcher (Muscicapa latirostris), Redbreasted Flycatcher (Muscicapa parva), Tickell’s Blue Flycatcher (Muscicapa tickelliae), Verditer Flycatcher (Muscicapa thalassina), Whitethroated Fantail Flycatcher (Rhipidura albicollis), Paradise Flycatcher (Terpsiphone paradise), Blacknaped Blue Flycatcher (Monarcha azurea), Streaked Fantail Warbler (Cisticola juncidis), Plain Longtailed Warbler (Prinia subflava),  Ashy Longtailed Warbler (Prinia socialis), Tailor Bird (Orthotomus sutorius ), Blyth’s Reed Warbler (Acrocephalus dumetorum), Booted Tree Warbler (Hippolais caligata), Orphean Warbler (Sylvia hortensis), Lesser Whitethroat (Sylvia curruca), Tickell’s Leaf Warbler (Phylloscopus affinis), Greenish Leaf Warbler (Phylloscopus trochiloides), Large Crowned Leaf Warbler (Phylloscopus occipitalis), Bluethroat (Erithacus svecicus), Blue chat (Erithacus brunneus), Magpie Robin (Copsychus malabaricus), Black Redstart (Phoenicurus ochruros), Pied Bush Chat (Saxicola caprata), Indian Robin (Saxicoloides fulicata), Blueheaded Rock Thrush (Monticola cinclorhynchus), Whitethroated Ground Thrush (Zoothera citrine) and  Grey Tit (Parus major).

Surveys have also identified birds in the campus such as Indian Tree Pipit (Anthus hodgsonii),Paddyfield Pipit (Anthus novaseelandiae), Tree Pipit (Anthus trivialis), Grey Wagtail (Motacilla cinerea), White Wagtail (Motacilla alba), Large Pied Wagtail (Motacilla maderaspatensis), Thickbilled Flowerpecker (Dicaeum agile), Tickell’s Flowerpecker (Dicaeum erythrorhynchos), Purplerumped Sunbird (Nectarinia zeylonica), Purple Sunbird (Nectarinia asiatica), Loten’s Sunbird (Nectarinia lotenia), White-Eye (Zosterops palpebrosa), House Sparrow (Passer domesticus), Baya Weaver Bird (Ploceus philippinus), Red Munia (Estrilda amandava), Whitethroated Munia (Lonchura malabarica), Spotted Munia (Lonchura punctulata) and Blackheaded Munia (Lonchura Malacca).

Apart from these birds, there are at least a dozen varieties of snakes including the cobras.

The bats of IISC

It has one of the largest academic campuses in Bangalore and it is a world renowned institution. It has always been known as Bangalore’s pride and India’s centre of excellence.

One of the oldest institutions of science and research in India, it has always produced some of the finest scientists and researchers. Some of India’s top most scientists, researchers and teachers have been associated with the institution.

However, this post is not about the men of science that the Institute has produced or the varied research in the many branches of science that it has carried out. The post will deal with the remarkable flora and fauna of the sprawling premises which can put any small sanctuary or patch of green to shame.

What makes this campus unique is that it is the home of a variety of bats and not merely the common fruit bat that are found in many places in Bangalore. These bats are found in fairly large numbers and thankfully apart from the residents of the institute and a few ornithologists and animal lovers, it is relatively unknown.  

This is the lush green campus of the Indian Institute of Science (IISc)  located in Malleswaram in north Bangalore.

The Institute has a hoary and interesting history and its founding goes back to the times of the Maharaja of Mysore, Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV and JRD Tata.

The Maharaja handed over 150.54 hectares of almost uncoil beauty and wilderness, scrub and farmland to the institute in 1909. Later, the institute got more land and today its stands on 179.28 hectares. The present green of the institute owes much to physicist C. V. Raman, botanist G. H. Krumbigel, atomist Homi Bhabha and scientists B. S. Nirody and C. N. R. Rao.

The IISc campus boasts of a harmonious mix of native, exotic and medicinal-scientific plants and flowers. The vegetation consists of a large number of avenue trees like Delonix regia (May flower), Samanea saman (Rain tree), Swietenia mahogany (Mahogany), Cassia, Tabebuia, Lantana and Ficus benjamina. There are other species of trees too.

The large number of fruits trees and the vast green have encouraged the Fruit Bat to make the campus its home.  Apart from the fruit bat-which is known to ornithologists as Indian short-nosed fruit bat or Cynopterus sphinx sphinx, there are several other species of bats such as the Indian flying fox (Pteropus giganteus giganteus), the Egyptian mouse-tailed bat (Tadarida aeygptica), Pigmy pipistrelle (Pipistrellus mimus), Coromandra pipistrelle (Pipistrellus coromandra), Ceylon pipistrelle (Pipistrellus ceylonicus) and even the Indian false vampire bat (Megaderma lyra).

Of all of them, the Indian short-nosed fruit bat outscores other bats in their numbers and colonies.

The main reason, already enumerated above, for the prevalence of so many species of bats is the availability of  fruit species such as Muntingia calabura (Singapore Cherry), Broussonetia papyrifera (paper mulberry), Mangifera indica (mango), Psidium guajava (guava), Tamarindus indica (tamarind), Santalum album (sandal wood), Manilkara zapota (sapota), Terminalia catappa (Indian almond), Musa paradisiaca (banana) and Syzygium cuminii.

These trees, apart from a host of other fruit bearing greens, provide the perfect locale for these bats. The relative lack of disturbing activities such as construction deforestation and to a certain extent the lack of predators have encourage the bats to colonise near buildings which houses the various departments of the institute.

An inhouse survey of the flora and fauna and other studies have put the number of fruit bats near 200. Similarly, 200 Indian flying fox have been counted.  The rest of the species are insectivorous and their roosting sites are crevices in walls, roof tops, gables and places between pipes. However, these bats are much less in numbers that the fruit bats.

There are  more than 1,200 species of bats and they represent one-fifth of all mammal species. They range from the world's smallest mammal- the tiny bumblebee bat that weighs less than a penny- to one of the largest-giant flying foxes with six-foot wingspans.

In India, 109 species of bats have so far been identified and the IISC is a virtual repository as it has the pest Fruit bat-the smallest to the Flying Fox-the biggest. Care to check out. Then head for the IISc campus. Prior permission to study them or visit would always be better.