THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: It is alleged that those who have taken the library science certificate course conducted by the universities, State Central Library, and Kerala Library Association are being fooled. It is alleged that, apart from demanding exorbitant fees from thousands of people every year, the government is not ready to create new posts. Graduates of library science certificate courses have been waiting for a job for years.

Through the Adult Continuing Educational Scheme, more than 1,000 students join the six-month library science certificate course at a cost of Rs 10,000 per year in the sub-centers run by the universities. Despite completing the course, the graduates of this course will not be given jobs in universities or colleges. Only BLISc graduates are recruited for the post of librarian in universities.

The fee is only Rs 650 for the library science certificate course conducted by the State Central Library. In the six-month course, the first four months are academic and the remaining two months are practical. The State Central Library will provide a stipend of Rs 900 per month for these two months. The top ten rankers will be given training in State Central Library for one year with a stipend of Rs 6,000 per month, but only BLISc graduates are employed in State Central Library.

Only Graduates can apply to State Central Library, Universities, Colleges, Municipal Library, and Panchayat Library included in common pool libraries. Those who have completed the certificate course can work in rural libraries but will receive only a meager honorarium from the Library Council. Moreover, it is not compulsory that who have studied the course only will be employed here.

Government did not keep its word

Many people took up this course believing the government's promise of allocating one librarian post in all higher secondary schools. It was hoped that certificate course candidates would be considered if the post was allotted. Even after a quarter of a century after the implementation of Plus Two, the government's promise to create the post of librarian in schools has not been fulfilled.