The Supreme Court has taken suo motu cognisance of the proposed relocation of the 135-year-old Central Secretariat Library , which reportedly has not been allocated space in the Central Vista redevelopment plan despite being one of the country’s oldest government libraries.
Spread over four floors and nearly 5,500 sq. m. of Shastri Bhawan, the Central Secretariat Library houses more than 8.5 lakh books, including rare volumes, official records and gazetteers, which are regularly accessed by government officials, and students preparing for competitive examinations.
The necessary process for construction of the library is underway. The Ministry did not disclose where the library would be housed under the redevelopment plan. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, however, responded to reports that no space had been provided for the Central Secretariat Library, saying in an October 1 post on social media platform X: “Contrary to a few reports, it is clarified that space for the Central Secretariat Library has been provided for in the Kartavya Path redevelopment plan.
