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New Delhi/Chandigarh: Haryana’s ambitious library movement received national recognition at the World Book Fair 2026, where a dedicated discussion on the state’s library campaign was held at the Authors’ Corner, highlighting it as a creative and socially meaningful initiative.
Chairman of the Haryana Police Housing Corporation and senior IPS officer Shatrujit Kapur, interacting online with the audience, said that the inclusion of Haryana’s library campaign in the World Book Fair discussions reflected its growing relevance at the national level.
Tracing the origins of the campaign, Kapur said it was launched on October 22, 2020, with the inauguration of the first library in Kanchwan village, Karnal district, under the Power Department’s Social Responsibility Scheme. The initiative was guided by the then Chief Minister and present Union Minister for Power, Manohar Lal.
He informed that currently 35 libraries are being operated by the Power Department and 32 by the Police Department, with the campaign steadily expanding through inter-departmental coordination. To promote a culture of reading, book fairs have been organised consistently, including the Panchkula Book Fair for four consecutive years since 2022, the Panipat Book Fair (2024), and the NDRI, Karnal Book Fair (2025).
Speaking on the occasion, Director of the National Book Trust, Yuvraj Malik, said the Haryana Police’s initiative to establish and manage libraries had emerged as a model for the entire country.
IFS officer Shivpal said books play a vital role in shaping better human beings. Referring to the continuity of the vision, he said that under the leadership of the present Chief Minister, Nayab Singh Saini, the Haryana government ensured the inauguration of 250 Atal Libraries on December 24, 2025, by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Principal of Dayal Singh College, Dr Vinod Kumar Paliwal, said environmental protection has increasingly become the foundation of contemporary literary creation. He described the library campaign as an exemplary initiative. He noted that the present Director General of Police, Ajay Singhal, had rightly acknowledged it as an effective model of community policing.
Editor Kamlesh Kumari of the National Book Trust welcomed the guests, while Imran Ul Haq, GM (NRO), NBT, proposed the vote of thanks. On the occasion, library in-charges were felicitated for their efficient management and contribution to sustaining reading culture. Those honoured included Manisha and Maya Ram (Ambala), Usha Kumari and Indu (Panipat), Surender Kumar (Fatehabad), Naveen and Nisha (Main Police Lines, Gurugram), Naveen and Aditi (Bhondsi), Preeti (Manesar), and Narendra, Reena, Babli and Monica (Faridabad).
