MAPUSA
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Wednesday assured the Goa Legislative Assembly that the government will revamp the existing financial assistance scheme for libraries to ensure better salaries and improved welfare benefits for library staff working under Village Panchayat and NGO-managed institutions.
Responding to a Zero Hour mention by Curchorem MLA Nilesh Cabral, Sawant acknowledged the long-pending demands of library employees and the need to support the vital role they play in promoting literacy, community learning and access to knowledge, particularly in rural areas.
“Several NGOs run these libraries. Their salaries have to be increased. We will revamp the scheme,” Sawant told the House.
Cabral highlighted that hundreds of dedicated library workers across Goa are struggling with low wages, lack of basic benefits and no job security, despite their pivotal role in sustaining local knowledge ecosystems.
The current policy “ The Goa State Village Panchayat/NGO's Libraries Financial Assistance Scheme, 2018 “ which was itself a revision of the original 2004 framework, has failed to keep up with inflation, modern manpower norms and growing expectations from community library services, Cabral said.
“Library employees are not entitled to EPF, medical leave, retirement benefits or job security. Their remuneration is far below par and does not include annual increments,” he noted.
Goa’s village-level libraries, many of which are run in collaboration with NGOs and panchayats, play a crucial role in spreading reading culture and enabling access to books and educational resources”especially in remote and underserved areas.
