Hooked on to the World Wide Web

Gone are the days when youngsters would be found engrossed in a study book or a novel, for the youth today is more likely to while away their time browsing the net, be it for studies or purely for entertainment purposes.

The worry about a growing environment where students are no longer interested in browsing rows of voluptuous books, replete with glossy photographs, intricate maps, and pages dog-eared by generations of students is growing on to the academicians in the city as the Amdavadi youth prefer to log on to the internet rather than visit a library to read a book. “It makes me really sad,’’ said Arvind R Desai, secretary, Himabhai Institute in Old City, one of the oldest libraries of Gujarat which completed 157 years this year and sees hardly any youngsters visiting the library. “I have personally grown up with books and there is something lost when they are virtual. There is a sensual side to them - the smell, the feel, the physicality of a book is something really special. Today’s youngsters are shunning books in order to embrace the world of internet.’’

In a world of Twitter and Facebook, books are being replaced by the internet at a rapid speed. “I am addicted to the internet. Everything is easily accessible and at a fast pace whereas books have to be referred to individually and can even take up double the time,” says Akruti Mishra, student. “Information from any part of the world can be found on the internet without much effort. Moreover, varied opinions and in depth information on every issue is available on the net which has always compelled me to refer the net rather than walking into a library. The number of libraries in the city are anyways very few and the ones that do exist are running under appalling conditions” says Krunal Thakkar, student.

However, Shujauddin, a retired court employee and an avid reader appears remorseful at the approach of youngsters towards books. “I would never get rid of any of my books at home. Books are an integral part of a child’s development and at no cost should they abandon books for the net. Books have a physical feel which the internet cannot provide.

However, I do agree that the number of libraries in the city is very few. The government ought to promote reading as a habit in youngsters because being logged on to the computer can always be distracting to the young minds.” 

Shop owners are also experiencing a hard time with the internet affecting their sales. “Five years back, our sales were double of what they are now. Youngsters would come to my shop for second-hand books. These days, the internet craze has taken at such an incredible rate, that they prefer to do everything online. They live in a virtual world of their own” says Bhanubhai, bookshop owner in the old city. “Several youngsters are driven to internet addiction by the growing competitiveness in society and the peer pressure that surrounds them constantly. It seems ‘uncool’ to them to not be a part of the online world.

Youngsters are significantly less likely to read novels after the age of 14 because of the influence of alternative entertainment,” says Jayesh Shukla, psychiatrist.

Others state that its just the medium that changes and not the habit of reading. “Youngsters are only abandoning books in the physical sense because e-books have become the latest craze with the young generation. Reading habits never die, its only the form that changes” says Satish Deshpande, former head, British council library Ahmedabad and presently, counsellor, NIRMA University library.