Antiquarian bibliophile's delight

Ahmedabad: It was the birth anniversary of Sayajirao Gaekwad III, the erstwhile Baroda state's most memorable ruler and crusader for the library movement in Gujarat, on March 11 that the state library department chose to celebrate in a unique way.
The department put together an exhibition of over 2,000 books, mostly a century old, from 30 public libraries across the state on subjects ranging from the English perspective on India and its documentation to initiatives such as landmark Sayaji Vachan Mala that ushered in the era of special books aimed at popularizing reading .The organizers said that in 20th century, public libraries were an integral part of society's awakening and opened the state's population, primarily living in princely states, to world affairs. "The exhibition at Ravishankar Raval Kala Bhavan, ending on Sunday, will also provide a peek into the preservation process of rare books by the libraries," said officials. Some of the most interesting books are printed in Gujarat, and show the era of the Princely states and how they witnessed events such as World War I, scientific discoveries, their relationships with the British, social awakening and hunger for knowledge of the world, preservation of culture.