Fourth Indian Library Congress, Chennai

16–17 February 2026 | Anna Centenary Library, Chennai

The Fourth Indian Library Congress is scheduled to be held at Anna Centenary Library, Chennai, on 16th and 17th February 2026. The Congress aims at a critical scholarly assessment of local, national, and global experiences in the functioning of libraries. It focuses on developing active strategies to examine future possibilities and address the persistent challenges faced by public libraries in India.

Scholars, library professionals, researchers, activists, and practitioners are invited to submit papers under the following broad themes.

Themes of the Indian Library Congress

1. History and evolution of libraries
Changing concepts of libraries across time; regional, national, and international experiences; libraries in community building; functional integration of public libraries with academic and institutional libraries.

2. The politics of public libraries
Critical appraisal of the Indian experience; evolution, growth, and contemporary challenges; public policy and allocation of resources by State and Union governments; the need for people’s alternatives; debates around centralisation, federalism, and library policies.

3. Libraries and society
Social justice and the lived experiences of the marginalised—caste, class, gender, and culture; libraries and literature; literacy movements; community libraries; sports and public libraries; child development and social welfare; grassroots library movements; libraries as spaces within feminist movements; librarians and their changing roles in contemporary society.

4. Library movement in India: challenges and prospects
India’s developmental trajectory and the library movement; experiences of public library development across States and regions; narratives of struggles and successes; strengths and weaknesses; inter-State learning and sharing of experiences.

5. Libraries and spatial transformation
Libraries and the role of science and technology; architectural design and construction; preservation and expansion of democratic spaces; libraries as inclusive and green public spaces.

6. Imagining the future of libraries
New possibilities, emerging challenges, and alternative visions for libraries in a rapidly changing world.

Public Space is Our Right
Build Libraries, Break the Walls