Goa State Best Library and Best Librarian Award

What is the Goa State Best Library and Best Librarian Award?

Goa State Best Library and Best Librarian Award is an annual recognition instituted by the Directorate of Art and Culture, Government of Goa, formally called "The Goa State Best Library and Best Librarian Award Scheme". The Directorate's preamble introduces it as "The Goa State Best Library & Best Librarian Award Scheme–2014".

The reasoning set out in the preamble is that Goa is developing speedily as an educational hub, and that libraries have become an integral and indispensable part of the education system, both for the free flow of ideas and for spreading knowledge, and because they inculcate reading habits among citizens. The Government notes that its own initiatives are supplemented by the managements of libraries and by librarians, "who by their untiring and resolute hard work at the grassroots level promote the reading habits of the public". The award is the state's way of paying that work back.

The stated objective is to recognise the hard work put in by library managements and librarians, and to give impetus and encouragement to them by conferring awards for their contribution to the library movement.

What does the award carry?

The scheme adds an important qualification to both: in the event of no suitable person or library of the desired standard being found, no award shall be conferred for that year. This is a merit award, not an annual quota to be filled.

The Best Library Award is conferred on one "well stacked" library from the State of Goa. The Best Librarian Award goes to one meritorious librarian serving in any Government or Government-aided library in Goa, which the scheme specifies as including public, academic, special and research libraries.

Who is eligible for the Best Library Award?

A library qualifies if it meets all seven conditions:

1. The library has been in existence for a minimum period of 15 years.
2. The library has had a minimum of 100 registered members for the last 5 years.
3. The library holds a minimum of 2,500 books, periodicals and similar material in readable condition.
4. The library has proper infrastructure with retrieval facilities.
5. The library is spacious, with a minimum area of 40 square metres, and has proper ventilation.
6. The library has conducted regular programmes for its members and the public to enhance their reading habits and knowledge.
7. The library has maintained all its records properly and up to date.

A library is not eligible if it is under 15 years old, falls short of the 100 registered members over five years, holds fewer than 2,500 items in readable condition, occupies less than 40 square metres, has no retrieval facilities, has run no reader programmes, or cannot produce complete and current records. A purely private collection outside the Government and Government-aided system is also outside the scheme.

Who is eligible for the Best Librarian Award?

A librarian qualifies if:

1. The librarian was born in the State of Goa, or has been a resident of Goa for a minimum period of 15 years.
2. The librarian has a minimum of 10 years of continuous service as a Librarian or as section-in-charge of a reputed library in Goa.
3. The librarian has taken up initiatives for library development or for inculcating a reading culture in their area of work.
4. The librarian serves in a Government or Government-aided library in Goa, including public, academic, special and research libraries.

A librarian is not eligible if they were neither born in Goa nor resident for 15 years, if their continuous service falls short of 10 years, or if they serve outside the Government and Government-aided library system.

On posthumous conferral the scheme is precise. The award shall not be conferred posthumously, with one exception: where the individual dies after the Award Committee has recommended their name, the award is conferred posthumously. Separately, illustrious service in the field of the library movement can be recognised and considered for the award not beyond one year of the death or retirement of the individual.

How to apply for the Goa State Best Library and Best Librarian Award

1. Watch for the advertisement. The Directorate of Art and Culture invites recommendations from the managements of eligible libraries and from librarians through advertisements inserted in local newspapers. That advertisement carries the year's closing date.
2. Download the correct form. Two separate forms are published on the Directorate's scheme page: "Best Library.pdf" for the library award and "Best Librarian Awards.pdf" for the librarian award. A library management applying for both must submit both.
3. Assemble the eligibility evidence. For a library: proof of the date of establishment, the membership register showing registered members over the last five years, the accession register or stock statement showing at least 2,500 readable items, details of the premises and floor area, and the record of programmes conducted. For a librarian: proof of birth in Goa or 15 years of residence, and a service certificate showing 10 years of continuous service.
4. Submit the recommendation to the Directorate of Art and Culture, Panaji, by the date stated in the advertisement.
5. Await the Award Committee. The Government constitutes an Award Committee of distinguished personalities to scrutinise the proposals, select and recommend the award.

Two additional routes exist beside self-nomination. The Directorate may invite suggestions and recommendations from any individual or institution in the recognised field, giving the names of eminent individuals or renowned institutions with related details, and place those before the Award Committee. And the Government of Goa, or the committee constituted by it, may on its own motion take cognizance of the achievements of an eligible institution or individual and consider them for the award.

That means an outstanding village library that never files a form can still be considered — but relying on it would be unwise.

Why a nomination fails

• A shortfall against any one of the seven library conditions. They are cumulative, not indicative. A library with 4,000 books but only 80 members does not qualify.
• Records not maintained up to date, which is the condition most often failed by small libraries that are otherwise strong.
• Floor area below 40 square metres.
• Service short of 10 continuous years for a librarian, or a break in service.
• No evidence of development initiatives by the librarian.
• A posthumous nomination made before any Award Committee recommendation.
• No suitable candidate in a given year, in which case the Directorate simply confers no award.

Where this award sits among Goa's other library and culture awards

The Directorate of Art and Culture administers a wide set of state honours, including the Gomant Vibhushan Award, the Goa State Cultural Awards, the Best Cultural Institution Award, the Kala Gaurav Puraskar, the Kala Vruddhi Award, the Yuva Srujan Puraskar, and the State Reward to the Recipient of National and International Awards Scheme.

For libraries specifically, the Directorate also runs the Goa State Village Panchayat / NGO's Libraries Financial Assistance Scheme, which provides financial assistance rather than recognition. A village panchayat or NGO library that is not yet strong enough to compete for the Best Library Award should look at that scheme instead; building holdings, membership and records through the assistance scheme is also how a library eventually becomes eligible for the award.

Lists of past awardees are published on the Directorate's awardees pages.

Grievances and the Government's powers

Grievances arising out of the implementation of the scheme are heard and decided by the Minister for Art and Culture, and that decision is final and binding on all concerned.

The Government retains the power to relax any or all clauses or conditions of the scheme in genuine cases for sanction of the award, and to frame guidelines from time to time for better implementation. Where any question arises about the interpretation of a clause, word or expression of the scheme, the decision on interpretation lies with the Government and is final and binding.

Where to get help

• Directorate of Art and Culture, Government of Goa, Panaji, the scheme page and both recommendation forms are published at artandculture.goa.gov.in
• Email: dir-dac.goa@nic.in, the address published on the Directorate's website
• Telephone: 2404600, the number listed on the Directorate's website

There is no fee to nominate a library or a librarian for this award.

How to check your application status

This is a nomination-based award, not a benefit disbursed against an online application, so there is no portal login or tracking number to check. The Directorate of Art and Culture does not run a status-tracking system for it. Applicants and nominating library managements can still follow up in a few concrete ways.

1. Confirm receipt with the Directorate. After submitting the recommendation and forms to the Directorate of Art and Culture, Panaji, contact the office directly, either by visiting in person, by phone on 2404600, or by email at dir-dac.goa@nic.in, to confirm the nomination has been logged before the closing date.
2. Ask which stage the nomination is at. The Directorate's own process runs in three stages: recommendations are collected until the advertised closing date, the Award Committee then scrutinises the proposals it has received, and the Committee finally selects and recommends names to the Government. A follow-up call can establish which of these three stages a nomination is currently sitting at.
3. Watch for the announcement. Because the scheme allows the Directorate to confer no award at all in a year if no candidate meets the standard, there is no guaranteed announcement date to wait for. The result becomes public when the Directorate publishes that year's awardee, typically alongside its other State Art and Culture awards, and past awardees are also listed on the Directorate's awardees pages on artandculture.goa.gov.in.
4. Keep a copy of the acknowledgement. Since the process is offline and paper-based, retaining a dated copy of the submitted form and any acknowledgement from the Directorate is the only practical proof of submission if a query arises later about whether a nomination was received in time.

There is no SMS alert, email update, or online dashboard for this scheme; a phone or email follow-up with the Directorate of Art and Culture is the only channel available.