The Indian Ambassador to Bhutan, Pavan K Varma presented 100 books on various subjects to the Minister for Home and Cultural Affairs, Lyonpo Minjur Dorji for the country’s National Library.

Speaking at the occasion, the Ambassador said that it is very important for a country to consolidate its cul­ture under any circumstance and stressed the need to strengthen its national library.

The Ambassador – who is a major Indian intellectual and author – also said that Bhutan and India will contin­ue to exchange books for the mutual benefit of the two countries.

The Ambassador also assured that India will not be parsimonious in promoting the rich culture of Bhutan, especially in projects like the like renovation of dzongs.

Lyonpo Minjur Dorji said that the contribution of these books will definitely help in nurturing the historical ties of friendship that existed between the two countries since time immemorial.

“These books will benefit people from all walks of life, especially researchers, students, teachers and other readers, and are expected to curb the current problem of a limited number of books in the national library,” said Lyonpo

Lyonpo announced the ministry’s plan to establish a modern library in the country, with three branches across Bhutan.

Lyonpo said that the branches will be at Gelephu,

Kanglung and Bumthang, and are aimed to meet the aspirations of the Fourth Druk Gyalpo and His Maj­esty the King to achieve 100 per cent literacy in the country.

The National Library of Bhutan was established in 1967 with a mission to preserve and safeguard Bhutan’s unique literary heritage.

Today, the library func­tions as a central reposi­tory of the kingdom’s most important literary works covering all the major Vajrayana Buddhist tradi­tions.

The Director of National Library, Gyonpo Tsher­ing said: “Our collection of over 100,000 titles in Choekey and Dzongkha is one of the largest collec­tions of Vajrayana Buddhist texts under one roof.”

“However, our collection of foreign language books is limited, specially books on Buddhism, history and social sciences,” he added.

The director further said that the presentation of valuable books by the In­dian Ambassador will not only enrich the modern collection but also benefit the general readers and researchers for their stud­ies.

By Kezang Dorji in THIMPHU

The Interview for the post of Press Helper as annouced by Bhutan Today will be held on 11th February 2010 at 9.30 AM