Archive · 1 Oct 2026
Central Vista Redevelopment Leaves Historic Library Without A Secure Home
The Central Secretariat Library is a very old library that belongs to the Indian government.
It began in 1891 and later moved to Delhi.
It has more than 8.5 lakh books and documents.
Some of its material is more than 300 years old.
The library has been in Shastri Bhawan since 1969.
That building is expected to be replaced as part of the Central Vista project.
The library still does not have a confirmed new home.
The article says important collections need careful storage, preservation and access.
It argues that these needs should have been planned from the beginning.
The Central Secretariat Library was established in 1891 as the Imperial Secretariat Library in Calcutta.
Its collection contains more than 8.5 lakh books and documents, including material dating to 1702.
The library has operated from Shastri Bhawan since 1969, but that building is slated for redevelopment.
The Culture Ministry sought suitable space in the Common Central Secretariat as early as 2023.
The redevelopment should include inventories, conservation, climate-controlled storage, digitisation, trained staff and public access, the editorial argues.
- Who
- The Central Secretariat Library, the Culture Ministry and the Central Vista redevelopment authorities are involved.
- What
- The library has not yet secured a new location despite its current building being slated for redevelopment.
- When
- The library was established in 1891, moved to Shastri Bhawan in 1969, and the Culture Ministry sought space in the new complex in 2023.
- Where
- The library is currently housed in Shastri Bhawan in Delhi; the proposed replacement space is the Common Central Secretariat.
- Why
- Shastri Bhawan is set to make way for the Central Vista redevelopment, raising concerns about preserving the library’s collection and institutional memory.
Preservation and Institutional Memory
Administrative Redevelopment
Library’s future location
Preservation and Institutional Memory
The library should receive a secure, appropriately sized home with conservation facilities and continued access before redevelopment proceeds.
Administrative Redevelopment
The Central Vista project is creating a new administrative centre, with the Common Central Secretariat at its heart, but the articles do not report a finalized library location.
Treatment of national collections
Preservation and Institutional Memory
Inventories, cataloguing, climate-controlled storage, digitisation and trained staff should be integral to planning for the library and other national collections.
Administrative Redevelopment
The redevelopment also involves major cultural changes, including the National Museum’s planned relocation to the Yuge Yugeen Bharat Museum, but the article raises concerns about whether preservation provisions have been adequately built in.
- Library founded
- 1891, as the Imperial Secretariat Library in Calcutta
- Current name
- Central Secretariat Library
- Collection size
- More than 8.5 lakh books and documents
- Oldest material
- Documents and other material dating to 1702
- Current building
- Shastri Bhawan, since 1969
- Proposed development
- Common Central Secretariat under the Central Vista redevelopment
- Space request
- The Culture Ministry sought commensurate space in 2023