Providing library facilities to the students and staff started with the introduction of academic programmes. The library activity of GITAM began with setting up a library for the College of Engineering in 1980. This was added by the library of the College of Management studies in 1988 and the library of GIFT in 1997. The need to centralise the library facility was felt to optimise resource utilisation and maximise user convenience. Accordingly, GITAM management took the bold step of constructing a massive building of architectural excellence with all modern gadgets. The central library was commissioned in 2002 and transformed into Knowledge Resource Center (KRC). The building was located at the heart of the campus overlooking the vast expanse of acres. The hillock of Rushikonda, the legendary abode of saints, surrounded by green pastures and the blue ocean, are some of the visual delights in the vast panoramic view from the library.
Knowledge Resource Center (KRC) is a multistoried centralised AC library. Library learning resources comprised textbooks, reference books, scientific and technical journals, and standards in terms of both print and electronics. KRC is growing in all aspects and fulfilling the user’s requirements. The function of KRC is to blend with traditional and modern activities. It changes its tasks according to the evolution of time. It provides dedicated services to its users in fulfilling their academic and research requirements.
According to Dr S.R.Ranganathn, Father of Library Science, the library is the trinity of learning resources, faculty, students and library staff. Patron visits the KRC to access, read, consult, and borrow the materials, i.e. Print resources. KRC maintains a calm and peaceful environment where a user can read peacefully. KRC is subscribing to the different subjects and publishers' e-resources for the users, which they can access online and remotely. It has acquisition, technical, circulation and textbook sections for management, engineering, science and art, a digital library, and a periodical and magazine section. It maintains special facilities for the physically disabled and visually challenged users with different software and accessories. KRC is a fully automated library. It uses KOHA, open source software, to automate the operation of KRC. In addition to this, a digital repository was developed using E-Print software.
KRC is the soul of GITAM (Deemed to be University). It constantly strives to realise the university's visitors, mission and objectives through its resources and services.
Aims and Objectives
The prime aim and objective of KRC are to provide the best library and information services to its academic and research community. With this motto, KRC is striving to realise the following objectives.
Objectives
- To provide an environment for blended learning
- To provide innovative and user-oriented services by adopting state of technologies
- To develop user-oriented policies and programmes
- To improve library staff capabilities by training and development initiatives
- To provide and deliver general and customised information services to the user community
- To support and enhance teaching and learning activities by facilitating and promoting the effective use of information resources and services available through KRC offline and online
- Provide an information-rich environment that supports and encourages excellence in research in science & technology, management, law, pharmacy, architecture and sciences
- Realising and supporting GITAM in achieving its mission and goal and as a centre of excellence in the academic and research arena
Mission
KRC supports strengthening and enhancing the teaching, research and learning programmes of GITAM (Deemed to be University). KRC and other institutional and school libraries of GITAM promote intellectual growth and creativity by developing collections providing access to general and customised information services to information sources, teaching and training users on effective use of library facilities, services and information sources, critical evaluation skills and offering research assistance.
Vision
The vision of KRC is to provide a world-class library facility to its users with all types of state-of-art facilities, services, and technologies. It serves the current and latest information needs of all users, from graduate students to a professor. To develop resources and services and to meet the general and specific needs of the stakeholder. KRC Provides access to an excellent range of high-quality resources and services to the end users and has gained national and international recognition among private university libraries.
KRC & Institutional libraries
GITAM (Deemed to be University) has three campuses, i.e. Visakhapatnam, Hyderabad and Bengaluru. The main administrative campus is at Visakhapatnam, and the other two are working as its off-campuses. In GITAM, besides KRC, there are nine institutional libraries, and every institution has a different department library. All the institutional libraries are administered by the department and supported by the KRC. The various school libraries are GITAM School of Pharmacy, GITAM School of management, GITAM School of law, GITAM School of Humanities and Social Science, and GITAM School of Architecture.
KRC maintains the Union Catalogue of all Institutional and KRCs of Hyderabad and Bengaluru. A user can know about the availability of a book/Print Journal in all libraries through the Web OPAC. KRC allows users to borrow books from institutional libraries and the KRC. KRC allows the Inter Library Loan facility among institutional and departmental libraries.