[Koha] Koha implementation at libraries affiliated to Kerala State Library Council

[Vimal Kumar V.]

Koha implementation at libraries affiliated to Kerala State Library Council
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Kerala State Library Council (KSLC)
https://www.facebook.com/keralastatelibrarycouncil is an autonomous body
under the Higher Education Department of Govt. of Kerala. It is the
statutory apex body of public libraries in the state. KSLC is the successor
of ‘Kerala Grandhasala Sanghom’ formed by the amalgamation of libraries
which were functioning in the erstwhile Travancore, Cochin and Malabar
regions in Kerala. KSLC is constituted through a democratic process giving
representation to all public libraries in the state and functions as the
core of the cultural life of Kerala. The total number of libraries
affiliated to the KSLC so far is around 7500.
Now, the KSLC is embarking on a programme of computerizing the affiliated
public libraries. An expert committee was constituted by KSLC for this
purpose. This automation programme is planned to be rolled out in two
phases. In the first phase the Koha Open Source Software will be customized
in Malayalam and deployed in selected affiliated libraries on the basis of
e-readiness. In the second phase there will be a statewide rollout,
covering all the affiliated libraries.
The vendor for software customization, implementation and training was
selected though a two-part national bid process. M/s. Orisys India
Consultancy Services (http://orisys.in/
<http://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Forisys.in%2F&h=9AQEA1GI4&enc=AZN-KUAzEO_KEoA9QX_FrBv7YTo9lDWEyrGueS60LfuNdm06DpbohBFcZ1jwbdB8bu1hJvCp54WwvxwmoNmRns6JpU8Zwvt_qajJptsOprynKG6YFldIidB4Shwz50cor8V-HIGxPfNLQe18hAm0ybz_&s=1>)
based in Technopark, Thiruvananthapuram came out as the successful bidder.
Koha will be customized, installed and maintained in the State Data Centre,
and libraries will be able access it through Internet and carry out their
day to day activities. This will also ensure that the librarians are free
from the burden of server / software maintenance, updation, backup and so
on. In the event of Intenet failure, the offline transaction tool will be
used to capture the transaction data and will be subsequently transferred
to the database once the connection gets restored. Several new features are
being provided including interface in Malayalam, option to collect annual
(periodical) membership fee subscription etc. After implementation, they
will be provided to the Koha Community for the benefit of all Koha users.
The training programme for the librarians of the selected libraries was
held during 28-Feb to 01-Mar at Thiruvananthapuram. The participants were
given intensive hand-on training in using Koha. Shri. Thomson A. J.,
Librarian, Devagiri College, Kozhikode, and Shri Prasanth MP, Librarian,
Chinmaya Institute of Technology, Kannur were the Resource Persons.
The inauguration of the automation programme will be held on 20th March
2015. Renowned poet and activist Smt. Sugathakumari will officially launch
the programme at a function to be held at Conference Hall, Govt. Guest
House, Thycaud, Thiruvananthapuram at 10.00a.m.
The customized web-page of KSLC with catalogue is accessible here
http://kslc.in/
<http://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fkslc.in%2F&h=lAQHGAXsX&enc=AZM1y8fj33ucv0yGVmbD66JljceqDCqHwuuaVsr3liUVhS9WD-jnxsFwm3Ri4D6jdGYnfUTne3NDWqXqkBM7Z7un0kGH9ihRxISeU2DrDkVwbTXr0PIP0SQ75VmjRs-GXoBwckqtgI4vZ_OX3jpzETGo&s=1>
To visit the web-page of various libraries please go to the menu
‘Libraries’ and filter using District and then by Taluk.
Feedback and comments are always welcome to improve the service. Kindly
email to keralaslc at gmail.com


 Thanks and Regards,
V. Sriram
(Member, Expert Committee on Automation, KSLC)
Kerala State Library Council

-- 
Vimal Kumar V.
Technical Assistant
Mahatma Gandhi University Library
Kottayam, Kerala- 686 560
Web: http://www.vimalkumar.info
Blog: http://linuxhalwa.blogspot.com http://kohageek.blogspot.in
http://moovandan.blogspot.in
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
"I forget what I was taught. I only remember what I have learnt"
-Patrick White