Read about the personality of the Month- P N Panicker-Father of National Library Movement

  

About P.N. Panicker-

• Puthuvayil Narayana Panicker was born in a Nair family on 1909 March 1 to Govinda Pillai and Janaky Amma at Neelamperoor, Kerala.
• He is the father of the Library and Literacy Movement in Kerala and is an eminent personality.
• In 1926 he started the Sanadanadharmam Library as a teacher in his hometown.
• Panicker led the formation of Thiruvithaamkoor Granthasala Sangham (Travancore Library Association) in 1945 with 47 rural libraries. 
• The slogan of the organization was ‘Read and Grow‘. 
• Later on, with the formation of Kerala State in 1956, it became Kerala Granthasala Sangham (KGS). 
• Libraries created by the movement of Panicker later became a nerve centre of all social and cultural activities of which the literary movement of Kerala is an impressive example.
• Grandhasala Sangham won the ‘Krupsakaya Award’ from UNESCO in 1975. 
• After his organization was taken over by the State, Panicker became subject to political interference and in 1977 he responded by founding the Kerala Association for Non-formal Education and Development (KANFED). 
• KANFED was instrumental in starting the Kerala State Literacy Mission, which led Kerala to its universal literacy movement. 
• Thus, Kerala became the first state which achieved universal literacy.
• Panicker died on 19 June 1995, at age 86.
• The Government of Kerala acknowledged his contributions and ordered that 19 June be observed, annually, as Vaayanadinam (READING DAY ). 
• In 2017, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared June 19, Kerala’s Reading Day, as National Reading Day in India.

NATIONAL READING DAY- 19 JUNE 2023

To remind people about the value of reading books even in an era dominated by the internet, National Reading Day is observed on 19 June each year.

The day marks the death anniversary of PN Panicker, who is famously known as the ‘Father of the Library Movement’ in Kerala. He encouraged various activities under the Kerala Grandhashala Sangham that triggered a popular cultural movement in Kerala that produced universal literacy in the state in the 1990s.

OBSERVANCE OF NATIONAL READING DAY IN SCHOOL ASSEMBLY.

Significance of National Reading Day

The day is a tribute to the effort of PN Panicker to transform society with his literacy movement in India. The Father of Reading passed away on June 19, 1995. PN Panicker founded Sanadana Dharma Library which was the centre of the library movement in Kerala.

Other than the celebration of National Reading Day on his death anniversary, the Ministry of Education in Kerala also observes a reading week known as Vayana Varam from June 19 to 25 every year. Panicker was also the founding figure of the Kerala Association for Non-Formal Education and Development (KANFED). KANFED was involved in enhancing literacy rates and education awareness in rural areas.

The movement and its impact on the state are reflected in India's literacy survey, where Kerala stands as one of the states with the highest literacy rate. His efforts foster the culture of reading and encourage individuals to celebrate the joys of reading and explore the wealth of knowledge in books.

CELEBRATION OF NATIONAL READING MONTH ( 19 JUNE- 18 JULY 2023)