Reclaiming Readers: Bringing Books Back to Living Rooms

“There are many little ways to enrich a child’s world. Joy of reading is best of them.”

By Ms. Archana Sharma Awasthi & Mr. Yuvraj Malik

For decades, India’s education discourse has focused on access—access to schools, textbooks and digital infrastructure. While these remain essential, another equally important question deserves our attention: Are we raising a generation that reads?

This question lies at the heart of Rashtriya e-Pustakalaya (ReP), the National Digital Library, an initiative designed not simply as a digital repository, but as an effort to strengthen India’s reading culture within homes, schools and communities.

Today, ReP offers 7,000+ curated books across 23 languages, developed in partnership with hundreds of publishers and aligned with the vision of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. Its objective is not merely to keep expanding the number of books, but to maintain a relevant, high-quality and dynamic collection that evolves with readers’ interests.

Removing Barriers, Not Replacing Habits

For millions of children, particularly those in rural, semi-urban and underserved areas, access to books beyond prescribed textbooks remains difficult. A bookshop may be far away, while school libraries may have limited collections or restricted access.

Rashtriya e-Pustakalaya helps address this gap by allowing children to access thousands of books through devices already available in their homes—anytime and anywhere.

Importantly, the initiative is not about encouraging children to spend more time on screens. Rather, it seeks to encourage families to use existing digital devices more meaningfully.

Instead of an hour spent passively scrolling or consuming unsuitable content, that time can become an opportunity for shared reading:

A parent reading aloud to a young child.
An older sibling sharing a story.
Parents and children setting aside time to read together.
Grandparents and grandchildren discovering stories together.

In this way, technology can become a bridge to books rather than a replacement for them.

Reading as Family Time, Not Screen Time

The deeper purpose of Rashtriya e-Pustakalaya extends beyond downloads and user numbers. It is about bringing reading back into the living room.

Reading is not merely an academic activity. It is also social and emotional. When families read together, they create opportunities for conversation, empathy, imagination and reflection.

Children who are read to—and who see adults around them reading—can develop stronger literacy skills as well as richer imaginative and emotional lives.

ReP also creates opportunities for intergenerational reading. Young readers can read stories to their grandparents, while families can discover books and narratives together.

Reading can therefore become both “me time” and “we time.”

The question for society is simple: Can we reclaim some of our passive screen consumption and turn it into meaningful reading?

The answer can be yes—if books are accessible, attractive and presented as a choice rather than a chore.

Working with Educators: The Next Phase

As Rashtriya e-Pustakalaya enters its next phase, the role of teachers, librarians and school leaders becomes particularly important.

Educators are not merely facilitators of learning; they are culture builders. The reading habits children develop at school can influence them throughout their lives.

Meaningful integration of ReP into school life could include:

Revitalising library periods as active reading spaces.
Organising guided reading and storytelling sessions.
Encouraging teachers to share their own favourite books.
Creating peer-led book discussions and reading circles.
Making reading part of the daily rhythm of school life.
Helping students improve their writing skills through exposure to different styles and methods.

A Living, Evolving Library

Unlike a traditional library, whose collection is limited by physical shelves and space, Rashtriya e-Pustakalaya is designed to be dynamic and evolving.

Readers can also express what books they would like to see added to the platform.

The collection reflects India’s rich heritage and cultural diversity, giving young readers an opportunity to discover stories and traditions that form an important part of the country’s civilisational heritage.

Its multilingual approach is equally significant. Children often read most naturally in the language in which they think and communicate.

With books available across 23 languages, ReP recognises India’s linguistic diversity as a strength. Every language can open the door to a different world of stories and ideas.

For young children, particularly those up to eight years of age, the platform encourages parents and educators to read stories aloud, helping create an early and enjoyable association with books.

A Collective Responsibility

Ultimately, the success of Rashtriya e-Pustakalaya will not be measured only by the number of downloads or registered users.

Its real success will be visible when reading becomes a habit again—in homes, schools and communities across India.

Success will be when a child in a remote part of the country discovers a book she had only heard about and reads it with excitement and curiosity.

A National Call to Read

Rashtriya e-Pustakalaya is also hosting activities such as the Rashtriya Kavya Utsav and inviting citizens to contribute to storytelling. More engaging activities are expected to become a continuing part of the initiative.

India has always been a civilisation of stories—from oral traditions to the great literary traditions of Hindi, Sanskrit, Tamil, Bengali, Marathi and many other Indian languages.

The country has never lacked stories.

What needs to be protected is the habit of seeking those stories out—the willingness to slow down, follow a sentence, explore an idea and give a book the time it deserves.

“When Citizens read, the country leads.”
— Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi

About the authors:
Ms. Archana Sharma Awasthi is Additional Secretary, Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education, Government of India. Mr. Yuvraj Malik is Director, National Book Trust, India.