Vice President C. P. Radhakrishnan on Friday expressed concern over declining reading habits among youth and called for reviving the culture of reading and learning in society.
He was speaking after releasing the book The Library Man of India: The Story of P.N. Panicker, authored by P. P. Sathyan, at Uprashtrapati Bhavan.
Paying tribute to P. N. Panicker, the Vice President described him as a visionary who transformed society through libraries and literacy movements. He said Panicker believed knowledge should be accessible to everyone, regardless of social or economic background.
Radhakrishnan warned that excessive dependence on mobile phones, social media and short-form entertainment was weakening deep reading and critical thinking among young people. “A society that stops reading gradually loses its ability to think deeply,” he said.
He also stressed that libraries should evolve into centres of creativity and knowledge in the digital age while preserving India’s rich literary and intellectual traditions.
