THE LIBRARY

The MIDS Library is an integral part of the institute administered to meet the information and research needs of its faculty and students. It is one of the leading libraries in the South for social science research and it caters to the study and reference requirements of research scholars with a unique collection of books, extensive archives of journals old and new, working papers, government publications and reports. The library houses a collection of over 63,000 books, documents and reports, and subscribes to more than 100 Indian and foreign journals. The MIDS library is widely used by students, research scholars, teaching faculty from various institutes of social science disciplines, government officials, journalists and consultants from all parts of Tamil Nadu, the rest of the country and abroad.

Catalogue and Classification

The library uses Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) System where the books and reports are arranged by subjects in the stack. The Library has been automated since 2001 using LIBSYS software. Library services such as Acquisition, Cataloguing, Circulation, Serial Control and Online Public Access Catalogue (OPAC) are automated using LIBSYS software.

MIDS Library has recently updated its library management software to KOHA and a web OPAC is now available on the institute website under Library section.

Books

The Library’s collection of books encompasses social sciences, development studies, arts and humanities, anthropology, gender studies, culture, religion, tribal studies, economics, environmental sciences, irrigation, agriculture, education, biographies, and history. The Library has a rich collection in Social Sciences.

Journals

The MIDS library subscribes to a varied list of journals in both print and online. It has online access to 80 journals and 28 journals in print format. The library maintains a significant collection of back volumes.

Government Publications

The library has a time-series collection on census reports since 1901 Census series, NSSO series, Annual Survey of Industries series, Budget Document series, Statistical Handbook series, Season Crop Report series and Economic Appraisal, Education Report Series, UNCTAD Reports, Commission Report Series, etc.

Working Papers

The Library includes a vast collection of working papers from other academic and research institutes. It includes discussion papers, occasional papers of national and international organizations such as ISEC, IGIDR, IRMA, CDS, IEG, CESS, etc

Reference Books

Dictionaries, Gazetteers, Encyclopaedias and bibliographies are kept as reference material in the library. These collections can be accessed only for reference purpose in the library reading room.
Theses and Dissertations

Theses and Dissertations

The library has access to student dissertations and theses from the University of Madras and its own doctoral scholars.

CD / DVD

The library continues to maintain some of the databases in the form of CD-ROM / DVD for its academic use. The collection includes Census of India, NSSO (mainly consumer expenditure, employment and unemployment, household asset, morbidity and health care), and District Level Household Survey (DLHS).

Inter-Library Collaboration

An inter-library loan membership with Anna University Central Library where access to a vast collection of resources such as Science Direct (Social Science, Art & Humanities and Econometrics), Springer Link, Taylor & Francis, Wiley & Blackwell, ISID, J-Gate, JSTOR, Oxford University Journals, Project Muse, Scopus, Web of Science are provided. Members may use these resources by visiting Anna University Central Library with an inter-library membership card obtained from the MIDS Library.

Membership and Borrowing Privileges

Borrowing Privileges in the Library are limited to its members comprising two categories:

1.     Internal Membership, where all the faculty, students and non-teaching staff members are eligible. For Faculty and Non-teaching staff, the membership period is valid until their retirement/resignation.

2.     External Membership, where any other academic members, Government officials and policymakers are eligible to become members of the library. A recommendation or reference from an institute faculty is required, with the membership form along with a refundable caution deposit of Rs. 3000. The annual renewal fee for the external members will be Rs. 200. The fee structure is subject to change from time to time as per the recommendations of the Library Committee and approval of the Governing Board.

WORKING HOURS

Open : Monday to Friday, 10:00 AM to 5:45 PM

Closed : Saturday, Sunday, Government-declared holidays

Circulation : 10:15 am to 5:30 PM