The University Grants Commission, the Union government arm that regulates universities, has changed the cadre of central university librarians from academic to non-academic, attracting accusations of “an assault” on the library administration on campuses.

The Indian Library Association (ILA) and independent librarians are livid at the move that they believe will demoralise librarians and affect research output at universities. They have underlined that librarians provide crucial guidance to researchers and their supervisors on the latest journals and books in their disciplines.

The UGC last month unveiled the Model Cadre Recruitment Rules for Central Universities, which will become effective after the various central universities adopt them.

Under these rules, library cadre staff such as librarians, deputy librarians and assistant librarians will be considered non-teaching staff in a break from the past.

The UGC Library Committee report of 1958 had stipulated that librarians should be equal in rank and status with teachers. Till now, whenever the UGC notified new pay scales for academic staff, these covered the librarians too. The UGC Regulations on Minimum Qualifications for Appointment of Teachers and Other Academic Staff stipulate the procedures for the recruitment and promotion of librarians too.

“The very act of creation of model recruitment rules and inclusion of librarians along with non-teaching staff is unconstitutional and contradicts with (sic) the previous regulations and guidelines of the same commission,” the ILA said in a memorandum addressed to the UGC secretary.

ILA president Mohan R. Kherde told The Telegraph: “This is a big attack to disrupt the library system at the universities. The librarians will be de-motivated, and this will affect the research ecosystem in the institutions.”

The association has demanded status quo, with librarians continuing on a par with teaching staff, and low-level staff in the libraries remaining part of the non-teaching cadre as before.

An ILA delegation on Monday met UGC chairperson M. Jagadesh Kumar, who promised to consider their demand.

Delhi University (DU) librarian Rajesh Singh said: “Librarians play a key role in promoting research. An institution cannot grow by ignoring its librarians.

“They (librarians) provide all support in terms of literature to the scholars. They keep themselves up to date about new publications and books, and get the universities to procure them.”

The librarian of DU’s central library is a member of the university’s executive council — its highest decision-making body — as well as its academic council and Court.

An email sent to the UGC chairman, seeking his comments on the criticism of the move to change the librarians’ cadre, remains unanswered.