Dear Friends, I do agree with Smita, Parinita,Vijay Gautam, K Desale, Prof. Mangla and others who have expressed concern over the present state of LIS education in our country. In this connection, I Iike to say that India today has more than 100 LIS schools at the university level alone churning out at least 5000 LIS degree holders — 4500 bachelor degree holders and 500 master degree holders — even at a modest estimate, which is several times more than the available job opportunities in Indian market and possibly highest production in the world. All these have brought into focus the question of continued relevance and adequacy of the present programme of LIS education. The present scene in LIS education in India gives dismal condition and reflects a very disappointing scene. To achieve academic excellence, it is of utmost importance that standards and norms for LIS education should be set by an external agency and thereafter adherence to them be made mandatory. The immediate task is to establish a mechanism for accreditation of LIS courses offered by different library schools in India. It is a high time that the Government of India should pass an Act for LIS education on the analogy of Indian Medical Council Act, BAR Council of India Act and All India Council of Technical Education Act which would help in standardization of LIS education in India. The proposed Act should make provision for establishing a Library and Information Science (LIS) Council of India (or in any other name) and it should function as a central agency to provide guidelines and standards in LIS education and practices. I think all library professionals should come forward to raise their voice in favour of accreditation of LIS education to overcome its present crisis. Dr. J. K. SarkhelProfessor & HeadDept of Library & Information ScienceUniversity of KalyaniKalyani-741235West Bengal; India _________________________________________________________________ Searching for the best deals on travel? Visit MSN Travel. http://in.msn.com/coxandkings -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean.