Dear Dr Anand, Yes, the so-called ‘degradation’ of librarian’s post in elite institutions is happening since a long time and as you said there is no response or action either from our national associations or from the high-profile LIS experts occupying high positions across the country. I had earlier posted some comments on this issue based on my personal experience on a couple of incidents in this very forum but nothing had happened so far. I personally feel that there are three reasons for this degradation. First, lack of a national accreditation body or an agency to regulate LIS education and employment has created this disparity among similar jobs in different institutions. In the absence of any standard or guidelines there is no control over the uniformity of pay scales and qualifications for top library posts in libraries under different departments/ministries such as UGC, AICTE, MHRD (IITs & IIMs), Indian Medical Council, CSIR, ICAR, Ministry of Culture (public libraries), etc., Second, the proliferation of LIS schools producing too many ‘substandard products’ is leading to surplus manpower unable to get employment. It is an irony that despite a large number of top library posts in many academic and other libraries are lying vacant for years, our LIS professionals are not getting jobs? I think that the 'supply is more than the expected demand' and hence, the employers are trying to dominate while the job seekers are ready to join these posts with lower pay; can we stop them? Third, non-availability of adequately trained & qualified library professionals with ICT skills and managerial capabilities to head these fully-automated libraries; which is again due to poor and substandard LIS education including getting a PhD. I don’t want to name but there were a few instances where some of the librarians in such HE institutions have failed to perform or remained passive and retired without any contribution; leaving a bad impression among the employers. We have more than hundred library associations all over the country plus the national association - ILA which is expected to promote and maintain LIS professional standards, and one of its objectives is “Improvement of the status of librarians”. Perhaps it is time for all us to think differently and do something seriously such as boycotting selection panel invitations or a nation-wide strike? Dr M Koteswara Rao Retd. Librarian, Univ of Hyderabad -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean.