Books Without Borders

Domestic workers, slum dwellers, students, and labourers come to Delhi's free libraries, sharing ideas and their love for reading

- By FARHEEN SAIFI

On a warm afternoon at Delhi University’s North Campus, a group of students gather under a sprawling tree, their heads buried in books.

There’s no librarian, no staff, and no signboard reminding them of silence. Instead, there’s a banner pinned to the fence: Book in Hand Campaign—Free Library for All.

Started in August 2023 by two young Delhi residents, Pratik and Anurag Kumar, the Book in Hand Campaign (BHC India) is a quiet revolution spreading the joy of reading among people who can’t afford books or stopped reading because access was difficult.

Over the years, the initiative—run under the CELL Foundation—has built six open-air libraries across Delhi-NCR: in parks, university campuses, and even in slum areas. These libraries run on pure trust—there are no membership fees, no deposits, and no penalties.

Anyone can pick up a book, read it on the spot, or take it home for up to two weeks.

“When you have books lying on your shelf, already read, you start wondering—what if someone else who wants to read could have them?” says Pratik, 25, one of the co-founders. “This thought became our starting point.”