New Delhi, Oct. 4 -- Nearly 40km from Dibrugarh in upper Assam lies Borbari, part of Borbam No.1 village, in Tengakhat block. It is home to around 40 families, primarily from the Adivasi community. These days, a 25x15ft bamboo structure there is the cynosure of all eyes. Called Kuhi Paat, tender leaf in Assamese, it's the first library in the village.
Opened on 31 August, it hopes to evolve into a community space. In fact, the inauguration itself brought families together-some picked the dimoru paat (fig leaves) to pack boot-maah as prasad, while others presented a welcome song for guests from across the state.
These days, nearly every community activity happens around the library space. On weekend afternoons, one can find children engage...