WHILE travelling through London Underground, I witnessed every second person using a smartphone or reading a book during their journey. Unlike Pakistanis, many Londoners prefer to pass their time by reading a book instead of killing it by sitting idle.

Libraries in London are still the centre of attraction. The very presence of a library is an integral part of town planning in developed countries.

We used to be library-going people; my father often tells me about it. In his early 80s, he gets sad while seeing today’s generation moving away from books. He considers us much privileged to have the facility of internet and smartphones, and often wonders why these gadgets cannot be used to gain knowledge and information instead of surfing the undesired and unethical websites.

The key to inculcating reading habits among children is to read with them at home from a young age. I hope parents will realise the importance of reading in children’s development and raise a generation that finds pleasure in it.

Shahzad Lodhi
Rawalpindi

Published in Dawn, January 8th, 2021