Ranganathan's Acquisition Staffing Standard

S.R. Ranganathan, a pioneering figure in library science, developed staff formulas to guide library administration. These formulas aim to establish rational standards for staffing levels based on the workload involved in different library operations.

Focusing on the Acquisition Section

The question specifically asks about the staffing requirement for the Acquisition Section, which handles the process of selecting, ordering, and receiving new library materials. Ranganathan's formula provides a benchmark for this specific department.

Ranganathan's Standard for Acquisition

According to S.R. Ranganathan's Staff Formula, the established standard for the acquisition section is that 1 professional staff member is required to process 6,000 books per year. This represents the calculated workload capacity for a single professional in acquisition tasks.

Analysis of Options

Let's evaluate the given options against Ranganathan's standard:

• Option 1: 1 person for accessing 6000 books in a year - This aligns directly with the standard set by Ranganathan's Staff Formula for the acquisition section.
• Option 2: 1 person for accessing 3000 books in a year - This suggests a higher staffing level (or lower productivity) than Ranganathan's standard for this section.
• Option 3: 1 person for accessing 2000 books in a year - This ratio indicates an even greater number of staff needed compared to the standard.
• Option 4: 1 person for accessing 1500 books in a year - This represents the lowest workload per professional among the choices and deviates significantly from the established benchmark.

Conclusion on Staffing Needs

Therefore, based on the specific benchmark provided by S.R. Ranganathan's Staff Formula for the workload of the acquisition section, the correct ratio is one professional for every 6,000 books processed annually.