Understanding the Passage on Indian Academic Libraries

The question asks us to identify the person among the given options who wrote a minute suggesting the establishment of a library in each college. To answer this, we need to carefully read and analyze the provided passage about the history of academic libraries in India, particularly focusing on the medieval and early British periods.

Analyzing the Passage for Clues

The passage discusses several historical figures and their contributions or observations regarding libraries in India:

• It mentions the existence of a library attached to a college at Bidar during the medieval period.
• It introduces Warren Hastings founding a Madrasa in Calcutta.
• It notes Jonathan Duncan stressing the need to collect books.
• It specifically quotes Lord Minto's minute from 1811.
• It mentions Lord Auckland outlining library policy later in 1839.

Evaluating the Options based on the Passage

Let's examine what the passage says about each person listed in the options:

• Warren Hastings: The passage states he founded a Madrasa in 1781. It does not say he wrote a minute suggesting a library in each college.
• Lord Auckland: The passage states he outlined library policy in 1839 and suggested making use of college libraries that were already attached to institutions. This is after the period when the initial suggestion for libraries in each college was made according to the passage.
• Lord Minto: The passage explicitly states, "Lord Minto, Governor- General (1807-13), in his minutes of the 6 March 1811 wrote, Library be attached to each of the colleges under the charge of a learned native...". This sentence directly answers the question.
• Jonathan Duncan: The passage mentions he stressed the need to collect books in 1792. It does not mention him writing a minute suggesting a library in each college.

Based on the direct statement in the passage, it was Lord Minto who wrote the minute suggesting that a library be attached to each college.

Conclusion on Who Suggested College Libraries

The passage clearly attributes the suggestion for establishing a library in each college, via a minute written on March 6, 1811, to Lord Minto.

Therefore, according to the provided passage, Lord Minto was the person who wrote a minute suggesting the establishment of a library in each college.

Revision Table: Key Figures and Contributions

Additional Information on Early Academic Libraries in India

The passage highlights key moments in the development of academic libraries in India before the modern university system was fully established. While academic libraries in the modern sense were limited in the medieval period, the patronage by rulers and institutions laid some groundwork. The minutes and policies from British Governor-Generals like Lord Minto and Lord Auckland show a growing recognition of the importance of libraries within educational institutions. These early suggestions and policies were crucial steps towards the development of the more extensive college and university libraries seen later.

• The library at Bidar is mentioned as a rare example of an attached library during the medieval era.
• The Madrasa founded by Warren Hastings likely had some collection of texts, representing an early institutional library.
• Jonathan Duncan's emphasis on collecting ancient texts points to the value placed on preserving knowledge.
• Lord Minto's minute is significant because it's presented as perhaps the first formal statement on record suggesting libraries within the academic setup across multiple institutions.
• Lord Auckland's later minute indicates that by 1839, college libraries were becoming more common, suggesting Minto's earlier suggestion may have had an impact or reflected a developing trend.
• The growth in collection size by 1882 (crossing a thousand marks for some) shows the gradual development of these libraries.