Published Paper Details:

Abstract This study examine how far Artificial Intelligence (AI) has actually been built into the Library Management Systems (LMS) of university libraries in Jammu and Kashmir. Rather than taking AI adoption for granted, the research checks, library by library, which automation and AI features can be verified from public documentary evidence. A descriptive design was used, centred on structured content analysis of the official websites, published facilities pages, institutional circulars, and recent institutional news items of five purposively chosen university libraries: the Allama Iqbal Library (University of Kashmir), Dhanvantri Library (University of Jammu), the Central Library at the Central University of Kashmir, the library of the Central University of Jammu, and the Rumi Library (Islamic University of Science and Technology, Awantipora). For each library, publicly available material was checked against a fixed checklist covering OPAC or integrated library management software, RFID-based self-check facilities, remote or off-campus access, institutional repositories, and any service explicitly branded as AI, such as a chatbot or recommendation engine. The results show that conventional automation is already well established at three of the five libraries: a functioning, documented OPAC or integrated library system (Virtua, LibSys-10, or a Koha-based platform) together with RFID-based self-check is confirmed for the University of Kashmir, the University of Jammu, and IUST, the last of which rolled out RFID as recently as April 2026. Only one library, however, has a genuinely AI-branded service in place: an official circular dated April 27, 2026, confirms that Allama Iqbal Library, University of Kashmir, launched its "AIL Chatbot" on April 23, 2026, inaugurated by the Vice Chancellor and described by the library itself as the first AI-powered chatbot introduced by any university library in Jammu and Kashmir. None of the remaining four libraries had any publicly documented AI-branded facility, whether chatbot or recommendation engine, at the time of writing. For the Central University of Kashmir and Central University of Jammu libraries specifically, even basic OPAC and RFID status could not be verified from official sources -- a public-documentation gap that is itself treated here as a substantive finding, distinct from the underlying technology gap. The study concludes that university libraries in the region have made real, verifiable progress on conventional automation, that one institution has now crossed into genuine AI-branded service delivery, and that the rest of the sample has yet to do so; it recommends fuller public disclosure of technology infrastructure alongside continued investment in staff training and AI-specific tools, with the Kashmir University case offered as a regional reference point.