Have you ever had that annoying, frustrating experience of prowling around a study room with an armful of books, left wondering where to sit in a room devoid of people but full of miscellaneous personal belongings left behind to guard seats, despite their owners’ absence?

To prevent students from using piles of books, bags and other personal items to save seats in the library, especially at the end of the semester when exam season is in full swing, a university in Xi’an, central China’s Shaanxi Province recently enforced a campaign to remove all unattended books used for guaranteeing spots, so that other students in need of a desk can get down to what they came to university for - studying.

“Please return and gather all of your books and belongings before December 31, as library staff will clean up all study areas and reading rooms from January 1,” read the notice posted on December 28, adding that all students enjoy equal rights to using library seats, while no one is allowed to claim them as their own personal spaces.

However, after photos capturing piles of books and test papers in a huge mess in the library lobby of Xi’an University of Finance and Economics were posted and extensively shared online, some netizens expressed their concerns as to whether the move would actually just be a big inconvenience, and result in the loss of important learning materials.

The user added that it can be really difficult for students busily preparing for various exams to have to carry dozens of heavy textbooks with them at all times.

Numerous other netizens, nevertheless, showed their support for the university’s stance.

He further noted that while some students intending to study hard are forced to wait for a seat, many of those seats’ occupants often just watch films or even sleep in the study areas.

According to posts left by students of the university on Weibo, it was the students themselves who left the books in a mess while searching for their belongings, adding that the unattended books had previously been put in meticulous order by the librarians.

(Written by Cai Mengxiao)‍