Preserving Ancestral Records: India's Digital Archiving Initiative

The National Archives of India has launched a project to digitize genealogy records from priests at pilgrimage sites across India. Starting in Ujjain, the initiative aims to preserve ancestral documents as cultural heritage, while also repairing neglected archives. This forms part of a broader digitization effort by NAI.

The National Archives of India (NAI) has embarked on an ambitious project to digitize lineage records held by genealogy priests in various pilgrimage centers across the country. By starting with Ujjain, the aim is to preserve these records as valuable cultural heritage resources.

During a meeting of the South and West Asian Regional Branch of the International Council on Archives (SWARBICA) held recently, NAI Director General Arun Singhal highlighted the project's scope. He underscored the institution's ongoing effort to digitize 300 million pages within two years, as well as the simultaneous conservation work needed for previously neglected documents.

The digitization project has already increased the number of accessible pages from 10 million to 84 million in just eight months. These efforts seek to secure traditional knowledge contained in 'pothis', or registers, which document familial lineage extending up to ten generations. With more than 25 places harboring such records, the project aims to create a valuable genealogical database.

(With inputs from agencies.)