New Delhi: The National Archives of India has digitised nearly 60 per cent of the archival records. Union Culture Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat announced on Monday that this is a landmark step in preserving Bharat’s documentary heritage.
Out of the 34 crore pages of precious archival material, the National Archives of India (NAI) has digitised more than 20 crore pages.
The digitised papers were uploaded on Abhilekh Patal, a web portal to access the NAI’s reference media and its digitised collections. The portal serves as a gateway to India’s historical legacy, offering a treasure trove of meticulously preserved documents and records.
As of 20 April, around 20.15 crore pages have been uploaded, which is more than 50 per cent of the NAI’s collections.
“Under the visionary leadership of Shri @narendramodi ji and his unwavering commitment to preserving heritage while advancing Digital India, @IN_Archives has digitized and made available to the public 20+ crore pages of archival records through the abhilekh patal portal,” wrote Shekhawat on X.
This transformative mission mode initiative is enhancing transparency and expanding access for researchers and citizens, Shekhawat said, adding, “And ensuring our invaluable national records are preserved for future generations,” he wrote.
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Massive digitisation
In 2024, the NAI initiated a massive second phase of digitisation, with plans to digitise approximately 30 crore pages of its record holdings within two years.
The first phase, which commenced in 1990, was very slow, with only 20 lakh digitised pages completed in the initial three decades.
In 2021, when Chandan Sinha became the Director General of NAI, the first phase of digitisation started and around 4.5 crores pages were digitised during this period.
For the remaining 30 crore pages, the then director general of NAI, Arun Singhal, had sped up the work in 2024.
For the work, NAI deployed hundreds of youth who trained for two weeks under the Skill India Mission. A total of 75 scanners are installed at various centres of the NAI, such as Bhopal, Jaipur, Bhubaneswar and Puducherry.
The deadline of 2026 was set for the completion of digitisation, but still 14 crore pages remain.
The NAI holds a significant collection of documents that chronicle the evolution of modern India. It serves as a repository for various historical, political, and literary treasures. The collection features the Mountbatten plan papers on partition, the original manuscript of Jaishankar Prasad’s Kamayani, and private documents of MK Gandhi, Chakravati Rajagopalachari, as well as Rajendra Prasad, among other archives.
About 15 per cent (4.5 crore pages) of the archives at NAI are in fragile condition.
“We have very old, rare records, it is India’s heritage which is kept with us. It is obvious that when there are so many interesting documents, people will want to see them. Our entire existence is to keep these records properly. So, the best way is to scan and digitise them,” Singhal had told ThePrint in 2024.
(Edited by Saptak Datta)