Gyan Bharatam Mission on Manuscripts
The Gyan Bharatam Mission, under the Union Culture Ministry, is dedicated to the conservation, upkeep, and digitisation of manuscripts in India. On October 25, 2025, the mission will sign Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with approximately 20 institutes, with an additional 30 institutes joining shortly after.
Key Institutes Involved
- Asiatic Society Kolkata
- University of Kashmir, Srinagar
- Hindi Sahitya Sammelan, Prayagraj
- Government Oriental Manuscript Library, Chennai
Mission Objectives
- Identify, document, conserve, digitise, and promote India's vast manuscript heritage.
- Establish the National Digital Repository (NDR) for global sharing of manuscript heritage.
Centre Categorisation
- Cluster Centres: Responsible for their own and designated Cluster Partner Centres' manuscript activities (up to 20 partners).
- Independent Centres: Focus solely on their own manuscript collections.
Support and Activities
- Gyan Bharatam provides framework, guidance, monitoring, support, funding, equipment, and budget allocations.
- Activities include:
- Survey and cataloguing
- Conservation and capacity building
- Technology and digitisation
- Linguistics and translation
- Research, publication, and outreach
Gyan Bharatam Cell
Centres must establish a dedicated Gyan Bharatam Cell to represent the Centre, facilitate communication, and ensure smooth coordination.
Financial Aspects
- Funds are released in phased instalments based on implementation schedule and milestones.
- First instalment (70%) is disbursed upon the annual budget approval.
- Second instalment (30%) depends on submission of progress reports, Utilisation Certificates, expenditure statements, and Quality Verification Report.
International Conference
The Culture Ministry organized the first-ever international conference on Indian manuscripts titled “Reclaiming India’s Knowledge Legacy through Manuscript Heritage” last month.
