At the heart of New Delhi’s National Gallery of Modern Art, an evening steeped in heritage unfolded and it was one that promised to bridge centuries of wisdom with the rhythm of modern India. The Ministry of Culture’s Gyan Bharatam initiative took a decisive leap forward as 17 leading institutions from across the country joined hands to protect, decode and celebrate the nation’s manuscript legacy.
Described by Union Minister of Culture and Tourism Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat as a step towards a “Prāṇamya Bhārata: a nation vibrant with living knowledge,” the initiative reflects India’s enduring desire to transform its cultural wealth into a living, breathing force for generations to come.
In the pursuit of progress, quality must never be compromised for speed,”
the Minister reminded the audience. This statement seemed to echo the patience and precision with which India’s ancient manuscripts were once created.
The Manuscripts That Shaped a Civilization
For centuries, India’s manuscripts have carried more than mere words, they’ve been a vessel which held ideas that shaped philosophy, science, art and governance. Each fragile leaf of palm or birch bark bears witness to a civilization that valued thought as much as trade and spirituality as much as science. Yet, much of this treasure lies scattered, fading or forgotten.
That’s where Gyan Bharatam steps in. Conceived as a flagship initiative under the Union Budget 2025–26, it seeks to identify, document, conserve, digitize, and promote the vast corpus of India’s manuscripts. The larger vision? A National Digital Repository (NDR). It is a space where this ancient wisdom will not only be preserved but also rediscovered by scholars, artists and curious minds across the world.
Turning Archives into Living Knowledge
The signing of 17 MoUs marked the creation of 12 Cluster Centres and 5 Independent Centres and these will act as the pillars of this mission. Each will carry forward one or more of the initiative’s five key verticals:
- Survey & Cataloguing
- Conservation & Capacity Building
- Technology & Digitization
- Linguistics & Translation
- Research, Publication & Outreach
Together, they will ensure that India’s manuscript heritage moves from locked archives into classrooms, studios and digital spaces. The Ministry envisions a balance between regional coordination and institutional autonomy, giving each centre the freedom to innovate while staying aligned with a shared national purpose.
The mission of manuscript preservation must progress with the precision and determination of illuminating the nation through knowledge and unity,”
said the Secretary, Ministry of Culture, during the ceremony. These words encapsulated both the seriousness and sanctity of the mission.
A Celebration Beyond Preservation
But the event was not just about signing papers. It was a celebration of continuity and journey of how culture, even when archived, can still sing. As dusk settled over Jaipur House, storytellers Syed Sahil Agha and Nizam Premi of the Dilli Gharana took the stage with their Dastangoi performance ‘Mere Kabir’. Their melodic retelling of Kabir’s verses reminded the audience that India’s knowledge tradition has always been both spoken and sung. This represents a living art that connects heart and intellect alike.
The performance was followed by a dinner reception where scholars, artists and officials mingled over conversations weaving the same thread that Gyan Bharatam seeks to preserve: the dialogue between past and present.
The Road Ahead
India’s manuscript tradition spans more than five million texts across diverse languages and disciplines in vast variety ranging from astronomy and medicine to poetry and metaphysics. Gyan Bharatam’s success will depend on how effectively it marries technology with tradition without diluting and mis-interpreting it or losing the essence.
The initiative is not merely a bureaucratic milestone but a cultural awakening, turning preservation into participation. It urges India to see its manuscripts not as relics, but as living mentors, offering timeless guidance in an age of fleeting information.
As the applause faded that night, Shri Shekhawat’s words lingered:
India must strive to become a Prāṇamya Bhārata : a living repository of knowledge.”
And perhaps that’s what Gyan Bharatam truly stands for, a nation not just remembering its wisdom but reviving it, nurturing it and letting it breathe once more in the minds of its people.
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