Transfer Odisha-related documents from National Archives Delhi

The Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage has sought transfer of many Odisha-related documents from the National Archives of India, New Delhi to the state, according to an INTACH official.

An INTACH delegation met Pritam Singh, Director General of the National Archives of India at the Bhubaneswar Centre, recently and submitted a memorandum to this effect.

The New Delhi office is holding many important and valuable records pertaining to Odisha and many of them have not even been listed, the memorandum said.

In the memorandum, they stated that the entire records of the Orissa State Agency (1917-1947) in 18 volumes, the Balasore Factory Records and The Bengal Public Consultations in 22 volumes were of great importance, and the only copies were in Delhi.

The delegation led by INTACH state convenor Amiya Bhusan Tripathy, Bhubaneswar Chapter convenor Baikuntha Panigrahi and projects coordinator Anil Dhir apprised Singh of the difficulties faced by scholars and researchers who have to go to Delhi to access the records.

The National Archives of India is under the Union Ministry of Culture and has a Regional Office at Bhopal and three Records Centres at Jaipur, Puducherry and Bhubaneswar.

If the originals could not be brought, the digitised version and microfilm copies could be easily made available, he said adding a proper catalogue and listing of the Odisha papers should be made and published as a book.

Dhir said important documents like the original will of Maharaja Ranjit Singh in which he had bequeathed the Koh-I-Noor to Shree Jagannath Temple should be displayed at the Bhubaneswar Centre.