Ministry of Culture Signs MoU With Bibliothèque Nationale De France To Strengthen Preservation Of India’s Manuscript Heritage

Key Highlights:

• A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between India's Ministry of Culture and the Bibliothèque nationale de France (BnF) in Paris.
• The MoU aims to strengthen cooperation in preservation, digitisation, research, and dissemination of manuscript and documentary heritage.
• It was signed under India's Gyan Bharatam Mission.
• Key areas of collaboration include Digitisation, Cross-Sharing on the National Digital Repository, Technology Exchange, Conservation, and Research & Development.

Detailed Insights:

• The partnership involves India's National Archives of India and National Library, Kolkata, alongside the BnF.
• It focuses on identifying and digitising Indic-origin manuscripts and collections held by the BnF.
• Expertise will be exchanged in digitisation, preservation technologies, cataloguing standards, OCR/HTR tools for Indian scripts, and digital humanities.
• Joint workshops, capacity-building programs, research initiatives, and scholar exchanges are also envisaged.
• Gyan Bharatam Mission is the Ministry of Culture's flagship initiative for India's manuscript heritage.
• The National Digital Repository is envisioned as a secure digital repository for Indian-origin manuscripts and Indian Knowledge Systems globally.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Memorandum of Understanding (MoU): A formal agreement between two or more parties outlining their intent to cooperate.
• Digitisation: The process of converting information into a digital format for preservation and accessibility.
• Manuscript Heritage: Historical documents written by hand, representing a significant cultural and intellectual legacy.