NEW DELHI: The Delhi Archives, a repository of about four crore historical records, will preserve documents— orders, circulars, and other documents of all Delhi government departments. A circular requesting all government offices have been issued to transfer their entire records older than 25 years to the department of archives so that the process for their digitisation and preservation could be launched.
A senior official, said that some of the records are ‘gems’, which should be protected. “The official records are a goldmine of information and have a fascinating collection of precious heritage. That needs to be digitised and preserved permanently so that the researchers or history enthusiasts can access them. Therefore, we have issued a circular and requested all departments to send their old documents before 1993 to Delhi Archives,” said Sanjay Garg, head of the archives.
Some of the government offices like sub-register possess decades-old handwritten papers; details of properties or trusts set up in the names of eminent personalities. The archives have already digitised and preserved land records of 22 sub-registrar offices including oldest property registration divisions at Kashmere Gate, which was set up in 1858.
“Kashmere Gate sub-registrar office has interesting details and registration deeds of several heritage Havelis and properties in Chandni Chowk. It also has original papers of Delhi Cloth Mills, which was shut long ago. The documents related to trusts named after Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, construction of the city’s water and sewage treatment plant, and trials of freedom fighters at Red Fort are also part of the archives,” said a senior official of the government.
Delhi Archives was set-up in 1972 to preserve the rich archival heritage of Delhi such as documents, maps, photographs, manuscripts, and books for research purpose and administrative use. The archives have scanned about 3.70 crore archival material –including photos and maps—and 2.25 crore of them are already uploaded on its portal. For preservation and digitisation, the Delhi Archives is using high-end scanners to capture minute details.
Advanced tech at work
Sanjay Garg, head of the Archives, said that high-end colour scanners have been procured because digital cameras produce heavy picture files, which could create problems