KOCHI: In 1993, the central government enacted special legislation for the conservation and preservation of ‘public records’ in the country. Several states followed it up with initiatives to protect the rich archival history they possess.
In 2023, Kerala passed the Public Records Act. As a part of its implementation, inspections and public sittings by a special committee of officials, comprising the minister of archeology and archives, were held at all four state archive centres.
According to experts, archives in the state need urgent protection and conservation.
“Archival material are treasures of national importance. They hold the history of the nation, and culture, and they answer many questions. Such materials in our possession are in a highly dilapidated state right now,’” Cherai Ramdas, an independent researcher and historian, told TNIE.
“Archives once lost can never be retrieved. The condition of many of our records is saddening. On the racks of the archives we see the sole evidence of our history torn, withered, decayed, and even misplaced,” he says, sounding the alarm bell.
Retired archivist Abdul Majeed echoed the views. “It is not only the state of the archival materials. The whole system is in a shambles. It lacks systematic organisation at the very core. There are no proper racks, no catalogues and no qualified professionals to maintain the records,” he says.
The Kerala State Archives, which was formed in 1962 as a section of the higher education department, became an independent department in 1964. The archives in Thiruvananthapuram and Ernakulam were established in the same year. In 1966, the regional archives in Kozhikode was set up. The state archives of Kerala has records from colonial era to pre-colonial times. It includes correspondence files, records on land ownerships, settlement registers, maps, gazettes, etc.
“We have a record named Fort St George Gazette. It includes all kinds of files from the colonial times, even evidences like statements from the survivors of the wagon tragedy and such. All these are rapidly decaying right now,” says Majeed.
Ramdas provides cases in point. “The documents that I had referred to 10 years ago cannot be found anymore. There are paper files termed ‘brittle’ and single sheet records and maintenance of such files have been neglected for years. Right now, I am dealing with files during the time of Rajarshi Rama Varma (ruler of Cochin from 1895 to 1914). The condition of ‘Thathri Smarthavicharam,’ a rare evidence of trials during old times, is no different. Over 800 pages of the files are missing now.”
He says the original copies of the Kesari newspaper, of Kesari Balakrishna Pillai, which he had handed over to the archives in 2010 for mending and safe-keeping, are going down the same path.
Attempts to digitise the records have been on for long. Earlier, many of the records at the Ernakulam archives were made into microfilms, but experts say none of that was well maintained. “Digitalisation of all these materials would be a revolutionary change,” says Dr Sivadasan, a senior professor. “ Such democratisation of knowledge is vital in our society,” he adds.
As per the archive protection rules, the materials should be mended, laminated and preserved in air-conditioned rooms, kept in steel racks that are not over seven feet, and should never be exposed to sunlight and other weather conditions. This calls for a major infrastructural renovation of all four state archive buildings.
Writer and senior journalist M K Das, who has been a frequent visitor to the archives, says the buildings lack infrastructure development. “The place is in complete ruins and there are absolutely no facilities for researchers in the buildings. There are very few tables and chairs and no atmosphere to work exists,” says Das, who also found most archive materials at the Regional Archives, Ernakulam, in a bad state during his research for his recently published book ‘Cochin Fame and Fables’.
Suggestions of experts
A modern functional building and infrastructure facilities for archives
An independent building where archival records can be carefully preserved
Professionally qualified & trained staff
Mending & lamination process of all materials must be carried out immediately
Digitalisation of all data be carried out for easy access for people in need