Panaji: The Goa State Mission for Manuscripts has identified 31,072 manuscripts across the state within three months of launching a public inventory initiative to preserve Goa’s literary heritage. The mission, established in partnership with the Government of India, will focus on inventory creation, digitisation, preservation, translation and skill development.
QR-Code Based Registration System
Officials overseeing the initiative in Goa said that a QR-code-based registration system has been designed for manuscript owners to submit details of their collections independently. “By scanning the code, custodians can upload information about the manuscript, its location, photographs and geographical coordinates, helping authorities create a comprehensive state-wide database. As a result, the discovery of over 31,000 manuscripts came within approximately three months of launching the exercise in March,” said Balaji Shenoy, additional director of archives.
Historical Significance of the Manuscripts
Preliminary assessments suggest many of the manuscripts date back to the 1600s and early 1700s. The collections largely comprise ancient Indian texts written in Sanskrit and other Indian languages. The manuscripts are thus expected to shed light on the contributions of Sanskrit scholars and pandits who lived and worked in Goa over several centuries.
“The next phase will involve physically verifying collections, assessing authenticity, determining age and translating content. We also need to convert dates recorded in traditional Hindu calendar systems such as the Shaka era into the modern Gregorian calendar to accurately establish timelines,” Shenoy said.
Outreach to Private Repositories
The mission is also reaching out to major private repositories, including seminaries, research centres and religious institutions known to hold valuable collections, particularly early Konkani documents and historical records.
Digitisation Programme at Goa State Museum
As part of the digitisation programme, authorities have begun work at the Goa State Museum, where 1,819 manuscripts have been identified. Officials said the collection consists primarily of Sanskrit manuscripts, along with a rare palm-leaf Tamil manuscript that experts believe could date back to the early 17th century. Further examination is planned to determine its precise age and origin.
The digitisation process involves the use of high-resolution portable scanners that can be deployed at repositories without moving fragile documents from their locations.
Financial Assistance for Private Repositories
“To encourage participation, the state government has proposed financial assistance for private repositories over a five-year period to support conservation, digitisation and maintenance efforts,” Shenoy said.
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About the Author: Nida Sayed is the principal correspondent at the Times of India. She writes on Transport, Oceanography, Agriculture and Meteorology among other subjects. She has been working for TOI since 2014.
