Summary: Ahmedabad: The National Archives of India (NAI) will gift digital copies of its entire Mahatma Gandhi paper collection to Sabarmati Ashram on June 29. "We felt that the Gandhi papers should be widely disseminated and be made easily available to researchers, students and general public," Garg said. A senior Ashram official told TOI that many of the Gandhi papers at the national archives were part of the original series of Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi (CWMG) project headed by professor K Swaminathan. Once Gandhi papers are available on Gandhi portal, it will be in public domain, and will facilitate research and enhance the value of the portal," says Sabarmati Ashram director Tridip Suhrud.He added, "It also means that the NAI has immense confidence in the Ashram to handle sensitive historical papers." The Ashram already has one of the world's largest collections of original manuscripts belonging to Bapu somewhere around 35,000 catalogued items in its archive.Dr Sanjay Garg, deputy director of NAI, said that the digital copies are being provided to the ashram so that they can be uploaded in phases to the existing Gandhi heritage portal.

Ahmedabad: The National Archives of India (NAI) will gift digital copies of its entire Mahatma Gandhi paper collection to Sabarmati Ashram on June 29. The Ashram already has one of the world's largest collections of original manuscripts belonging to Bapu somewhere around 35,000 catalogued items in its archive.Dr Sanjay Garg, deputy director of NAI, said that the digital copies are being provided to the ashram so that they can be uploaded in phases to the existing Gandhi heritage portal."We felt that the Gandhi papers should be widely disseminated and be made easily available to researchers, students and general public," Garg said."The idea is that when such rare documents are available digitally, they can be accessed on mobile phones, laptops or on any digital interface from anywhere in the world," he said.According to the NAI, the Gandhi papers consists of 27,500 items between the period of 1880 to 1948, relating to Gandhi-Kallenbach, Gandhi-Polak correspondence, Gandhi-Holmes correspondence, Gandhi Murder Trial papers and Bapu's correspondence with eminent personalities.There is also a copy of the FIR relating to Gandhiji's murder on January 30, 1948. A senior Ashram official told TOI that many of the Gandhi papers at the national archives were part of the original series of Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi (CWMG) project headed by professor K Swaminathan.

A team of editors including professors C N Patel, U R Rao and R K Prabhu took over 38 years to compile the entire collection of Bapu's letters, speeches, and articles into 100 volumes running into more than 55,000 pages.Earlier, the NAI had gifted the Ashram, digital copies of roughly 4,000 testimonies of farmers recorded during Champaran Satyagarha by Bapu and Dr Rajendra Prasad."I think the Ashram-National archive collaboration is of immense value to the world of scholarship. Once Gandhi papers are available on Gandhi portal, it will be in public domain, and will facilitate research and enhance the value of the portal," says Sabarmati Ashram director Tridip Suhrud.He added, "It also means that the NAI has immense confidence in the Ashram to handle sensitive historical papers.". .

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/nai-to-gift-digital-copies-of-gandhi-papers-to-ashram/articleshow/59167844.cms

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NAI to gift digital copies of Gandhi papers to Ashram - NYOOOZ