Digitisation Drive Expands Access to India’s Archival Records

The National Archives of India (NAI), under the Ministry of Culture, is steadily advancing its digitisation programme to preserve historically significant documents and improve public access to archival resources.

Through its Abhilekh Patal portal, NAI currently provides access to over 74 lakh reference media records, more than 40 lakh digitised files, and nearly 189 crore digitised pages.

The portal offers a diverse range of archival collections, including government records from various ministries and departments, private papers of notable personalities, and reference materials such as photographs, maps, microfilms, and rare documents.

Over the past three years, focused efforts have been made to strengthen this digital repository. These include large-scale digitisation of archival materials, integration of newly acquired records, enhancement of metadata and cataloguing systems, and expansion of digitised reference collections.

To improve accessibility and usability, several initiatives have been introduced. These include the development of an Online Archival Information Management System, adoption of standardised metadata practices, and advanced search and retrieval features. Researchers can also benefit from online registration, remote access facilities, and services like Digitize-on-Demand (DoD) and Page-on-Demand (PoD) for accessing records not yet digitised.

The information was shared by Union Minister for Culture and Tourism, Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.

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