Abhilekh Patal Portal

Context

In the context of promoting awareness and public engagement with India’s historical records, the Prime Minister of India recently urged citizens to explore the ‘Abhilekh Patal’ portal to gain a deeper understanding of the country’s archival and historical legacy.

About Abhilekh Patal Portal

1. Abhilekh Patal is an online portal that provides access to the digitised archival collections and reference materials of the National Archives of India.
2. It is developed and maintained by the National Archives of India (NAI) under the Ministry of Culture, and is continuously being expanded with new data.
3. The portal aims to preserve India’s historical records and make them easily accessible, including around 7 million archival documents being digitised over time.
4. It is designed to support researchers, students, and general users in studying original historical sources related to people, events, and social changes.
5. Users can search an index of records through reference tools, and request access using services like Page on Demand (POD) for digitised records.
6. For documents not yet digitised, users can request conversion through the Digitise on Demand (DOD) service, or seek assistance from the NAI research room.
7. The portal includes a wide range of materials such as government records, private papers of notable individuals, photographs, maps, microfilms, and rare historical documents.

National Archives of India (NAI)

1. The National Archives of India preserves government records that have long-term historical and administrative importance. It is the largest archival repository in South Asia.
2. It was set up on 11^th  March 1891 in Kolkata (then Calcutta) as the Imperial Records Department.
3. It functions under the Ministry of Culture.
4. Its head office is in New Delhi, with a regional office in Bhopal.
5. It also operates record centres in Bhubaneswar, Jaipur, and Puducherry for storing and managing archival materials.
6. The archives hold a wide range of documents, including government records, private papers, oriental manuscripts, maps, photographs, and microfilms, which are important for researchers and administrators.
7. The institution is headed by the Director General of Archives, who is responsible for implementing the Public Records Act, 1993 and related rules (1997) for proper management and preservation of government records across Central Government ministries, departments, and public sector units.