UP on manuscript hunt under Gyan Bharatam Mission

Lucknow: State govt has stepped up efforts to identify, preserve and digitise ancient manuscripts under 'Gyan Bharatam Mission', a statewide initiativeto safeguard India’s traditional knowledge systems.

An official said surveys are being conducted to trace rare handwritten documents preserved in temples, monasteries, educational institutions, libraries and private collections. Thousands of manuscripts linked to religion, philosophy, Ayurveda, astrology, literature, music and history have been identified.

“Highest number of manuscripts were traced in Varanasi, Ayodhya and Rampur, including several centuries-old handwritten records in Sanskrit, Persian, Arabic and Hindi,” they said, adding the mission is to preserve ancient intellectual traditions, making rare texts accessible to future generations through digitisation and scientific conservation.

Special survey teams in collaboration with universities, research institutions, monasteries, libraries and private collectors, are visiting villages and historical sites to locate manuscripts and old documents that may otherwise remain undocumented or vulnerable to damage. Manuscripts are being scanned and uploaded to a digital platform and catalogued and scientifically preserved.

UP has historically been major centre of India’s knowledge tradition, with Kashi, Ayodhya, Mathura and Rampur housing rare manuscripts.

Govt said the campaign goes beyond document preservation and is also aimed at reviving awareness about India’s cultural and intellectual heritage.