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About the Mission:
- Gyan Bharatam Mission, announced in the Union Budget 2025–26.
- Aims to digitise, preserve, and make accessible India’s vast manuscript heritage through modern technology.
- Builds on the earlier National Mission for Manuscripts (2003), which was the first major step towards safeguarding India’s intellectual heritage.
- Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Culture.
- Mission Components:
- Survey & Documentation: Nationwide identification and cataloguing of manuscripts.
- Conservation & Restoration: Protection of fragile texts using both scientific and traditional methods.
- Digitisation & Repository: Large-scale AI-assisted digitisation and creation of a National Digital Repository.
- Technology & AI Innovation: Use of tools like Handwritten Text Recognition and the Gyan-Setu AI Challenge to make manuscripts accessible and research-friendly.
About Manuscripts:
- Handwritten works on palm leaf, birch bark, cloth, paper, or metal, generally over 75 years old.
- Carry historical, scientific, and aesthetic value.
- Cover diverse fields such as philosophy, medicine, astronomy, literature, and arts.
- Exist in multiple Indian languages and scripts, reflecting cultural diversity.
Significance:
- India has the largest manuscript collection in the world (around 1 crore); so far only 10 lakh have been digitised.
- Prevents intellectual piracy and misuse of traditional knowledge through patents abroad.
- Enhances India’s soft power by sharing knowledge with countries like Thailand, Vietnam, and Mongolia, which also hold culturally linked manuscripts.
- Strengthens the vision of Swadeshi and Atmanirbhar Bharat by projecting India’s knowledge systems globally.
Why in News?
The Gyan Bharatam Mission was launched to digitise India’s ancient manuscripts and create a digital repository for sharing traditional knowledge.
