Preserving public documents is public responsibility: Former deputy director for archives

Mysuru: Former deputy director for Archives J V Gayathri said, preserving public documents is a public responsibility, as they are a national treasure, for future use and also for future generations.

Delivering the inaugural speech during the workshop for government department officials, on Karnataka State Public Records (KSPR) Act, 2010, in Mysuru, on Monday, she said that as we preserve our personal documents such as Aadhar Card, PAN and Voter ID, it is the responsibility of government officials to follow the KSPR Act and also Karnataka State Public Records Rules, 2013.

Legal factor

“The documents are mostly required to document our history, heritage, development and also to solve disputes, both social and cultural as well as legal. History may sound boring for some. But, the documents become historical after over 50 years. Earlier, documentation was mostly on permanent medium like stone and metal. The present form of documents on paper need more concern and care, coupled with technology. Still, neem leaves, an ancient disinfectant and preservative, is natural and also economical,” she said.

Pointing at the solution to the 500-year-old dispute of the Ayodhya Ram Janmabhoomi, Gayathri said, our own Mysurean, the late K V Ramesh, played a key role in reading an 1155 CE stone inscription.

“Ramesh read the Vishnu Hari inscription of the period of Gadvala king Govindachandra, which confirmed that the disputed site was revered as the birthplace of Rama in the 12th century. Similarly, the State Archives provided various documents, to solve the Cauvery water-sharing dispute,” she said.

Knowledge

She said the government officials should understand the rules, management, classification, cataloguing, digitalisation and preservation of documents for the society, to progress.

Senior Assistant Director H L Manjunath said documents are necessary for common people and also for researchers. “Most queries, almost 80% of them, on the documents before 1940, get a negative reply. If such a situation should not prevail, in future, the officials should understand the KSPR Act and follow it. As the feedback on a similar workshop last year was positive, we have arranged this workshop again,” he said.

Archives Director Gavisiddaiah conducted a session on listing and management of documents; Senior AD N Mahesh held a session on the appointment of Records Officers, their duties and responsibilities, disposal of documents and digitalisation; Manjunath held a session on general principles of classification of documents and the advantages of digitalisation; and former conservator of Regional Conservation Laboratory G I A Prabhakaran engaged a session on types of documents preservation – tissue culture.