Latest news with #NationalArchivesofIndia
News18
21-07-2025
- Sport
- News18
Durand Cup: A Blue Riband Football Tournament Since Pre-Independence India
Last Updated: The Durand Football Tournament, founded in 1888, was India's top football event. Initially in Shimla, it moved to Delhi in the 1940s. The 2025 edition will be in five cities. The Durand Football Tournament was considered the premier football event of India, according to the National Archives of India data published on October 27, 1928. Football was quite popular and widely played in cantonment areas. To further promote the sport, an organised structure was established, leading to the founding of the Durand Cup in 1888 by Sir Henry Durand. In its early years, the Durand Cup was held in Shimla, as per records from the National Archives of India. 'The Durand Cup Football Tournament was mainly contested between British regiments," the record dated to October 28, 1896 says. 'The Highland battalion and 2nd Battalion Highland Light Infantry mainly dominated the first eight years of the Durand Cup competition." The October 27, 1928 record reveals that the final match was attended by several government officials, including the Governor of Punjab, Sir Stuart Symes. 'Lord Irwin distributed the season's trophies. The Sherwood Foresters got the winner trophy," the 1928 record notes. To ensure public support, the 1935 Durand Cup committee recommended that office staff be granted reasonable leave and facilities to attend the matches. 'The committee will be very grateful for the support," wrote the honorary secretary on August 23, 1935, ahead of that year's tournament starting on September 14. The committee also outlined three main factors for a successful tournament: 'Good teams, good weather and support from the Shimla public," the honorary secretary wrote. To encourage children's attendance, the committee announced a 50 percent discount on tickets for children. Ticket prices were Rs.12 for the first enclosure, Rs.7 and Rs.8 for the second enclosure, Rs.4 for the general stand, and Rs.2 for the ordinary enclosure. In the 1960s, the Durand Cup was a major attraction, widely covered in the media. The 1969 final between the Gurkha Brigade and BSF (Border Security Force), Jalandhar received extensive coverage. The Gurkha Brigade won by a single goal, with national newspapers featuring photos of the match and the winning team with then President of India, Shri VV Giri. The tournament moved from Shimla to Delhi in the early 1940s. After a brief period in Goa, since 2019, the world's third oldest football tournament has been held under the Eastern Command, with Kolkata, considered the Mecca of Indian football, as its home base. In 1972, Shimla Youngs almost upset Kolkata giant East Bengal, with the semi-final ending in a 1-all draw. According to Durand Cup rules, there was no extra time or shoot-out, leading to a rematch the next day, which East Bengal won 5-0. The 2025 edition of the Durand Cup will be held in five cities, including Kolkata and Shillong. view comments First Published: Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
News18
08-07-2025
- Politics
- News18
'Fragile, Rare, Priceless': Modi Govt To Digitise India's Manuscript Heritage
In the next three years, the Narendra Modi-led government will digitise thousands of ancient Indian manuscripts. According to a government tender from National Archives of India (NAI), many of the manuscripts are 'fragile, rare, deteriorating, brittle and to be handled with great care". For the digitisation project, a sum of Rs 50 crore has already been approved. These priceless records – some written on palm leaf, birch bark, parchment, cloth, or handmade paper – span a vast linguistic spectrum, including Sanskrit, Bengali, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Arabic, and Persian, as per the document accessed by News 18. Hailed as India's most ambitious civilisational archiving mission to date, the groundwork for this digital effort was laid much earlier. The culture ministry initiated the process with at least three other websites – Indian Cultures, Abhilekh Patal, and the Indian Mission for Manuscripts. For years, various government and affiliated institutions quietly collected and preserved neglected manuscripts from temple libraries, scholar households, and oral traditions. In Maharashtra, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, and Kashi, teams collaborated with traditional scholars and researchers to digitise and catalogue regional scriptural records long before it became a priority. Now, the Centre is formalising this mission. According to the official document, the digitisation project will involve several procedures including unbinding, flattening, cleaning, scanning, quality control, metadata creation, optical character recognition (OCR) for applicable languages, and long-term digital storage. Once fully digitised, the content will be integrated into existing national knowledge systems through platforms such as the National Manuscripts Repository (NAMAMI), the National Virtual Library of India (NVLI), the Digital Library of India, the Bharatavani multilingual platform, and the government's flagship portal. These platforms will allow the general public to access and read the documents. This project is aimed at digitally preserving India's ancient manuscripts and important documents. The tender also mentions that several manuscripts are in 'an extremely fragile condition, susceptible to damage due to age and lack of proper storage", and stressed on the need for non-invasive digitisation using high-resolution scanners that do not expose records to heat or harsh lighting. Experts involved in the project told News18 that this effort is more than just preservation; it is a cultural reclamation.
Hindustan Times
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Delhiwale: A retired man
After attending a panel discussion on 'Artificial Intelligence and Northeast' at the India International Centre, Tassadaque Hussain walks into adjacent Lodhi Garden for an evening stroll. Sitting on a bench, the Dwarka dweller agrees to become a part of our Proust Questionnaire series, in which citizens are nudged to make 'Parisian parlour confessions', all to explore our distinct experiences. Tassadaque Hussain walks into adjacent Lodhi Garden for an evening stroll. (HT) Your favourite occupation. I retired in 2020 as deputy director of the National Archives of India. Having worked there for 32 years, one gets used to seeing old documents. But I vividly remember the thrill when I touched, for the first time, the handwritten 18th century manuscripts on the weekly activities of the East India Company. Or the Gilgit manuscripts from the 5th and 6th centuries… Where would you like to live? I have lived a good part of my life in Delhi, almost 47 years. Studied history in Hindu College… but I miss my native Jorhat in Assam. What do you appreciate the most in your friends? I'm 66, and these days my mind goes back more and more towards the childhood friendships. Your idea of happiness. Walking in Lodhi Garden, and seeing Bada Gumbad and Sheesh Gumbad monuments at different times of the day… by the way, if you consider the plain flooring pattern of Bada Gumbad, and the fact that all its four sides are open, then it becomes clear that it wasn't a tomb but a gateway—that's my reading. Actually, I'm happy being around any Delhi monument. Your heroes in real life. My father, the late Inamul Husain, went far beyond the milieu of his world. My mother, Eliza, for raising four children. And my home tutor Mazifur Rahman, who stirred my interest in academics, helping me make the life-changing transition from Balya Bhavan, a Jorhat school, to Indore's Daly College, one of India's best public schools. Your favourite food. Homemade meals, especially when made by Mita, my wife. She teaches history in Bhagat Singh College. What is your present state of mind? I'm thinking of these birds chirping and flying… I have no idea how far they are intending to travel.
The Hindu
06-05-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
Over 10 crore pages of historic documents digitised by NAI, says Culture Minister
The National Archives of India (NAI) has digitised more than 10 crore pages of historic documents. Making the announcement, Union Culture Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said the digitisation project was taken up to make historic documents in possession of the NAI more accessible to the public. 'Do revisit our glorious past, that has been digitally documented one page at a time, with this mega effort to make Bharat's archival heritage closer to the public than ever before,' he said. 10 Crore Pages of History are now at your fingertips! Gives me great joy to share that as of 4th May 2025, the #NationalArchivesOfIndia has crossed 10 crore digitised pages of historical documents that are available on #AbhilekhPatal. Do revisit our glorious past, that has… — Gajendra Singh Shekhawat (@gssjodhpur) May 6, 2025 In a post on X, Mr. Shekhawat more data related to Abhilekh Patal, the digital depository of the National Archives of India (NAI). He said the portal had 1,49,487 unique visitors, 2,70,772 website hits, and 29,507 registered users. 'Ten Crore Pages of History are now at your fingertips! Gives me great joy to share that as of 4th May 2025, the #NationalArchivesOfIndia has crossed 10 crore digitised pages of historical documents that are available on #AbhilekhPatal,' the Union Minister said. The NAI is an attached office under the Culture Ministry. It was established in 1891 as the Imperial Record Department in Calcutta (now Kolkata). Following the transfer of the capital from Calcutta to Delhi in 1911, the present building of the NAI was constructed in 1926, which was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens. The transfer of all records from Calcutta to New Delhi was completed in 1937. It is the custodian of the non-current records of the Government of India and holds them in trust for the use of administrators and researchers. Apart from its vast collection of public records, the NAI also houses a rich and ever-growing collection of private papers of eminent Indians from all walks of life, who have made significant contributions to the nation.
Deccan Herald
29-04-2025
- General
- Deccan Herald
Private papers of ex-prez APJ Abdul Kalam donated to National Archives
As a custodian of key archives, the National Archives of India (NAI) on Monday acquired the private papers of Kalam, comprising original correspondences, passport, Aadhaar card, PAN card, tour reports, and lectures delivered by him at various universities as well as organisations, officials said.
