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New Indian Express
10 hours ago
- General
- New Indian Express
Ancient Arabic manuscripts from Malabar being digitised to preserve cultural heritage
KOZHIKODE: Hidden in ancient mosques, dusty library shelves, and the private collections of old Malabar households lie centuries-old Arabic manuscripts — delicate testaments to a forgotten era of scholarship, trade, and cultural exchange between south India and the Arab world. Now, these fragile pieces of history are being brought back to life in digital form. The Malaibar Foundation for Research and Development (MFRD), in partnership with the renowned Hill Museum and Manuscript Library (HMML) in Minnesota, has launched an ambitious project to digitise rare and endangered Arabic manuscripts from across India. The initiative, which began in 2024, aims to preserve manuscripts, lithographs, and rare photographs — many tucked away in mosques, libraries, institutions, and private homes — by converting them into digital archives accessible to scholars and researchers worldwide. This preservation project focuses primarily on south Indian regions — including Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Lakshadweep, and the Andaman Islands — with rich historical ties to Arab cultures. By employing advanced imaging technology, the initiative seeks to protect fragile manuscripts from the threats of decay and loss. In its initial phase alone, the foundation successfully collected over 4,000 manuscripts from Kozhikode, Kannur, and Kasaragod. 'The digitisation of centuries-old manuscripts requires immense patience and highly specialised skills,' said Malaibar Foundation executive director Noorudeen Musthafa Nurani. 'Despite gathering more than 4,000 manuscripts, we have so far managed to digitise only around 20%. The process following strict scientific protocols is intricate and time-consuming.' Manuscripts are carefully sourced from private individuals, mosques, and libraries. Many are unique, irreplaceable pieces of history. Each document is meticulously cleaned and photographed page by page before being sent to the HMML labs in Minnesota for digital processing. Once digitised, these invaluable records will be freely accessible to the global academic community via a dedicated online platform. The original manuscripts are then returned to their rightful owners. Highlighting the cultural significance of the project, Noorudeen said, 'Kerala and other southern states have had deep-rooted historical and cultural connections with Arab nations. Numerous scholars from this region have authored important works in Arabic, Persian, Arabi-Malayalam, and Arabi-Tamil. These texts are rare and irreplaceable and preserving them is vital for safeguarding our region's intellectual and cultural heritage.'
Time of India
16-05-2025
- Time of India
Suicide victim was hypersensitive to petulance....', court acquits his wife, man
1 2 3 Panchkula: Finding that the victim, who committed suicide, was "hypersensitive" to ordinary petulance, discord, and differences in domestic life, which are not expected to induce a similarly circumstanced individual in a given society to commit suicide, a Panchkula court on Thursday acquitted his wife and another man. "If it transpires to the court that a victim committing suicide was hypersensitive to ordinary petulance, discord, and differences in domestic life quite common to the society to which the victim belonged, and such petulance, discord, and differences were not expected to induce a similarly circumstanced individual in a given society to commit suicide, the conscience of the court should not be satisfied for basing a finding that the accused charged with abetting the offence of suicide should be found guilty," observed the court of Panchkula sessions judge Ved Parkash Sirohi. The court also said in the case of alleged abetment of suicide, there must be proof of direct or indirect acts of incitement to the commission of suicide. "The court should be extremely careful in assessing the facts and circumstances of each case and the evidence adduced in the trial for the purpose of finding whether the harassment meted out to the victim induced him to end his life by committing suicide," noted the court. "...There must be a direct nexus between the act and omission of the accused and the commission of suicide by the deceased. Here in this case, no evidence has been brought by the prosecution to prove that the accused played any role in the commission of the alleged suicide by the deceased. As such, the prosecution has failed to prove its case against the accused beyond doubt...," ordered the court while observing. Statements of prosecution witnesses were not found to be satisfactory. Thus, Manju Devi and Noorudeen were acquitted of charges under Section 306 of the IPC (abetment to suicide) in connection with the 2019 death of Chander Pal Sharma. The case dates back to November 21, 2019, when he was found dead at the railway tracks. Initially treated as a railway accident, the case took a turn in February 2020 when his brother, Rakesh, alleged that Chander committed suicide due to the illicit relationship between his wife Manju and Noorudeen, both natives of Budaun, Uttar Pradesh. He claimed Manju, who was then a present resident of Rampur Saini, Dera Bassi, previously eloped with Noorudeen, which led to Chander's mental distress. Following this complaint, an FIR was registered under Sections 306 and 34 IPC. Both accused were arrested and later granted bail. MSID:: 121192891 413 |
