The
National Archives of India (NAI) is a repository of the non-current records of
the Government of India and holds them in trust for the use of administrators
and scholars. Originally established as the Imperial Record Department in 1891,
in Calcutta, then capital of British India, the NAI is situated at the
intersection of Janpath and Rajpath, in Delhi. It functions as an Attached
Office of the Department of Culture under the Ministry of Culture, Government
of India.The Imperial Record Department was set up on 11 March 1891 in Calcutta
(Kolkata). In 1911 it was transferred to the new capital, New Delhi, and in
1926 it was shifted into its new building. It is a building in late
neo-classical style, and originally known as the Imperial Record Office. The holdings
in the National Archives are in a regular series starting from the year 1748.
The languages of the records include English, Arabic, Hindi, Persian, Sanskrit,
Modi and Urdu, and their materials include paper, palm leaf, birch bark and
parchment. The records are in four categories: Public Records, Oriental
Records, Manuscripts and Private Papers.
On
the occasion of 125th Foundation Year of National Archives of India (NAI)
commemorative stamp was released by the Minister of State for Culture
(Independent Charge), Tourism (Independent Charge) and Civil Aviation, Dr.
Mahesh Sharma at the closing ceremony of the 125th Foundation Year Celebrations
of the National Archives of India, in New Delhi on 11th March, 2016.
