Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, Calcutta Archive

Hitesranjan Sanyal Memorial Collection: Centre’s Urban History Documentation Archive

(https://cssscal.org/archive.php)

The digital archives of the Urban History Documentation Archives of the Centre for Studies in Social Sciences available for open access: Most of the printed documents archived by the CSSSC are available online for unrestricted access in collaboration with University of Heidelberg, The Endangered Archives Programme of the British Library and the Center for Research Libraries. The process of uploading of rest of the content is moving ahead and they will be available either on CrossAsia or on Endangered Archives Programme server soon.

• Open-access resources include:
• Bangla books and periodicals (19th, 20th c.)
• Assamese periodicals
• Newspaper: Jugantara Patrika (Calcutta, Bengali, daily: 1937 - 1980)
• Newspaper: Amrita Bazar Patrika (Jessore/Calcutta, bi-lingual / English, bi-weekly / daily: 1872 - 1890; 1892 - 1905; 1911; 1919 onward)
• Newspaper Jangipur Sambad (4242 issues)
• Sanskrit manuscripts from Santipur Bangiya Puran Parishad
• Chuchura bartabaha from the collection of Sisir Bani Pathagar
• books and periodicals from the collection of Dr. Shyamal Bera
• Nihar, the celebrated weekly newspaper from Nihar Press
• Books, periodicals, manuscripts from Bauddha Dharmankur Sabha (Bengal Buddhist Association)
• Periodicals from Sadharan Brahmo Samaj Library (Kolkata)
• Books and mss from Birsingha Vidyasagar Memorial Hall Rural Library (Medinipur) and Rajnarayan Basu Smriti Pathagar (Medinipur)
• Census of India reports from 1872 to 1951
• Journal of the National Indian Association

(see https://networks.h-net.org/node/22055/discussions/8346650/centre-studies-social-sciences-calcutta-archive-and-its-open for Rajarshi Ghose's original post)

Resource: National Archives, Kew

For those of you working on military records: find here a research guide to Indian Army personnel during British rule. The guide covers records held by the British Library, the National Archives at Kew, and partner sites. War diaries! It seems that there are fees involved.

More intriguing — a research guide to Indian indentured labourers. That such a thing even exists should undermine all lingering pro-Empire arguments. Not surprisingly, many more of the military records are available online than the ones about indentured/enslaved Indians. Still, it's a good place to start.

Resource: Abhilekh Patal

Guess what? The NAI really did implement a "digitize on-demand" function.

This is just a little update on my National Archives of India post. Judging from e-mails I receive from researchers working in Delhi, a lot of my advice re: accessing NAI collections in person is still true. But the prep stage for research at the NAI has changed a lot in the past few years, as the NAI's digital game has really improved. I added a link to the NAI's online interface to my original post awhile back. Since then, I've discovered the Abhilekh Patal portal, the newest entry point into NAI collections.

The first place to start with the Abhilekh Patal portal is the "5 Step User Guide," as it tells you how to sign up for access and structure searches (you need an account to see the digitized material). Once you're signed up, click the tab for "Digitized Collections".

As you can see, they started with the big guns — Gandi, Kassturbhai Lalbhai, S. C. Dixit. The Cartographic Records section is growing. Delhi maps outnumber maps of other cities/regions, but there are a lot of Punjab and Tinnevelly maps as well. Lucknow, Hyderabad, Peshawar, Hoshiarpur ...

The biggest digitized collection falls under the heading Public Records. Some data entry errors make it seem like they date back to 1551 AD, but those records are really from either 1851 or 1951, depending on the document. We're mostly talking late 19th-century into the 20th (i.e., colonial era) material here.

The tab for "Online Reference Media" seems to be an catalogue for all digitized material.

Anyway, this should give you a good idea of some of the holdings of the NAI — useful for writing your research proposal/grant application.

Delhi Archives

If you're working on the NCR, the material you need may not be in the National Archives of India, it may be held in the Delhi Archives near JNU. I don't have any experience with this archive, but I wish I did, because the description of its holdings makes it sound great:

"This Department is in possession of rich and unique collections of original records, maps and microfilms relating to events took place in 1785 onwards. However, regular records series starts from 1857. These records are in English, Arabic, Hindi, Persian, Sanskrit, Urdu etc., Apart from records on paper, we also have records on palm leaf, birch bark, parchment etc. The records are broadly of three categories: Public Records, Manuscripts and Private Papers.These records throw light on the activities of the later Mughals, first war of Indian Independence, administration of Delhi before and after transfer of capital, role of Delhi in freedom struggle. They also shed valuable light on our social, political, economic and cultural life. In addition, there is a rich collection of Private Papers and microfilm rolls of records acquired from different archival institutions."

Contact Information:
Govt. of NCT of Delhi
Department of Delhi Archives
18-A, SatsangVihar Marg, Spl. Institutional Area (Near Eastern Gate of JNU)
New Delhi-110067
Email: ddarchives@nic.in
Phone-26512594, 26962800, 26535611
Fax: 26515993

National Archives of India — Digital?

If nothing else comes of this initiative (described in Economic Times, August 15, 2017), I hope it is the "on-demand" button. That way I wouldn't have to try and convince the person in front of me that, yes, I really do need this photocopy.

National Archives of India

Food for thought. I'm not sure I really care deeply about the marginalia and stamps, but I do care about the overall preservation of the documents. And I do care about user access (the hours I wasted trying to get one.single.photocopy). Some of this rings true, but let me know what you think.

How the National Archives of India is Actually Destroying History.

Resource: Oriental Collection at Peshwar University

This is an auspicious beginning for a review of the Oriental Collection at Peshwar University in the Fresh From the Archives section on Dissertation Reviews:

"Working at Peshawar University libraries has been one of the most refreshing research experiences I have had in the region – in striking contrast to the typical nightmarish scenarios of waiting days for access and negotiating with disgruntled staff. Peshawar University’s strengths lie foremost in its superb regional collections, its accessibility, and, certainly, in the professionalism of the library staff."

Tata Central Archives

I admit it. I didn't even know this was a thing. But wow, the Tata Central Business Archives seem like an awesome source for researching the Tata role in urban planning and modern architecture. I wish I'd known about this when I was in Bangalore, it would have been a fantastic follow-up to my time spent at IISc.

I hope the research experience is as nice is person as it is on the web.

Resource: State Archives of West Bengal

A review of the State Archives of West Bengal in the Fresh From the Archives section on Dissertation Reviews, written by someone working on an architecture/landscape project. Choice quote: "Historians enthused by the oscillating, isolating, frustrating and Derridean experiences of archival forays will thrive in this research room."

National Archives of India

An update to my 2009 post by Willy Logan, based on his March 2015 experience.

I was pleased to see during my last visit to Delhi how much easier and less stressful travel was by metro. Research is so much more pleasant when you arrive at the archive relaxed after an easy journey.

Other archives discussed by Logan:

• Resources in Assam
• National Library of India
• Nehru Museum and Library (Teen Murti)

Resource: Maharashtra State Archives

From a review of the Maharashtra State Archives in the Fresh From the Archives section on Dissertation Reviews:

"The Maharashtra State Archives primarily contains over 500,000 files relating to the expansion, governance and termination of British colonial rule in the Bombay Presidency. The documents date right back to the seventeenth century and the earliest phase of English East India Company rule in Bombay, ending somewhat abruptly in the immediate postcolonial period."

Also a good resource for archival material on the greater Indian Ocean region.

Resource: Library of Tibetan Works and Archives (India)

There's a good write-up of the Library of Tibetan Works and Archives (India) in the Fresh From the Archives section on Dissertation Reviews.

Planning Your Research Trip

Some advice on planning your research trip to India from my alma mater:

https://publish.illinois.edu/iaslibrary/2015/01/28/planning-your-research-trip-to-india/

Indian Institute of Astrophysics

This is a new research project for me, and it's taking me to new places, namely, Bangalore and the Indian Institute of Astrophysics. I'm here looking for items related to the Madras and Kodaikanal Observatories. I spend most of my day at the IIA Library and the IIA Archives. The staff has been friendly and helpful, and I'm gathering all sorts of useful bits. Access to the IIA didn't seem complicated compared to what I had to deal with even a few years ago, so I'm finding this a pretty low stress research trip. It's easy to order photocopies, it's easy to order books, and I've been allowed to transcribe some of Pogson's observing logs.

IIA Access Policy

List of Items Available in the IIA Archives

The library is open from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday to Saturday.

Wifi is available on campus.
 

The IIA is also in charge of the Kodaikanal Observatory. The librarian at IIA has been very generous with her time (she's in the midst of retiring) and has introduced me to a few of the research scientists and administrators here. One result of all this care is that arranging a research visit to Kodai has been a piece of cake. I was worried about accommodations, but it been determined that I qualify to stay at the observatory guest house. Exciting!

Nuts & Bolts

Accommodations:
This is getting easier by the month. I actually used airbnb to find a place this visit. It's not necessarily easy finding a place close to IIA this way, but public transportation is reliable and the library doesn't open until mid-morning, so you have time to travel to Koramanagala.

Getting there:
I'm staying in HSR Layout / Sector 6. It's not too difficult getting an autorickshaw when I need one, but I usually take the AC bus. KIA-7 is a bus that conveniently runs along Sarjapura Road by IIA on the way to the airport. If you need a landmark for an auto or taxi driver, St. John's Medical College Hospital on Sarjapura Road is your best best. The main gate to IAA is on 100 Feet Road, which is off Sarjapura. It's also not too far to walk from Hosur Road if you get off the auto somewhere near the Madiwalla underpass. The best landmark there is actually FabIndia, just up 100 Feet Road from Hosur Road. I've taken several more buses (non-AC) in Bangalore than I would have in Delhi -- it's easier and generally feels safer.

Dining: 
There's a decent canteen on the main campus, costs 30 r. or something like that for a meal. If you must get out for some air, go out to 100 Feet Rd., cross Sarjapura, and in about 3 blocks you will find a Cafe Coffee Day, around 7th Cross Road. There are some sweets shops down that way, too. On the weekend, there's this place called Brahmin's in Basavanagudi that has the world's best idli. Trust me on this one. Less than 100 r. for two lovely plates of food.

Library of the Institut Français de Pondichéry (IFP), Pondicherry, India

If you can't travel to Pondichéry for research (or if you want to prepare for your visit), check out the digital archive of periodicals from French India (1800-1923) via the British Library. Digitized as part of the Endangered Archives Programme, this archive includes 179 volumes (131,656 images) of French colonial publications.

Read more about the material here (descriptions of all the periodicals).

This link should take you directly to the catalogue.

Endangered Archives Programme

The deadline for the latest round of funding from the Endangered Archives Programme is approaching quickly (November 1).

2013 projects in India included:

• EAP643: Shantipur and its neighbourhood: Text and images of early modern Bengal in public and private collections 
• EAP687: Digitisation of manuscripts held by the Tibetan Yungdrung Bön Library of Menri Monastery, Dolanji, India 
• EAP689: Constituting a digital archive of Tamil agrarian history (1650-1950) - phase II

2013 projects in Bangladesh included:

• EAP619: Pilot project to locate and digitise endangered single-copy pencil drawn Thakbast/mouza maps in selected Bangladeshi districts 
• EAP683: Rāmamālā Library manuscript project 

HOW TO APPLY.

Endangered Archives Programme portal.

This link should take you to all the projects related to India.

Balochistan Archives

I was very pleased to see the e-mail from my former colleague at Rutgers, Sumit Guha, sent to draw attention to the online portal to the Balochistan Archives. So many of us would love to go to Pakistan for research work, and so many of us will not be able to that any time soon. The availability of online records and files is still limited, but I hope the digital holdings grow quickly and soon.What is online already is fantastic--I just spent a large chunk of time reading about the 1935 Quetta Earthquake.

Balochistan Archives Entry Page
Balochistan Archives Facebook Page

Tamil Nadu State Archives

In a recent issue of Sagar: A South Asian Research Journal, Sundar Vadlamudi, Department of History, University of Texas at Austin, provides an informative overview of the Tamil Nadu State Archives.

Archive of Indian Music

Good news for musicologists and historians of sound comes to us via Abhijit Bhattacharya at the Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, Calcutta. The Archive of Indian Music (AIM) is now online. Curated by Vikram Sampath and colleagues, the online collection includes 600+ samples (taken largely from 78 RPM gramaphone shellacs) representing the work of about 180 artists. As I type this, I am listening (again) to Gandhiji read aloud his article "On God." Judging by the number of hits for that particular page, I am not the only one who went directly to that file. I selected Bina Chaudury's "Ek jhalak dekha kidkhi se" and now I might have a new favorite song and artist.

A caveat: the list of artists is alphabetized by first name, so if you are looking for a clip based on the last name, you may have difficulty finding it by browsing only. The ctrl-F search is your friend.

National Archives of India (Review)

Derek L. Elliott has reviewed the National Archives of India for the Dissertation Reviews website. I think he found the experience slightly more comfortable than I did, but I also think that gender matters at the NAI, regardless of what others would tell you. Then again, I made a lot of research progress there despite the obstacles, plus it really made me appreciate the archives in Bikaner and Bhopal. Elliott's review can be found at http://dissertationreviews.org/archives/1673.