3. Gyan Bharatam Mission: Safeguarding India’s Knowledge Legacy

The Gyan Bharatam Mission, announced in the Union Budget 2025-26, is a flagship initiative by the Ministry of Culture designed to unearth, digitize, and preserve India\'s vast manuscript heritage. It serves as a comprehensive revival and expansion of the National Mission for Manuscripts (NMM), aiming to align India’s ancient wisdom with the national vision of Viksit Bharat 2047. • Institutional Framework: The mission operates through a nationwide network of 28 Cluster Centers (CCs) and 17 Independent Centers (ICs). These centers, including prestigious institutions like the Asiatic Society and Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, act as hubs for survey and conservation. • Financial Outlay: The Standing Finance Committee (SFC) has sanctioned Rs.491.66 crore for a six-year period (2025-2031). This sustained funding ensures long-term institutional stability for manuscriptology in India. • Five Pillars of Implementation: The mission is structured around five strategic verticals: (i) Survey and Cataloguing, (ii) Conservation and Capacity Building, (iii) Technology and Digitization, (iv) Linguistics and Translation, and (v) Research, Publication, and Outreach. • Massive Digitization Scale: To date, over 7.5 lakh manuscripts have been digitized, with 1.29 lakh already accessible on the dedicated Gyan Bharatam Portal. The mission aims to eventually cover over 1 crore (10 million) manuscripts. • Advanced Technical Standards: Digitization follows rigorous protocols, including minimum 400-600 DPI scanning, use of non-destructive face-up scanners, and long-term archival in LTO-9 tapes with cloud-based disaster recovery. • AI and Linguistic Integration: The initiative utilizes AI-assisted Handwritten Text Recognition (HTR) for deciphering ancient scripts and promotes translation into modern Indian languages to bridge the gap between traditional knowledge and contemporary research. Key Definitions & Technical Metadata • Manuscript: A handwritten composition on materials like palm leaf, birch bark, cloth, or paper, which is at least 75 years old and possesses significant historical or scientific value. • Metadata Layers: o Descriptive: Focuses on the content and original source. o Structural: Details regarding navigation and object relationship.o Administrative: Includes technical info like compression technology used (e.g., TIFF v 6.0) and conservation status. • HTR (Handwritten Text Recognition): An AI technology that converts handwritten text from images into machine-readable and searchable text, crucial for large-scale manuscript indexing. Constitutional & Legal Provisions • Article 49 (DPSP): It is the state\'s obligation to protect every monument or place or object of artistic or historic interest declared to be of national importance. • Article 51A (f): A fundamental duty of every citizen to value and preserve the rich heritage of the country’s composite culture. • Antiquities and Art Treasures Act, 1972: Provides the legal framework for the regulation of trade and export of manuscripts as national treasures. • National Policy on Education (NEP 2020): Emphasizes the integration of Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS) into modern curricula, a goal directly supported by Gyan Bharatam’s translation vertical. Progress and Onboarding (As of Feb 2026)

Conclusion Gyan Bharatam is not merely a preservation project but a strategic effort to reclaim India\'s status as a \'Knowledge Superpower.\' By combining ancient philology with 21st-century AI and cloud computing, the mission ensures that the \'silent voices\' of India\'s manuscripts become living resources for global scholarship. It transforms heritage from a static artifact into a dynamic asset for education, diplomacy, and national identity. UPSC Relevance • GS Paper I (Art & Culture): Salient aspects of Literature from ancient to modern times; history of scripts (Brahmi, Sharada, etc.) and Buddhist/Jain manuscript traditions. • GS Paper II (Governance): Role of the Ministry of Culture in heritage management; Digital India’s extension into cultural governance. • GS Paper III (Science & Tech): Application of AI and HTR in preserving documentary heritage; data storage and disaster recovery standards. • Prelims Focus: Ministerial mandate, budget years (2025-2031), technical standards (DPI/TIFF), and locations of major Cluster Centers (e.g., Namgyal Institute, Asiatic Society).