This campaign supports E-Sahithya’s mission to preserve India’s endangered literary and spiritual heritage through the digitisation of rare manuscripts. Led by Ashok Domlur, the initiative particularly focuses on Kannada manuscripts and historic Vachana literature, making these resources accessible to researchers, students, and future generations.
The Problem and the Solution
Thousands of rare palm-leaf and paper manuscripts containing centuries of Indian knowledge, philosophy, poetry, spirituality, and cultural history are deteriorating because of age, climatic conditions, inadequate storage, and limited preservation infrastructure. Unless these materials are documented promptly, many may be permanently lost.
E-Sahithya addresses this challenge by:
- Identifying and documenting rare manuscript collections.
- Digitising fragile palm-leaf and paper manuscripts.
- Preserving Kannada literature and historic Vachana texts from the 15th to the 18th centuries.
- Creating organised digital archives for long-term preservation.
- Collaborating with institutions and technology partners to improve global accessibility.
- Working with Karnatak University, Dharwad, to digitise its extensive manuscript collection.
Funding will support manuscript assessment, scanning equipment, digitisation personnel, data processing, digital storage, cataloguing, quality assurance, and archive development.
Expected Impact and Beneficiaries
E-Sahithya reports that it has:
- Digitised more than 20 lakh rare manuscripts across India during the past 10+ years.
- Preserved over 6 lakh Kannada manuscripts under Ashok Domlur’s leadership.
- Digitised important Vachana literature dating from the 15th to the 18th centuries.
- Initiated work to digitise 8+ lakh manuscripts at Karnatak University, Dharwad.
- Partnered with Google to help make the preserved material accessible globally.
The project will benefit manuscript custodians, scholars, researchers, students, universities, cultural institutions, linguistic communities, and future generations seeking access to India’s literary and spiritual knowledge.
Geographic Area
Primary project location:
- State: Karnataka
- District: Dharwad
- Institution: Karnatak University, Dharwad
Broader reach: Manuscript collections across India, with digital accessibility for users worldwide.
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