Bhopal National Archives of India – The Custodian of Records

The National Archives in Bhopal is the regional office of the National Archives of India which was established in Kolkata in 1891. The government office was built as the custodian or store of the records that are of immense value to the Indian Government, and is at present the biggest repository of national archives in the entire South Asia.

National Archives – A Quick Glance

Address: National Archives of India, Regional Office, Civil lines, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh-462001

Famous for: Biggest stock of national archives

Constructed in: 1953

Timings: 9:30am – 8:00pm (Monday to Friday), 9:30am – 5:30pm (Saturday) (Closed on Sundays, National holidays, and festivals like Diwali, Christmas and Holi)

Timings for National Archive Museum: 10:00am – 5:00pm

Visit duration: 3 hours

Entry fee: Free

National Archives – An Overview

The Bhopal National Archives is the regional office of the main branch in Kolkata. The Bhopal branch was established on 21st October 1953 and it came into existence post an official agreement and signing between the Government of India and the Bhopal Government.

The National Archives treasures the important files and documents owned by the Indian Government, and includes holdings like public records, private papers, gazettes, microfilms and miscellaneous other records dating back to early 1800s. All these records and assets are mostly written either in English or in Persian.

National Archives – Main Branch (Kolkata)

The main branch of the National Archives of India is established in Kolkata which takes care of a huge chunk of official papers, records and microfilm, all authorised and owned by the Indian Government. The National Archives of India, Calcutta (Kolkata) was built and officiated on 11th March 1891 as the Imperial Record Department, and it is a treasure house of a number of invaluable sources of information for the ones who need it, say scholars and administrators for example.

National Archives – The Repository and the Preservation
The National Archives in Bhopal got a total of 2008 bundles from National Archives of India, New Delhi. There were a total of around 251,000 files which stand as spare copies of records held under the Indian Government and are related to several ministries and departments of the Central Government during the years 1860 - 1938. These records are treasured as a safety measure as well as to help facilitate the scholars from different regions.

The National Archives, Bhopal has also received 13,732 volumes of Gazettes between 1841 and 1971 that belong to several states and are aimed to be preserved carefully.

There is the Microfilm Repository at Regional Office of National Archives which has been under official use since 6th June 1997. The entire repository is constructed in a way to provide an air and temperature controlled interior to prevent the microfilm rolls from any damage caused due to high (or low) temperature and humidity.

There are a total of 13,950 microfilm rolls in the repository and they mainly include Crown Representative Records, Foreign Acquisition series, Parliamentary Papers, Jayakar Papers, Rampur Raza Library Papers, and Department Proceedings. Needless to point out that these microfilms hold historic significance of immense value and are treasured as a backup and a parallel archive for the generation next.

The Bhopal National Archives also has a collection of around 3200 books with historic importance which are kept in the library for the scholars, visitors and officials for respective purposes. These books are preserved under special treatment of conservation to prolong the lives for few more hundred years.

One can also avail in-house photocopy services for students and officials in the repository. There are Microfilm Printer and Scanner as well to offer photocopies of microfilm rolls.

Major Attractions and Treasures at National Archives

The major attractions in terms of collection of records are some bunches of private papers received in 1984 from Pandit Chatur Narayan Malaviya, ex-prime Minister of the erstwhile Bhopal State. These records belong to the period 1928 to 1978, and mainly consist of three volumes of the famous research work by Sir John Marshall named “Monuments of Sanchi”.

The other records treasured in the National Archives, Bhopal are the Mutiny Papers housed in the Central Records Office. These are the files that narrate researches on the Chamber of Princes and several other topics all related to the period between the years 1843 and 1949. These records are found either in Persian or in English or a mix of both.

National Archives Museum

There is a museum in the National Archives, Bhopal that was built in 1998 to promote awareness about the archives among the public. It was inaugurated for public view on 6th July 1998 by the then Indian President Shri K.R Narayanan, and other delegates present were academicians, scholars and several diplomats.

There are multiple objects and records of historical significance exhibited in the National Archives Museum. People from different parts of the country and with different preferences and walks of the society do visit the museum. Among the major visitors are school students, foreigners and national tourists interested in history and heritage.

Currently, the museum is under renovation with the aim to upgrade its standard and utility. The officials and personnel are trying to come up with a much more interactive and informative museum to make it use friendly for people from all over the world. This would help them to understand the rich heritage of India. The new and modernized version of the National Archives Museum is planned to be re-launched with the motive of making it an infotainment hub where the visitors would be able to see, touch, feel and interact as per their choices and topics of interest.

Research Room of National Archives, Bhopal

One can make a visit to the Research Room of the National Archives of India, Bhopal any day in the week from Monday to Friday from 9:30 am to 5:30 pm. Saturdays and Government holidays are shut for visitors in the Research Room.

Anyone who is interested in taking admission to the allied sections of Oriental Records, Private Archives, NAI Library, and Cartography Section must complete the enrolment procedures. The admission process is regulated and controlled by the Ministry of Home Affairs and monthly or regular passes are issued to grant them permission.

There are online registration faculty coming up in the days ahead where the users would require to provide their personal details to be granted with online passes for entry into the Research Room of National Archives, Bhopal.