New Delhi. Amidst the ongoing political debate over the legacy of former Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and his historical contribution, Congress has described digital archives as an important initiative. Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh said that efforts will continue to defame Nehru and distort history, but the digital archive will act as a 'shield' to preserve his legacy.
Jairam Ramesh said this on the occasion of Nehru's birth anniversary on Saturday. Making an indirect attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said that despite the efforts of those who are misrepresenting history, authentic information about Nehru will be made available to the people.
More than 10 lakh people viewed the digital collection in a year
According to Jairam Ramesh, Nehru Digital Archive has completed one year. During this period it received more than 10 lakh unique visitors and the website pages were viewed more than 40 lakh times.
100 volumes of 'Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru' are available in this digital collection. These include material from the years 1903 to 1964. The total collection is spread over about 77 thousand pages, which contains more than 34 thousand documents and more than three thousand photographs.
Useful platform for researchers and youth
The Congress leader said that this archive provides important primary sources to understand 20th century India. The website has been made smartphone friendly. There is also a facility to search the available content, download it for free and translate it into other languages.
Students, researchers, historians, journalists and common people have been kept in mind in this initiative. According to Jairam Ramesh, this collection can be used by Nehru's admirers as well as his critics.
Preparing to add more content
Jairam Ramesh said that in future, this digital collection will also include letters, photographs, documents, books, films, audio recordings and cartoons published during his lifetime related to Nehru from various sources in the country and abroad.
This digital archive is an initiative of the Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund. Congress says its aim is to preserve Nehru's legacy and pass on historical material to future generations.