Shahin Bepari Lambe
Panaji
Around 35,800 books and other resources of the Department of Archives can now be searched online through its eLibrary, allowing students, researchers, historians and the general public to explore the collection from anywhere with internet access.
Director of Archives Dr Balaji Shenoy said the department intends to encourage young people to read more books and make the collection accessible to everyone. “Around 100 to 150 students/scholars visit the library in a month. After putting the online catalogue live we have already recorded 199 online viewers. We expect interest to grow because people worldwide can now discover what we hold and plan their research visits,” said Librarian at the Department of Archives, Sandhya Bhandankar.
She said the department plans to cover the entire library collection in phases as part of its digitisation drive.
“The department is using the digital platform to understand readers’ requirements,” said Shenoy.
The online catalogue can be accessed through the official website of the Department of Archives.
The library’s collection includes books covering major areas of Goa’s history and heritage. These include Collecção De Bandos…Novas Conquistas by Filipe Nery Xavier, Regimentos das Fortalezas da India by Panduronga S S Pissurlencar, Prakruti ani Sanskriti by B D Satoskar, Goa, Daman ani Diu Swantantra Ladhya Chaitihas by Manohar H Sardesai and A India Portugueza by A Lopes Mendes.
The collection also includes Etnografia da India Portuguesa by Bragança Pereira, A B, Early India by Romila Thapar, Archaeology from the Earth by Mortimer Wheeler, Elements of Hindu Iconography by T A Gopinatha Rao and Coins of Ancient India from the Earliest Times down to the Seventh Century by Alexander Cunningham.
The library also has historical material dating back to the Portuguese period, including books and documents from the 17th and 18th centuries. The oldest book listed by the department is Historie Der Inquisitie tot Goa, published in 1697.
