Union Minister of Culture Gajendra Singh Shekhawat Terms Damage Caused to Rare Sikh Manuscripts & Literature at Sikh Reference Library during Operation Bluestar as ‘Unfortunate Incident’
Union Govt to Take Up Restoration of Rare Manuscripts and Sikh Literature Damaged During Operation Bluestar in 1984 In Consultation with MP Satnam Singh Sandhu
Rajya Sabha MP Satnam Singh Sandhu Demands Restoration Rare Sikh Manuscripts and Handwritten Holy Saroops and Birs at Sikh Reference Library with Modern AI Techniques & Multispectral Imaging
Rajya Sabha MP Satnam Singh Sandhu Raises Issue of Restoration of Sikh Reference Library in Sri Harmandir Sahib in Parliament
New Delhi, 12 March -- Union Minister of Culture Gajendra Singh Shekhawat today said the damage caused to rare manuscripts and Sikh literature at Sikh Reference Library in Sri Harmandir Sahib during Operation Bluestar in 1984 was an ‘unfortunate’ incident. He said the Union government will explore the possibility of the restoration of the damaged Sikh literature at the historical Sikh Reference Library in Amritsar with the cutting-edge digital tools and AI innovations under the ‘Gyan Bharatam Mission’ that aims to preserve, digitise and disseminate India’s manuscript heritage.
The Union Minister Shekhawat said this Rajya Sabha in reply to a question asked by Member of Parliament Satnam Singh Sandhu during the on-going Budget Session of Parliament.
Rising the issue of the restorations of Sikh Reference Library in Sri Harmandir Sahib, Amritsar during ‘Question Hour’, MP Satnam Singh Sandhu said this Sikh Reference Library was established in 1946 in the Golden Temple complex in Amritsar and it had 20,000 rare manuscripts, including the handwritten Guru Granth Sahib and literature related to the entire Sikh history starting from Guru Nanak Dev Ji.
“But when Operation Blue Star was carried out in 1984, Darbar Sahib was attacked and the Akal Takht was reduced to a rubble, the Sikh Reference Library was burned. This happened just like our history was burned in Takshashila and Nalanda University, Sikh history was burned there, and the sacred Guru Granth Sahib was burned,” MP Sandhu said in a supplementary question to Union Minister of Culture Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on ‘National Mission on Libraries’. He demanded restoration of manuscripts and Sikh literature under the Digital Recovery Project with modern AI techniques and multispectral imaging.
In his reply to MP Sandhu’s queston, Union Minister of Culture Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said, “Due to any natural disaster, man-made disaster, and the unfortunate incident that occurred during Operation Blue Star, such assets were reduced to ashes and damaged. Certainly, considering all these challenges, India's historical heritage, which our ancestors had created over thousands of years based on their wisdom, knowledge, and experience, has been destroyed,”.
Shekhawat said under the Gyan Bharatam Mission, which has been launched by the Union government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, to conserve India’s manuscript heritage by preserving, enhancing and making it permanent and everlasting by making use of available latest technologies. He said under this Mission, manuscripts will also be digitized, improved and recreated holistically if possible.
Terming the MP Sandhu’s question on restoration of damaged rare manuscripts at Sikh Reference Library Amritsar as ‘very relevant’, the Union Minister said, “Certainly this is very important and in the coming times, by discussing this issue with the honourable member (M Satnam Singh Sandhu), we will discuss how we can move forward on this issue and how we can take this forward,”.
MP Satnam Singh Sandhu has earlier also raised the issue of Sikh manuscripts and handwritten holy Saroops and Birs missing from the Sikh Reference Library in Sri Harmandir Sahib, Amritsar since Operation Bluestar in January 1984.
Raising the issue in the House through ‘Special Mention’ during the Winter Session of Parliament in December 2024, Sandhu had said the Sikh Reference Library had a vast religious and literary treasure including rare writings and Sikh literature written by Sikh Gurus, saints and devotees, handwritten copies of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji, which were damaged or confiscated during the attack by the security agencies.
The Rajya Sabha Member had said according to the media reports and the SGPC, the library had 12,613 rare books and 512 manuscripts. He said since 1984, major Sikh bodies, including the SGPC, have been raising this issue, but confusion still persists.